Extensional reverse circulation (RC) drilling by Great Boulder Resources Ltd (ASX:GBR) at its flagship Side Well Gold Project near Meekatharra in Western Australia has discovered broad high-grade gold in a new area at Mulga Bill North prospect, with results such as 29 metres at 3.15 g/t gold from 91 metres, including 8 metres at 6.03 g/t.
The mineralisation at Mulga Bill North now extends over a strike of 1,500 metres, remains open and sits just to the north of the 568,000 ounces at 2.7 g/t gold Mulga Bill deposit.
This latest drilling has confirmed further mineralisation that is to be incorporated into the Mulga Bill North maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE), which would add to the existing Side Well MRE of 668,000 ounces at 2.8 g/t gold.
Exciting development
“This is an exciting development at Mulga Bill North, with a new zone discovered that includes wide, high-grade gold intersections,” Great Boulder managing director Andrew Paterson said.
“The newly discovered mineralisation is hosted within the same unit as Mulga Bill, reinforcing our view that the overall Mulga Bill system has potential for more than a million ounces within the 2.5 kilometres of strike we’ve drilled to date.”
“The team has completed several rounds of RC drilling in the Mulga Bill north area as we continue to bring this area into an expanded mineral resource estimate for the Side Well Project.”
Investors share this enthusiasm with GBR shares as much as 13.34% higher in the first hour of ASX trading to $0.051.
Recent drill results from Mulga Bill North and pending results from RC drilling at Mulga Bill.
New high-grade zone of mineralisation
The RC program, comprising 13 holes for a total of 1,932 metres of drilling, was designed to confirm and infill known mineralisation, and to test prospective target areas where previous drilling was wider spaced and/or sub-optimally oriented.
RC drill hole 24MBRC047, planned to test up-dip of an anomalous aircore result drilled earlier this year, intersected a new high-grade zone of mineralisation not previously recognised at the prospect.
Multiple zones of significant grade gold were intersected within this drill hole, with a best intersection of the aforementioned 229 metres at 3.15 g/t of gold from 91 metres, including 8 metres at 6.03 g/t.
Other broad, significant intersections within the hole include 13 metres at 1.43 g/t from 72 metres and 15 metres at 1.12 g/t from 133 metres, including 4 metres at 3.26 g/t.
Additionally, drill hole 24MBRC053 returned 8 metres at 5.67 g/t of gold from 103 metres, including 3 metres at 12.67 g/t from 103 metres.
Mulga Bill North cross-section.
Results to inform MRE
The company expects to receive results from the latest drilling, geochemical and geophysical programs over the coming four weeks, providing strong news flow into the new year. Results will be used to inform mineralisation interpretation for the Mulga Bill North maiden MRE.
Paterson added, “There is still an additional 1-kilometre of strike further to the north which to date has only been tested by shallow aircore drilling.
“We believe that there is the potential for substantial resource growth in the north, particularly considering that we have now discovered and defined high-grade gold in the Mulga Bill host unit, and we have only just begun to test this trend.
“Meanwhile, we have metallurgical test work ongoing and the mining agreement negotiation is underway which will allow us to have mining leases granted.
“These workstreams will assist with derisking the Side Well Project and will provide a framework for development studies.”
Further priority drilling in the new year is planned to better define these newly discovered zones of mineralisation and to target the highly prospective dacite corridor.
Wanbana Joint Venture tenements
Since completing its 2024 drilling activities, GBR’s field team has begun auger sampling over the newly acquired Wanbana Joint Venture tenements at the southern end of the Side Well Project to define new gold and pathfinder targets.
Heritage surveying in the first quarter will then allow drill testing of these new areas.
A team of geophysical contractors is on site, extending coverage of the company’s gravity survey over these new tenements. Results and analysis are anticipated in January.