Desoto rock chips add weight to Fenix’s copper-gold potential

Desoto looks to be on the right track with rock chip sampling at its Fenix project in the Northern Territory returning top gold and copper values of 4.1g/t and 6.5% respectively.

The results not only confirm the copper-gold potential of the Copperfield prospect, they also extend its area of known mineralisation by 860m north-northwest of historical rock chips of up to 3.54 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 15.2% copper.

Adding further interest, first pass soil sampling has also confirmed and extended the strike length of the historical soil gold anomaly at the Emerald Springs Anticline Target to about 900m.

Desoto Resources (ASX:DES) now intends to drill test both the Copperfield and Emerald Springs copper-gold targets as part of the broader Fenton gold drilling program.

Top results and new targets

“We are very pleased with these initial copper-gold assays from the Fenix project that confirm the potential of the project to return high-grade results and deliver new targets for drill testing,” DES managing director Chris Swallow said.

“The results from Copperfield and Emerald Springs also demonstrate the prospective nature of the Pine Creek Oregon, host to multiple world-class deposits.

“These results, as well as the pending assays, demonstrate the company’s ability to generate exploration targets from largely greenfield areas of interest with most of the project untested by modern exploration techniques.”

Sampling and mapping work at the Shoobridge West and Shoobridge East prospects will be completed during the second quarter of this year.

Fenix sampling

Initial reconnaissance mapping and sampling at Fenix consisted of 81 samples taken across the three licences – EL31356, EL31899 and EL32148 – that make up the project.

This was designed to field validate existing datasets, confirm historical targets and conduct a regolith assessment to determine the amenability of the new project area for soil sampling.

A total of 35 samples were taken from Copperfield, a 8km2 area with numerous small historical copper-gold workings particularly in the east where up to 2g/t gold and 0.32% copper have been recorded in separate rock chips.

Over at Emerald Springs, the initial field program has confirmed the local geology to be a gold prospective Pine Creek anticline position comprising the Koolpin and Welltree Formation stratigraphy and Zamu Dolerite at the southern extent of the Burrundie Dome.

The soil sampling has defined a coherent >20 parts per billion gold anomaly over a 900m strike which is associated with elevated arsenic values.

This article was developed in collaboration with Desoto Resources, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.