Wia Gold (ASX:WIA) has returned thick and ‘high-grade’ gold intercepts from outside of the existing mineral resource at the Kokoseb deposit within its Damaran Gold Project in Namibia.
The results, generated by 7 step-out reverse circulation (RC) holes, have returned ‘high-grade’ intercepts of up to 17.13g/t Au from about 150m beneath the existing Central Zone mineral resource pit shell.
Wia Gold reports drilling has also extended the southern ‘high-grade’ plunging shoot about 100m down-dip from the existing Southern Zone mineral resource pit shell.
Key results include hole KRC094 with 32m @ 1.73g/t Au from 311m; and hole KRC086 with 3m @ 5.96g/t Au from 282m, 37m @ 9.46g/t Au from 291m, including 15m @ 17.13g/t Au from 292m, and 6m @ 2.41g/t Au from 333m.
As of 2:50pm (AEST), Wia Gold’s share price had increased by 24.14% to $0.036.
Drilling is currently ongoing along strike in the Kokoseb exploration target area, with the goal of rapidly defining mineral resources for this zone.
Commenting on the results, Wia Gold Executive Chairman Andrew Pardey says: “Kokoseb, once again, is revealing its outstanding potential. Following the recent announcement of the initial mineral resource estimate of 1.3Moz at 1.0 g/t Au (0.5 g/t Au cut-off), the latest RC drilling results have returned very high-grade, thick mineralised intercepts beneath the existing US$1,800/oz resource pit shells.
Hole KRC086 confirms that high-grade mineralisation extends to almost 200m below the existing resource. It is also noteworthy in that it has an unconstrained intercept of 68m at 5.72 g/t Au, which includes a series of 1m samples at over 10 g/t Au, from which one is over 90 g/t Au and two are in the order of 50 g/t Au. Such a coherent zone of very high-grade mineralisation at depth opens a new and exciting chapter for the overall scale and grade potential of Kokoseb.
“Kokoseb, once again, is revealing its outstanding potential”
A second drill hole, KRC094, located at the Southern Zone, extends by approximately 100m down-plunge from the existing mineral resource estimate shell the mineralised shoot previously interpreted. Both results are expected to have significant positive implications for further updates to the mineral resource estimate. RC drilling also continues in the area of the Kokoseb Exploration Target, testing for deposit extensions along strike from the currently defined mineral resource.”
Wia Gold is a gold-focused exploration company with advanced exploration projects in Côte d’Ivoire and a ‘highly prospective’ land package in Namibia. The company’s Kokoseb Gold deposit is located in the northwest of Namibia, which is a country well-recognised as a mining jurisdiction with an established history as a ‘significant’ producer of uranium, diamonds, gold, and base metals.
The project is situated about 320km by road from the capital city of Windhoek and lies within the Okombahe exploration licence, which is held under a joint venture (JV) between Wia Gold and state-owned mining company Epangelo. The deposit hosts a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of 1.3Moz @ 1g/t Au, at a cut-off grade of 0.5g/t Au, including a ‘higher-grade’ gold portion of 0.72Moz @ 1.5g/t Au using a cut-off grade of 1g/t Au.
Write to Adam Drought at Mining.com.au
