Gold explorer Great Southern Mining (ASX:GSN) is planning to start reverse circulation (RC) drilling at the Southern Star prospect within its Duketon Gold Project in Western Australia.
The company reports this program will aim to test extensions to known gold mineralisation both at depth and along strike to the north and south, where geochemical anomalies have been identified.
Additionally, this program will test a parallel trend to the west that Great Southern Mining interprets to lie along strike from Regis Resources’ (ASX:RRL) Ben Hur deposit, about 3km to the north.
The upcoming RC drilling program follows a 68-hole, 3,445m aircore (AC) drilling program conducted across the Golden Boulder prospect.
The company says the AC program was designed to extend the mineralisation along strike to the south, with lines spaced about 200m perpendicular to the interpreted mineralised trend. Additionally, new intersections along the predicted line of mineralisation have ‘substantially’ increased the strike of Golden Boulder, with a 1.6km anomalous gold trend now defined.
‘Significant’ intersections recorded at Great Boulder Main include 23GBAC022, with 12m @ 1.3g/t Au from 44m, including 4m @ 2.4g/t Au from 48m; 23GBAC057, with 12m @ 0.6g/t Au from 20m, including 4m @ 1g/t Au from 24m; and 23GBAC059, with 4m @ 2.4g/t au from 44m.
Meanwhile, a ‘standout’ intersection recorded at Great Boulder East comes from 23GBAC008, with 8m @ 3.9g/t Au from 44m, including 4m @ 6.8g/t Au from 48m within the chert horizon.
Great Southern Mining is still awaiting some bottom-of-hole multi-element assay data from this AC program.
Once the assays are received, the data will be collated with known mineralised gold trends and geological interpretation to plan the next phases of AC and RC drilling at Duketon.
Commenting on the results, Great Southern Mining Managing Director Matthew Keane says: “This latest drilling program has returned both significant gold intercepts and continuity of mineralisation along multiple trends, increasing our confidence of an emerging discovery at the Golden Boulder prospect.
“GSN’s primary objective for 2023 is to advance 3 advanced prospects within the Duketon Gold Project”
This prospect sits along a well-endowed structural trend that hosts multiple gold deposits. GSN’s primary objective for 2023 is to advance 3 advanced prospects within the Duketon Gold Project, namely Southern Star, Golden Boulder, and Amy Clarke, in order to define material gold resources within the company’s 100% owned tenure.”
Great Southern Mining also reports the Great Boulder East line is defined by a small number of deep workings running parallel to the Golden Boulder Main trend. Drilling here targeted a ferruginous and strong sheared quartz structure within a volcanic unit close to the contact of a ferruginous chert striking north-northwest to south-southeast.
The company believes this chert package is acting as a trap for gold mineralisation and notes logging recorded a mixed package of shale and chert bands with gold hosted within the chert horizon.
Great Southern Mining is an ASX-listed gold explorer with projects in Western Australia and Queensland. In Western Australia, the company holds the Duketon Gold, Mon Ami Gold, and East Laverton projects, while in Queensland, the company holds the Edinburgh Park Project.
Write to Harry Mulholland at Mining.com.au
Images: Great Southern Mining Ltd
