Grading of up to 100g/t gold has set the scene for a significant resource upgrade for Greenstone’s Burbanks gold mine in WA. Pic via Getty Images.
Greenstone ready to grow high grade Burbanks gold resource after 10km drill drive
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Superb high grade drill results have set the scene for a significant resource upgrade at Greenstone Resources’ Burbanks gold mine near Coolgardie, hitting gold grading up to 100g/t at the historic Goldfields mine.
A Phase-1 drill program is now complete at the project just 9km south from the gold rush mining town of Coolgardie, known colloquially as the Mother of the Goldfields, where Greenstone Resources (ASX:GSR) owns one of the biggest and highest grade undeveloped resources in the region.
With 10,000m of drilling outside its high grade resource of 3.4Mt at 2.5g/t gold for 277,547oz and a significant exploration target adjacent to that bounty, a resource update is expected within the next four weeks.
A phase 2 campaign has already started, drilling 15,000m into down-dip extensions of known high-grade plunges.
Some of the high grade intercepts from the now completed Phase-1 program include:
- BBRC416D: 5m at 21.04g/t gold from 295m, including 0.79m at 99.35g/t Au from 295.96m and visible gold.
- KHRC012D: 12m at 6.07g/t Au from 100m, including 1m at 51.7g/t Au from 110m; and,
- BBRC396D: 2.24m at 12.9g/t Au from 238.56m, including 1.17m at 23.35g/t Au from 238.56m.
Those bode well for the validation of a JORC 2012 exploration target of 3.3-3.6Mt of ore at 2-2.8g/t Au for 215,000-330,000oz of gold. That is before including another 2km of untested strike.
Burbanks is already the only resource with a grade at or in excess of 2.5g/t boasting over 250,000oz within 100km of Kalgoorlie, a city known for its mining infrastructure, skilled workforce and multitude of gold processing plants.
Epicentre of gold
That location is important for Greenstone managing director and CEO, who noted the high grade results being routinely returned by the explorer came from a project at the epicentre of the Australian gold industry.
He said the assay results exceeded expectations.
“The Phase-1 drill campaign has continued to exceed our expectations, serving to confirm the continuity of mineralisation outside of the existing mineral resource as well as identifying multiple high-grade parallel structures,” Hansen said.
“Following the recent completion of the Phase-1 campaign we are very excited to take stock of these results as part of the resource update which is currently underway and expected for release in early-June.
“With Phase-2 already underway, targeting the down-dip extensions of known high-grade lodes, we are looking forward to testing the broader mineralised strike horizon of the Burbanks Shear Zone over the coming months.
“The high-grade nature of Burbanks should not be understated, as over the past ten years since 2012 the average open pit grade has declined 16% to 1.29g/t Au , whereas Burbanks has subsequently joined an exclusive list of ASX listed Australian gold projects with a resource grade >2.5g/t.
“Unlike a number of other Australian gold projects, Burbanks is located in the epicentre of the Australian gold industry – surrounded by a network of existing infrastructure, including processing plants, grid power and sealed road – serving to lower capital intensities and expedite our path to sustainable commercial production.”
Spin-off for Mt Thirsty on the cards
Burbanks is not the only game for Greenstone, which recently announced a massive increase to the resource at its Mt Thirsty cobalt and nickel joint venture with Conico.
An IPO is on the cards focused on spinning off Mt Thirsty as its own company.
“Outside of Burbanks, the updated scoping study for Mt Thirsty continues on schedule following the recent 146% increase in the Co-Ni-Mn resource,” Hansen said.
“The Joint Venture partners at Mt Thirsty continue to work closely in relation to an ownership consolidation and Initial Public Offering (IPO) of the Mt Thirsty project, principally aimed at providing our shareholders with a clear distinction between our base metal and precious metal projects.
“With Phase-2 drilling at Burbanks already underway and drilling across our regional gold portfolio at Phillips Find and Phoenix scheduled to commence this month, as well as the pending metallurgical test work underpinning the Mt Thirsty scoping study, we look forward to keeping shareholders updated on a regular basis.”
Extensions in sight
Not only is the Phase 2 program looking for extensions down dip from known mineralisation, Greenstone is also planning to follow up high grade drill intercepts from late 2022 as much as 1km north along the known mineralised horizon at Burbanks.
Boasting as much as 5.5km of strike, mineralisation extends below the current resource to a depth of around 500m, with the three phase drilling campaign designed to unlock the true geological potential of the asset.
After the second phase of drilling is complete a Phase-3 program is planned consisting of 25,000m aiming at greenfields targets and extensions to 500m below the surface.
This article was developed in collaboration with Greenstone 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.
