Astral Resources NL (ASX:AAR) has received the first 23 assay results from its 26-hole reverse circulation (RC) drilling program at the Kamperman Prospect, part of its Feysville Gold Project near Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. Results demonstrate continuity of gold mineralisation and the robustness of the current geological interpretations along 450 metres of strike at the prospect, which remains open to the north and east.
“This 26-hole drill program is arguably the most successful program completed to date at Kamperman,” Astral Resources managing director Marc Ducler said.
“These latest results confirm our geological interpretations with, pleasingly, a broad 30-metre-wide zone of consistent +2g/t gold mineralisation defined across multiple sections in the southern zone at Kamperman.
“Mineral Resource estimate work is now underway at Kamperman following receipt of these latest results, while the Rogan Josh and Think Big estimations are currently being finalised.
“The focus is now turning to the Theia Deposit at the Mandilla Gold Project, with the first phase (6,000 metres) of in-fill RC drilling expected to get underway next week.
“Following the completion of the Phase 1 program, Astral will return to Feysville following up the significant gold anomalies that were announced earlier this month in an area to the north-west of Kamperman.”
Significant gold and nickel mineralisation
The Feysville Gold Project is within the north-northwest trending Norseman-Wiluna Greenstone Belt, within the Kambalda Domain of the Archean Yilgarn Craton, and around 14 kilometres south of the KCGM Super Pit in Kalgoorlie.
The belt features significant gold and nickel mineralisation, including world-class deposits such as the Golden Mile Super Pit in Kalgoorlie owned by Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX:ASX:NST) and Gold Fields Ltd’s St Ives Gold Mine south of Kambalda.
Feysville hosts an existing mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 3 million tonnes at 1.3g/t gold for 116,000 ounces of contained gold at the Think Big deposit. This provides a foundation for the project to potentially become a source of satellite ore feed to a future operation based on Astral’s flagship Mandilla Gold Project.
RC drilling results
The in-fill drilling results support the interpretation of a high-grade west-dipping zone of gold mineralisation at Kamperman, extending from north to south over 450 metres of strike that was previously delineated via RC drilling.
Extensional drilling demonstrated that the mineralisation at the prospect remains open to both the north and east.
Assay results from the RC drilling program included:
- 38 metres at 2.12g/t Au from 42 metres;
- 34 metres at 2.24g/t Au from 33 metres;
- 19 metres at 3.32g/t Au from 32 metres including 1 metre at 32.78g/t Au from 48 metres;
- 18 metres at 1.51g/t gold from 28 metres;
- 19 metres at 1.35 g/t gold from 25 metres;
- 8 metres at 2.4 g/t gold from 20 metres;
- 11 metres at 1.38 g/t gold from 17 metres, and 12 metres at 1.99 g/t gold from 78 metres;
- 3 metres at 5.45g/t Au from 64 metres, including 1 metre at 15.15g/t Au from 65 metres;
- 13 metres at 1.13 g/t gold from 39 metres;
- 8 metres at 1.64 g/t gold from 35 metres;
- 14 metres at 1.16 g/t gold from 118 metres;
- 11 mettres at 1.24 g/t gold from 39 metres; and,
- 4 metres at 3.09 g/t gold from 67 metres.
These drilling results will underpin a maiden MRE for Kamperman, on which work has already commenced and expected to be completed in the September quarter as part of an updated MRE for the wider Feysville Gold Project.
Importantly, Astral highlights that Kamperman represents a potential valuable source of high-grade satellite feed for the Mandilla Process Plant, as was contemplated in the September 2023 scoping study.
Here are the collar locations for the 26-hole drill program at the prospect:
Assay results for the remaining three holes from the 2,808 metre RC drilling program are pending.
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