Solstice Minerals (ASX:SLS) has identified multiple new growth opportunities at its Nanadie Copper-Gold Project in Western Australia following an updated geological review.
The review significantly expands the exploration search space beyond the existing deposit, identifying the nearby Stark copper prospect as a similar style mineralised system to Nanadie.
Located 1km southeast of Nanadie, Stark opens potential for strike extensions and structural repetitions in sparsely explored soil-covered areas.
Stark hosts significant copper intercepts from historical reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling, including 40m @ 0.44% copper and 17m @ 0.65% copper in SRC21005, 10m @ 1.05% copper in NRC15002, and 30m@ at 0.56% copper and 10m @ 0.49% copper in NRC14008.
“Understanding the setting and style of mineralisation is really important to plan efficient exploration into soil-covered, under-drilled strike targets,” CEO Nick Castleden says.
Ongoing drilling at Nanadie has confirmed disseminated, vein, and foliation-controlled chalcopyrite mineralisation in mafic intrusive extending over a strike length of at least 1.2km and remaining open to the north and south.
The drilling demonstrates a strong correlation to a large induced polarisation chargeability anomaly.
Exploration programs and resource growth
Historical wide-spaced reconnaissance RC drilling highlights copper anomalism extending for a further 1.7km northwest to the north of Nanadie, while southern extensions are largely undrilled.
The company is designing programs to assess the expanded exploration window, led by induced polarisation surveys and reconnaissance RC drilling to test the Nanadie and Stark geological trends below shallow transported cover.
Copper mineralisation at Stark has been outlined over a strike length of approximately 800m and remains sparsely tested along strike and at depth.
Phase two RC and diamond drilling continues at the Nanadie mineralised system, where the company sees excellent potential to grow the existing 40.4 million tonne mineral resource estimate.
The resource contains 162,000 tonnes of copper and 130,000 ounces of gold at 0.4% copper and 0.1 grams per tonne gold.
Processing of diamond core and dispatch of diamond and RC samples is ongoing, with results expected to be reported in batches over the coming months.
As previously reported by Mining.com.au, Solstice Minerals recently extended mineralisation 160m north of Nanadie’s resource boundary, returning 44m @ 0.52% copper. The system remains open over a 1.2km strike, with diamond assays pending.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Solstice Minerals
