JUNIOR gold explorer Dioro Exploration NL, which concentrated in recent years on promising diamond prospects at the Ellendale project in the Kimberley, has finally struck paydirt after searching for some years for the illusive orebody.
Recent reverse circulation and rotary air blast drilling by the company and joint venture partner, Mines and Resources Australia Pty Ltd, uncovered significant high-grade gold mineralisation at its Mungari prospect.
Dioro has a 49 per cent interest in Mungari with the remaining 51 per cent held by MRA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Cogema Group.
The Mungari project, about 20 kilometres west of Kalgoorlie, comprises three primary targets: Frog’s Leg, Winston Churchill and White Foil North.
Each was identified from detailed geophysical work over the project area.
Because the Winston Churchill and White Foil North areas are
subject to a mining lease application, the joint venture has not been able to conduct exploration on these targets.
Since January, exploration has focused on the Frog’s Leg target, located south of and adjacent to the Gilt-Edged Mining gold project.
During January, 3,190 metres of aircore drilling was followed by 1,386m of aircore and 729m of RC drilling.
In late February three diamond holes were drilled and a 4,000m RC drilling program was completed in March.
In May, MRA completed a preliminary inferred polygonal resource estimate over the Frog’s Leg project based upon drilling to the end of March, with calculations covering a vertical depth of only 130m and a strike extent of 750m.
This has identified a potential 1.9 million tonnes of ore grading 5 grams per tonne gold for an inferred resource of 314,000 ounces worth an estimated $126.8 million.
Dioro director David McArthur said significant additional resource potential exists at depth and along strike, especially within the 600m of untested lake-covered ground.