Saturn raises $3m for multi-pronged drill assault at Apollo Hill

Special Report: Popular explorer Saturn now has $4.5m to upgrade the flagship 781,000oz Apollo Hill resource and test Calypso, an intriguing ‘blue sky’ target 3.5km away.

Right now, raising money is a tough ask for any listed company.

Saturn Metals (ASX:STN) says its $3m placement was “strongly supported” by new and existing institutional investors, which indicates real confidence in the explorer’s growth prospects.

Saturn now has the money to drill towards an upgrade of the 781,000oz Apollo Hill resource. The immediate focus here will be the recently discovered high-grade Apollo Hill hanging-wall lodes.

A 5000m, drilling program is due to kick off in April, targeting recent thick and high-grade intersections in the hanging-wall including 12m at 9.98 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, 269m from surface.

But Saturn is still getting its head around the potential size and scale of this thing. A new geological interpretation suggests a westerly-dipping structural corridor, the company says, “and several potentially hidden high-grade opportunities”.

Drilling is being reoriented to test this concept with an initial 2500m planned, the company says.

Another 4000m of air core drilling is planned for May across the newly discovered “camp scale” Calypso, Eros and Eagle Eye trends.

Significant early stage intersections at Calypso — only 3.5km from Apollo Hill — include 3m at 24.6g/t gold, 119m from surface.

Calypso could represent a new style of mineralisation that could “repeat on multiple interpreted structures across a larger scale structural corridor”, the company says.

Saturn’s Ian Bamborough says this successful raising puts the company in a great position “as we seek to test our exciting new concepts and follow up on the best intersections ever seen across the Apollo Hill project”.

“High grades in the hanging-wall at Apollo Hill, and now across the broader camp, are offering an exciting opportunity for next level discovery,” he says.

“With a strong balance sheet, a robust resource base from which to grow, and exciting new targets to test, I look forward to the results flow and a prosperous future for Saturn Metals.”

NOW WATCH: 90 Seconds With… Ian Bamborough, Saturn Metals

This story was developed in collaboration with Saturn Metals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

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