Special Report: Sultan has hit more paydirt in the prolific Lachlan Fold Belt of NSW, with the discovery of a new ‘outcropping’ high-grade target near its Big Hill porphyry target, part of the Star Plateau project.

Soil and rock chip sampling by Sultan Resources (ASX:SLZ) southeast of the Big Hill gold-copper porphyry target has uncovered this new high-grade target, dubbed “Razorback Ridge”.

This new target is outcropping (basically sticking out of the ground) and high grade, delivering rock chip results of up to 2.25 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and up to 2.65 per cent copper.

Hand samples of gold and copper mineralised outcrops from the new Razorback Ridge prospect. Pic: Supplied

This new large-scale target remains ‘open’ and extends for about 1.5km. Open just means Sultan doesn’t think it has hit the edges of this big anomaly yet.

The entire zone returned four samples over 1g/t, a further eight samples above 0.5g/t gold and five samples over 1 per cent copper at various locations along strike.

“Sultan’s methodical approach and boots on the ground exploration strategy has again paid off, revealing Razorback Ridge: outcropping chalcopyrite, malachite, chalcocite with good gold over a kilometre long, and unreported by previous explorers,” chairman Jeremy King said.

“It is testament to the quality of our now expanded ground position that such outcropping mineralisation can still be discovered walking the ground halfway between Cadia and Boda.”

Razorback is now a priority target for Sultan.

The company is on the hunt for porphyry-style gold-copper and/or epithermal gold mineralisation across the three highly prospective targets at Big Hill, Ringaroo and Tucklan.

Porphyry deposits can produce a lot of metal, and make a lot of money, over a long period of time – a company-changing proposition for any explorer.

And the Lachlan Fold has become a recent hotspot for porphyry exploration, thanks to Alkane Resources’ (ASX:ALK) historic discovery at the Boda project, about 110km north of Newcrest Mining’s (ASX:NCM) big Cadia mine, late last year.

The Razorback Ridge target is marked by a north-northeast striking zone of outcropping skarn-style mineralisation that is exposed for over 1km but was unrecognised by previous explorers.

The zone of skarn-style alteration and mineralisation is developed in limestone host rocks abutting the Big Hill magnetic complex.

Big Hill is marked by a large-scale, buried magnetic high complex showing gold and copper porphyry-style pathfinder soil geochemistry anomalism, high-grade rock chips up to 2.5 per cent copper and outcropping porphyry style alteration at surface, and is undrilled.

The mineralisation at Razorback shows similarities, but over a far greater strike length, to the high-grade Gowan Green skarn target 2.6km to the northwest, where rock chips up to 24.6g/t gold and 26.1 per cent copper were returned from mullock sampling.

Both Gowan Green and Razorback Ridge sit on the periphery of the main Big Hill Magnetic Complex.

Sultan says the discovery of historically unrecognised outcropping chalcopyrite, malachite, azurite and chalcocite in skarn with up to 2.25g/t gold and 2.65 per cent copper exactly halfway between Cadia and Boda confirms the company’s interpretation of the high prospectivity of the Star Plateau project.

Site photo, looking north, of Razorback Ridge showing the skarn trend and the location of a silica, chlorite pyrite and hematite altered chalcopyrite mineralised vein breccia. Pic: Supplied.

Confidence to ramp up exploration attack

This new discovery has given Sultan even more confidence to step up its exploration blitz, with an induced polarisation survey being fast-tracked at Razorback and set to start in October.

“Razorback adds even more compelling ingredients to our Big Hill Porphyry target, giving us more confidence to fast track further exploration not only around Big Hill and Razorback, but at Ringaroo and Tucklan where we eagerly await IP and soil results, as we turn toward drilling,” King said.

Sultan has completed infill and extension soil sampling and is awaiting the results.

The company has also expanded its landholding in the Lachlan Fold to 120sqkm with the lodgement of a tenement application for 11.45sqkm that lies along strike between the Big Hill and Ringaroo targets.

Sultan says it secures an important ground position between the company’s two priority porphyry targets.

 

This article was developed in collaboration with Sultan 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.