Alicanto Minerals Ltd (ASX:AQI) has commenced diamond drilling of high-priority targets at the Falun Copper-Gold Project in Sweden.
The company completed the acquisition of the project in May and then raised $3 million via a placement in August to fund a major drilling program at targets in the immediate vicinity of the Falun copper-gold mine.
The Falun mine was a world-class mine that last operated in 1992. It produced 28 million tonnes at 4% copper, 4 g/t of gold, 5% zinc, 2% lead and 35 g/t of silver but has seen limited modern exploration or drilling since its closure.
Recent fieldwork, including mapping, electromagnetic and gravity surveys, has identified numerous targets which are highly prospective for a Falun-style repeat deposit.
This supports the concept that the historical Falun mine is only a small part of a major mineralised belt stretching over at least 10 kilometres within Alicanto’s Falun permits.
Diamond drilling underway
Alicanto has planned a minimum of 5,000 metres of drilling in the current program to test high-priority brownfield targets near the historic mine.
This program will be the first drill testing of the highly prospective stratigraphy and geophysical targets along strike from known mineralisation at Falun.
Drilling will focus on high-priority targets around the historic mine as well as a highly prospective 3.5-kilometre trend that runs between Falun and the high-grade mineralisation intersected at the Skyttgruvan-Naverberg target.
At the Skyttgruvan-Naverberg target, Alicanto identified significant mineralisation including native silver with assays up to 744 g/t silver, copper mineralisation with assays up to 1.9% copper, anomalous gold values with assays up to 6.65 g/t gold within broader zones of zinc with assays up to 32.4% zinc.
More targets to follow up
Downhole geophysics completed after the discovery drill hole also highlighted a significant electromagnetic conductor that is a key target for follow-up.
A series of untested gravity targets are also present along the key mineralised horizon that are highly prospective for high-density sulphide mineralisation and are also key targets for the current drill program.
Historic data model
Available historic data for the Falun mine has been uploaded into a comprehensive digital 3D model that has identified a number of prospective brownfield targets.
Several large targets comprising both copper-gold and zinc-copper-lead Falun-style mineralisation have been modelled and illustrate the potential for rapid resource growth in the Falun brownfield environment.
The company controls more than 60 kilometres of the target limestone horizon within its Falun permits and with fieldwork ongoing, it’s expected that further strong targets will be identified.
Potential to create “significant value”
Alicanto managing director Rob Sennitt said: “Our lead-up exploration work has been highly successful in identifying a number of high-priority targets within our key area of interest at Falun.
“We now have a very focused diamond drill program planned to test these targets.
“This brownfields drilling program has the potential to create significant value for Alicanto shareholders. We look forward to the results of the program and confirming the significant opportunity that still exists at and around what was historically a world-class copper-gold mine.”