Tolu Minerals Ltd (ASX:TOK) has finished Phase 1 of its Airborne Mobile Magneto Telluric (MT) survey over the Tolukuma area in Papua New Guinea.
The survey revealed significant copper-gold porphyry and epithermal gold mineralisation targets, which are now ready for drill testing.
These discoveries, and the technologically advanced interpretation methods Tolu is using to uncover them, will help not only to fast-track a potential expansion of the Tolukuma mine but also to rapidly build a portfolio of significant assets.
The company now has options for progressing an “aggressive exploration program and development strategy” and has proved that the decision to conduct the survey earlier than scheduled was a sound one.
Continuous mineralisation
Preliminary results show a significant conductivity anomaly within Mining Lease 104, with continuous mineralisation extending over two kilometres beyond the southern boundary of the Tolukuma mine.
The survey also uncovered the Belavista advanced target, 10 kilometres west of the Tolukuma mine.
Historical sampling at Belavista yielded 8.88 g/t gold, 140 g/t silver, 990 parts per million (ppm) copper and 5.6% zinc, suggesting porphyry mineralisation within sulphide veining.
Other advanced targets include the Idave and Karame epithermal systems, which are interpreted to replicate the Tolukuma vein system.
These targets are 2.5 kilometres and 4 kilometres to the west of Tolukuma, respectively.
The underlying ‘Tolukuma Porphyry’ target extends five kilometres to the west beneath the Tolukuma Gold Mine, with the porphyry system believed to be the main driver of the gold mineralisation.
To date, more than 700 square kilometres of the contracted 2,200 square kilometres have been surveyed.
Survey continues; drilling to follow
The survey will now continue over the Ipi River and Mount Penck tenement areas.
Final modelling results along with computer-generated structural analysis are awaited to delineate additional drill sites and advanced targets.
Drilling at these newly identified targets is expected to start once final modelling and structural analysis results are in.
“It is very pleasing that the preliminary results of the airborne MT flown over the mine and adjacent areas have delivered compelling results,” enthused managing director and CEO Iain Macpherson.
“A number of anomalous zones identified by the Airborne MT point towards additional mineralised targets over the Tolukuma gold mine and surrounding areas, providing immediate drill targets that have the potential to significantly grow the mineral resource estimate and ultimately the production scale of the operation.
“In addition to further demonstrating continuity of the Tolukuma epithermal structures to the south, which is currently our primary short-term target area, we have now defined at least two significant porphyry copper-gold targets as well as near-surface epithermal gold systems at Idave and Karame that are interpreted to replicate the Tolukuma gold system within ML 104.
“The Tolukuma vein system seems to form part of a deeper and larger porphyry system to the west that is driving the mineralisation.
“Further data processing is underway and we look forward to those results as they come to hand.”