DeSoto’s first deep diamond hole has struck the targeted Fenton Shear Zone. Pic: via Getty Images
Mining
Maiden drilling to follow up on a historical 20m intercept grading 1.74g/t gold at DeSoto’s Fenton project appears to have intersected the target zone.
The project covers 55km strike of the FSZ, a major regional structure sub-parallel and similar in scale to the gold mineralised Pine Creek Shear Zone (PCSZ).
Some 2.3 tonnes of gold has been produced from the broader Pine Creek Orogen since the 1870s, while the PCSZ contains about 17Moz of recorded gold deposits hosted in a 60km-long and 1km-wide, NW-SE trending belt.
In the mid-1990’s, Homestake Gold (now Barrick Gold) undertook a global search for deposits like the +40Moz Lead gold deposit in South Dakota, leading them to Fenton due to its resemblance to the host rocks and structure found at Lead.
This led to the discovery of gold with the initial 20m drill hit at 1.74g/t from a down-hole depth of 423m.
Subsequent drilling returning hits such as 55m at 0.89g/t gold from 418m including 20m at 1.74 g/t gold from 423m and 17m at 0.71g/t gold from 610m.
In 2022, DeSoto Resources (ASX:DES) carried out a petrophysical study on 15 samples of drill core collected from Homestake holes to develop an understanding of physical properties of rocks in the Pine Creek region and to assist with the interpretation of geophysical field data.
This demonstrated a correlation of pyrrhotite sulphide mineralisation with high magnetic susceptibility, conductivity, and chargeability responses.
It indicated that geophysics, and in particular electrical methods, would be the key to successfully exploration at Fenton.
Data from subsequent induced polarisation and fixed-loop electromagnetic surveys have led to the definition of drill targets for the drill program that is currently underway.
The company is currently progressing its initial 3,000m drill program with one diamond hole completed and a second underway, which make up the first phase of deep drilling targeting the gold-bearing FSZ intervals.
The first hole is believed to have intersected the FSZ with a number of shears and faults noted during core logging.
Zones of chloritic and potassic alteration containing sulphides such as pyrite, pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite and arsenopyrite have also been observed.
In addition, the company will analyse intervals of pegmatitic granites for battery mineral potential.
Besides drilling the remaining four holes in this initial program, DeSoto is also on track to start a high-resolution airborne electromagnetic survey in early October.
This survey will infill an existing regional scale Rum Jungle TEMPEST survey over the gold endowed FSZ corridor.
Assays from the drilling will also be received over the coming weeks and months.
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.
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