The acquisition of several key tenements immediately south of Great Boulder Resources Ltd (ASX:GBR)’s flagship Side Well Gold Project near Meekatharra in Western Australia, increases GBR’s project area by 22 square kilometres with more than 5 kilometres of additional strike on the Ironbark corridor.
GBR has identified priority Ironbark-style targets in historic data from these tenements and prospectivity is strongly validated by numerous old workings and significant prospecting activity.
The company has also pegged four other Prospecting Licences over vacant ground south and west of Side Well and will start immediate reconnaissance work and field mapping.
It will do so, as reverse circulation (RC) drilling continues at Mulga Bill across priority extensional and infill targets. Aircore drilling results from Mulga Bill are expected shortly.
GBR’s core focus is the Side Well Gold Project at Meekatharra in the Murchison Goldfield, where it has an inferred mineral resource of 6.192 million tonnes at 2.6 g/t gold for 518,000 ounces.
Increased potential
“We are delighted to have secured this package of tenements on the southern boundary of our flagship Side Well Gold Project. This acquisition gives us an extra 5 kilometres of strike covering the eastern edge of the Meekatharra greenstone belt,” Great Boulder’s managing director Andrew Paterson said.
“The auger work and mapping we completed late last year indicates a very strong likelihood the Side Well gold camp hydrothermal system extends south into this area and the historic drilling and geochemistry within the tenements supports that theory.
"We also have the Ironbark and Saltbush regional structures continuing south from Side Well into this area, so the lithological and structural setting is highly prospective.
“Given the prospectivity we see here, the team believes this materially increases the enormous potential at Side Well. We’re hoping to start exploring this area as soon as possible, as part of our overall strategy to explore the eastern side of the project and discover multiple Ironbark-style shallow, high-grade gold deposits.”
Acquisition details
Great Boulder is to acquire an 80% interest in nine Prospecting Licences from privately owned Wanbanna Pty Ltd, which is owned by well-known prospector Mark Selga.
The acquisition will cost $60,000 cash and $60,000 in GBR scrip valued at a 5-day VWAP.
These tenements will be operated as a joint venture with Wanbanna free-carried to a decision to mine. Wanbanna retains 100% of P51/2965 and P51/2974 covering the Golden Bracelet and Bourke’s Reward prospects.
The area is known for numerous historic shafts and former mining sites and the tenement package has seen considerable prospecting activities including dry blowing to metal detecting. Yet, the tenement package has largely been left unexplored in recent years.
For an extended period, the area was held privately by prospectors.
Early drilling efforts in the area, similar to those at Side Well, were commonly deemed ineffective due to their shallowness, with many holes less than 10 metres deep in areas where fresh rock is found 40 to 60 metres below the surface.
GBR's field team has also taken a significant step forward by pegging four prospecting licenses over previously unoccupied ground. These licences include three south of Side Well and one northwest of Westgold's Bluebird operation.
Once approved, these tenements will come under the complete ownership of Great Boulder.
What does the future hold?
RC drilling has restarted at the Mulga Bill site, with around 4,600 metres planned for priority infill and extensional targets.
This initiative marks the third phase of RC drilling at Side Well in 2023.
Assay results from the recently completed Phase 2 aircore drilling program are due shortly.
The company also expects to receive final quotes for the planned cultural heritage surveys in the Ironbark corridor, in order to finalise survey dates for priority targets within the 14-kilometre stretch of the corridor.