Drilling results have confirmed large copper-zinc-lead-silver targets at the Rockley Project of Alkane Resources Ltd (ASX:ALK, OTC:ALKEF) in Central West New South Wales, Australia.
“Alkane’s exploration team is using its considerable experience to advance exploration on another of our tenement packages, the Rockley Project,” Alkane managing director Nic Earner said.
“We’re looking for large VMS or skarn-type deposits that contain gold or base metals, particularly copper.
“These results are encouraging; we have identified multiple occurrences of mineralisation and have several large targets within the project area. We will conduct further scout drilling on the most prospective of these targets in the coming months.”
Rockley Project is 35 kilometres south of Bathurst in the Central West of NSW and to the southeast of Alkane's Tomingley Gold Operations near Dubbo. It contains a number of historical workings and prospects, including the Apsley Mine.
The project consists of three exploration licences (EL8174, EL8527 and EL9107) and is considered highly prospective for volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS), gold rich-deformed VMS (McPhillamys-type) and porphyry gold-copper with associated skarn deposits.
The Rockley Project.
Greenfield exploration over several years has identified several prospects within the Apsley exploration licence (EL8527).
Exploration has included an airborne electromagnetic survey, followed up with ground fixed loop EM over two of these targets.
Soil geochemistry and rock chip sampling over an irregularly shaped magnetic feature of greater than 1 square kilometre has confirmed widespread calc-silicate alteration and copper-zinc-lead-silver skarn mineralisation.
The drilling results
Alkane recently completed seven scout slimline RC drill holes targeting multi-element and multi-point soil and rock chip geochemical anomalies and/or historical workings.
Six of the seven drill holes intersected copper-zinc-lead-silver skarn mineralisation. Significant assay results included:
Drill hole ASRC005 - 62 metres grading 0.12% copper, 0.39% zinc and 4.0 g/t silver from 6 metres, which included:
- 3 metres grading 0.44% copper, 0.64% zinc, 0.34% lead, 0.14g/t gold and 29.8 g/t silver from 20 metres; and
- 3 metres grading 0.11% copper, 1.33% zinc and 5.4 g/t silver from 65 metres.
Drill hole ASRC004 - 14 metres grading 0.14% copper, 0.41% zinc, 0.04 g/t gold and 2.7 g/t silver from 22 metres, which included:
- 2 metres grading 0.49% copper, 0.30% zinc, 0.11 g/t gold and 6.1 g/t silver from 25 metres; and
- 3 metres grading 0.10% copper, 0.80% zinc, 0.39% lead and 4.1 g/t silver from 29 metres.
Drill hole ASRC001 -
- 12 metres grading 0.13% copper and 0.19% zinc from surface;
- 15 metres grading 0.14% copper and 0.23% zinc from 33 metres; and
- 5 metres grading 0.14% copper and 0.17% zinc from 67 metres.
Additionally, mapping with rock chip sampling recorded significant grades of copper, zinc and lead at Apsley, Belmore East and Red Hill prospects and the recently discovered Stewarts Prospect.
Alkane has further target generative exploration planned for the next 12 months including mapping, rock chip sampling and soil sampling.
Further scout drilling is also planned for Stewarts, Red Hill and Cow Flat South as well as testing the ground EM plates generated at Belmore East and Red Hill South.
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