DiscovEx Resources (ASX:DCX) reports recent aircore drilling has found gold and base metals such as nickel, zinc, and copper at its Sylvania Project located 15km south of Newman in Western Australia.
The aircore results are from the recently completed phase one drill program, where a total of 109 holes for 6,060m were completed with drilling conducted at an initial 5 prospect area previously defined by a multi-staged soil geochemistry program.
This work program represents the first ever drilling completed in the area, specific for gold and base metals with historical drilling targeting iron ore potential.
The results returned from this round of drilling provide valuable information that will be used to refine the geological and structural understanding within the Sylvania Project tenements, and to further progress additional prospects to a drill ready stage.
Significant gold results include 4m @ 76ppb Au (SYAC005) and 4m @ 68ppb Au (SYAC040).
The results have highlighted a number of key structures which may potentially influence gold deposition within the Archaean basement and Fortescue-age rocks.
The results have highlighted a number of key structures which may potentially influence gold deposition within the Archaean basement and Fortescue-age rocks
Drilling also provided much needed and very useful information with respect to the complex regolith regime in the Northern Sylvania Dome.
This information has enabled Discovex to prioritise a number of recently generated geochemical targets, including the high priority Contact prospect, for future drilling programs once the relevant heritage and statutory approvals can be obtained.
Interestingly a number of significant base metal intersections were returned including 1m @ 0.15% Ni and 0.03% Co (SYAC067) and 4m @ 0.11% Ni (SYAC064) from a previously unrecognised older Archaean ultramafic unit, and 4m @ 0.12% Cu (SYAC092) and 4m @ 0.26% Zn (SYAC091) from weathered chert and dolerite within the Fortescue sequence.
The significance of these results is yet to be determined, however they provide promising targets to further assess the base metal potential of the greater Sylvania Project area.
The execution of a Heritage Agreement over the Prairie Downs Resource and surrounding areas will allow exploration activities over these areas to ramp up in the coming months.
DiscovEx Managing Director Toby Wellman said the information collected from the aircore drilling program will help the team refine targets for future exploration.
“As a first-pass drill program in an area completely unexplored for gold, the information we have generated has been invaluable in understanding both the structural controls on mineralisation and more favourable rocks to be focusing on.
“The exploration team can now further refine the target areas and strategies going forward to give the company the best opportunity for exploration success.
“In addition, the base metal results returned provide encouraging targets that enhance the potential of the area, with these to be followed up in due course.”.
The initial phase of reconnaissance aircore drilling included 3,639m at the Peak Prospect, 201m at Dingo, 806m at Carneys, 956m at Bondinis, and 458m at Hilditch.
The work program was designed as a first-pass test of several geochemical anomalies, to gain a better understanding of the anomalous gold and base metal distribution as it relates to geology, structure and regolith profile.
In turn the program was also a test of the effectiveness of the drilling technique in areas of sporadic outcrop.
The development of the weathered bedrock profile was variable and hence restricted the depth penetration of the aircore drilling within certain prospect areas where there was limited regolith development, particularly at Hilditch and Dingo.
Drilling at the Peak Prospect, which was designed to test beneath a large 2.5km long +4ppb Au anomaly, replicated the surface anomaly however intersected a deeper than anticipated overburden channel with depths of up to around 100m.
Lithological units intersected beneath this channel are associated with greenstones of the Sylvania Inlier and included felsic volcaniclastics, dolerites and granites.
Shearing, minor alterations (inclusive of chlorite and pyrite) and quartz veining was intersected, returning anomalous gold (up to 76ppb Au) and copper (up to 354ppm Cu).
The intersected structures show visual and geochemical evidence of being part of a broader mineralised structural network, which is highly encouraging and highlights the potential of the area to host economic structural hosted gold mineralisation.
Similar geochemical results were also returned from the Dingo Prospect, with a best intersection of 4m @ 68ppb Au from 4m (SYAC040).
The anomalous result is hosted within a moderately sheared and chlorite altered east-west trending dolerite, with the shear orientation interpreted as being sub-parallel to north-west trending structures identified from surface mapping and geophysics.
These are likely related to those shear zones intersected in drilling at the Peak Prospect.
The regolith profile within this part of the project is almost entirely stripped with drill penetration reaching depths of less than 10m.
Due to the resultant lack of geochemical dispersion, and hence a limited geochemical footprint, structure and geological observation is key to unlocking the potential of the prospect.
Results returned from the Bondinis Prospect included elevated nickel and associated cobalt from a weathered ultramafic.
This unit had not been previously identified from regional mapping as it is located under a thin (around 2m) veneer of transported cover.
Five aircore holes intersected the unit over a cross-strike length of 450m with the anomalous ultramafic unit open to the east and west.
Additional work is required to define the lateral extents of the prospective unit with detailed mapping planned to be completed as part of the next field visit.
Elevated base metal results were also received from multiple holes at the Hilditch Prospect, predominantly returned from mafic lithologies of the Fortescue Group and included significant intersections of:
- 8m @ 0.09% Cu from 16m and 4m @ 0.26% Zn from 8m (SYCA091).
- 4m @ 0.12% Cu from 8m and 1m @ 0.18% Zn from 19m (SYAC092).
- 7m @ 0.04% Cu and 0.15% Zn from 8m (SYAC100).
- 3m @ 0.21% Zn from 72m (SYAC106).
- 15m @ 0.19% Zn from 56m (SYAC107).
The regolith profile at Hilditch was again poorly developed with only 5 to 10m of weathered bedrock present.
Drilling was completed at the Carneys prospect targeted the western extension of the Jamie Well greenstone with a best result of 12m @ 0.04% Cu and 0.05% Co from 84m (SYAC084).
Intersected geology included mafic derived sediments and black shales, likely from the Fortescue Group; however geochemical fingerprinting of the related lithologies is ongoing.
In conjunction with the aircore drilling, a regional mapping exercise was completed by Lithify Consulting which identified a significant fuchsite altered shear zone coincident with a number of elevated gold, arsenic, antimony, silver in soil results up to 55ppb Au, 34ppm As, 0.56ppm Sb and 0.38ppm Ag at the Contact Prospect.
This partially outcropping structure is the likely source of gold and pathfinder element anomalism at Contact, with this potentially significant fluid pathway now defined over a strike length of approximately 2.5km, before being obscured by transported cover to the northwest.
This target area will be the subject of a future Heritage Survey in preparation for drill testing, anticipated to be completed by the end of the calendar year.
Ongoing negotiations with the Yamatji Marlpa Aboriginal Corporation have concluded, with the execution of a Heritage Agreement covering two key tenements (E52/3996 and E52/3997) that contain the historic Prairie Downs Resource of 2.98Mt @ 4.94% Zn and 1.59% Pb.
Following the execution of the Agreement and the satisfaction of the Native Title Party objection, the tenement will then be recommended for grant.
Once granted, a program of IP geophysical surveys has been proposed to test the Prairie Downs Fault Zone for base metal mineralisation as part of broader assessment of the base metal potential of the entire Sylvania Project area.
DiscovEx Resources is a Western Australian based exploration company with a focus on sensible, thoughtful exploration utilising tried and true methods of discovery within under-explored and under-appreciated geological terranes.
Its vision is systematic exploration leading to discovery and development.
Images: DiscovEx Resources Ltd
