Picture: Getty Images
Greenstone’s shallow gold jackpot points to resource upgrade at Burbanks
Mining
share
A spectacular intercept of 7m at 57.84g/t gold from 90m is the highlight of drilling which is proving the mettle of Greenstone’s flagship Burbanks project near Coolgardie, Western Australia.
The result from hole BBRC371D, which includes a 1m zone grading 375g/t gold from 90m, is part of the current 10,000m Phase 1 drill program that is targeting unclassified mineralisation at the project.
It also supports Greenstone Resources’ (ASX:GSR) recently announced Exploration Target of between 215,000oz and 330,000oz of contained gold, and raises the very real possibility that it could be converted into resources that will add to Burbanks’ current resource of 3.4Mt at 2.5g/t gold for 277,547oz of contained gold.
This is hugely encouraging given that the project is already the 11th largest pre-development resource with a grade of 2.5g/t or more in Australia.
And there is potential for further growth as the drill supported Exploration Target does not include the 2km of untested strike or depth extensions.
Managing director Chris Hansen said the multiple high-grade intercepts in the first holes drilled under the Phase 1 campaign at Burbanks is highly encouraging and in line with historical underground production grades at the project.
“Furthermore, with BBRC371D having returned 1m at 375g/t gold, serves to place the Burbanks Gold Project in the top 10 gold intercepts for predevelopment projects in Western Australia for 2022,” he added.
“Importantly these most recent intercepts serve to highlight the potential to significantly increase the resource base at Burbanks over the coming months through the completion of the 10,000m Phase 1 drill campaign which is targeting the unclassified mineralisation supporting the Exploration Target.
“Following the completion of the Phase 1 drill campaign in March 2023, we look forward to testing the broader strike and depth extensions at Burbanks, which remain open in all directions and are not included in the existing Resource or Exploration Target.”
Phase 1 drilling is continuing with completion expected by the end of March 2023.
Burbanks gold project
The Burbanks project includes the Burbanks Mining Centre – historically the most significant gold producing structure within the Coolgardie Goldfield, as well as over 5.5km of the highly prospective Burbanks Shear Zone.
The Burbanks Mining Centre comprises both the Birthday Gift and Main Lode underground deposits which together recorded historical underground production of 324,479oz at an average grade of 22.7g/t gold from predominantly the upper 140m.
While recent drilling has focused to the north of the Burbanks Mining Centre, contrasting to the past, this work remains too widely spaced to support either Indicated or Inferred resource classifications.
Drilling to date has highlighted two discrete zones of high-grade mineralisation, often hosting coarse visible gold, indicating a zone of intense deformation which subsequently allowed for significant volumes of mineralising fluids to pass through.
This supports the exploration model of multiple high-grade quartz veins parallel to the main mineralised shear zone.
Greenstone has defined a three-phase drill campaign to test the true geological potential of the Burbanks project – the first of which is currently underway.
The second phase will consist of 15,000m of drilling targeting downdip and along strike extensions of known mineralised lodes while Phase 3 will see 25,000m of drilling targeting greenfields targets and extensions down to 500m.
Additionally, an updated resource estimate incorporating results from Phase 1 drilling is expected in June 2023 along with a comprehensive metallurgical study to optimise grind size and leach times for peak gold recoveries.
The company also plans to carry out a Scoping Study or Pre-Feasibility Study in the second half of 2023.
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.
