Barton ramps up Gawler Craton gold hunt
ASX-listed Barton Gold is continuing its aggressive exploration approach at its 100 per cent owned Tarcoola and Tunkillia gold projects in South Australia’s revered Gawler Craton. With the South Australian government contributing up to $300,000 courtesy of its “Accelerated Discovery” initiative, the company has commenced a high-resolution gravity survey designed to refine its new regional structural model and optimise future drill targeting.
Since acquiring the project in 2020, Barton has undertaken a high-resolution aeromagnetic survey, a high-res ground penetrating survey and reinterpreted the seismic data. Through this process the company has identified a new and prospective looking system of shears and faults that it says is analogous to the Perseverance Shear which historically produced some 77,000 ounces of gold between 1900 and 1955 from dirt averaging about 37.5 grams per tonne gold.
Barton says the gravity surveys will initially be undertaken over the Western and Eastern target areas at the Tarcoola project on spacings of 200 metres with 100m spacings adopted in priority target areas. A third survey area will cover the Ealbara target area which overlies the northwest extension of the Lake Labyrinth Shear Zone and is part of Indiana Resources Minos project. Recent air core drilling by Indiana has thrown up some promising early results including 4m at 2.28 grams per tonne gold from 40m.
Barton Gold Managing Director, Alexander Scanlon said: “Barton is continuing its large-scale exploration programs at pace. Following last year’s identification of a new regional structural model at the Tarcoola Gold Project, these surveys are the logical next step in building a more comprehensive understanding of attractive near surface regional exploration targets.”
Barton is currently eagerly awaiting assay results from over 10,000m of drilling at both its Tunkillia and Tarcoola projects.
The company recently said it has wound up phase 1 drilling at its Tunkillia project, about 70 kilometres from Tarcoola. A total of 31 reverse circulation, or “RC” holes were plugged into multiple priority targets during the 5,300m campaign within a stones throw of the 223 Deposit which boasts a JORC-compliant mineral resource of 26.1 million tonnes grading 1.15 grams per tonne gold for 965 thousand ounces.
The 223 deposit has been intercepted over a strike of about 2.5km and is located within a known 16km long hosting structure, much of it under-explored.
According to the company, the drill program was designed to test for the presence of gold mineralisation in potential regional structures identified by renewed geological modelling of the project.
Barton also recently announced it has established an exploration and project management office in Adelaide as part of its commitment to South Australia and the Gawler Craton.
Leading the team is Marc Twining, Barton’s newly appointed Exploration Manager. Twining has over 25 years’ industry experience including a recent stint as the Senior Principal Geoscientist for the Geological Survey of South Australia – a solid background for someone that is just about to embark on a major gravity survey.
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