Torque Metals Ltd (ASX:TOR) has kicked off a 6,500-metre reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling campaign at the Paris Gold Project near Kalgoorlie at the heart of Western Australia’s Goldfields in a bid to extend high-grade structures.
The campaign will focus on the Observation-Paris-HHH-Eva gold discoveries at the project, which is 90 kilometres southeast of Kalgoorlie and just 12 kilometres southeast of the St Ives gold mine.
Torque hopes it will extend high-grade gold structures at Paris, Observation, HHH and Eva prospects where strong gold results were previously returned and the company is confident that the Paris gold endowment will evolve into a significant resource through this drill program.
Potential for multiple deposits
The company's work at Paris points to the potential to host multiple deposits within a larger mineralised system characterised by parallel structures that are open and splays under the control of the Boulder Lefroy System.
“A 6,500-metre reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling campaign is poised to commence this week at the Paris Gold Project potentially host to multiple deposits within a larger mineralised system, spanning approximately 2.5 kilometres by 1 kilometre remaining open in all directions,” Torque’s managing director Cristian Moreno said.
“Torque believes that Paris possesses the attributes indicative of a tier-1 gold project, largely due to the presence of parallel structures and splays controlled by the Boulder Lefroy System.
Strong previous results
"This conviction finds support in robust gold intercepts, exemplified by drill holes such as 23PRCDD076, yielding 35 metres at 14.12 g/t gold from 157.85 metres, including intervals such as 1.2 metres at 185 g/t gold from 174.7 metres, alongside other notable intersections across various drill holes.”
Hole 23PRCDD07 also returned 4.44 metres at 20.82 g/t gold from 170.3 metres and 2.49 metres at 40.6 g/t from 167.8 metres.
Other strong previous results from 2022 and 2023 drilling campaigns were:
- 22PRC056 – 41 metres at 5.93 g/t gold from 188 metres including 3 metres at 25.54 g/t from 189 metres and 2 metres at 59.35 g/t from 204 metres;
- 22PRC053 – 39 metres at 6.05 g/t from 175 metres including 9 metres at 10.66 g/t from 178 metres and 3 metres at 29.4 g/t from 202 metres;
- 22PRC040 – 27 metres at 10.7 g/t from 177 metres including 6 metres at 32.45 g/t from 183 metres and 12 metres at 19.7 g/t from 177 metres; and
- 22PRC038 – 27 metres at 8.16 g/t from 156 metres including 6 metres at 22 g/t from 159 metres.
The drilling campaign will involve a series of strategically placed drill holes designed to intersect key geological structures identified in the structural model, believed to control the location and grade of mineralisation.
Data collected from this work will be crucial in updating Torque’s mineral resource model and refining and extending exploration targets.
Promising test outcomes
Metallurgical testing of core samples from the Paris and Observation deposits by Independent Metallurgical Operations Ltd has also provided encouragement for Torque.
Paris and Observation gold recovery is ~40% via gravity concentration while Paris achieved 96.79% and Observation reached 99.7% gold recoveries with cyanide leach testing.
The tests have also demonstrated that minimal cyanide soluble copper species pose no issue for gold recovery and that cyanide consumption is low with Paris at 0.43 kg/t and Observation at 0.165 kg/t.
“Metallurgical testing outcomes significantly bolster the project's viability, with gravity and cyanide leaching recoveries achieving very strong results,” Moreno said.
"Gravity concentration yields approximately 40% gold recovery for both Paris and Observation. Impressively, cyanide leach testing demonstrated Paris achieved a recovery rate of 96.79%, while Observation attained an even higher recovery rate of 99.7% with minimal cyanide consumption required.”
What happens next?
Upcoming work planned at Paris over the next two quarters includes:
- RC drilling;
- Soils campaign in recently acquired tenements;
- Maiden mineral resource estimate; and
- Maiden exploration target.
Meanwhile, at the New Dawn Lithium Project, the company plans:
- Metallurgical characterisation by IMO;
- RC and diamond drill campaigns;
- Soils campaign in recently acquired tenements; and
- Maiden mineral resource estimate.