Great Southern Mining has struck shallow gold 200m north of its 100 per cent-owned Mon Ami project, 12km south of Laverton in Western Australia. The results raise the prospect of a northern extension to its 1.56-million-tonne resource grading 1.11 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for 55,500 ounces.
The 10-hole, 1392m reverse-circulation (RC) campaign at the company's Blanc Plat prospect was led by 14m at 1.05g/t gold from 36m, including 1m at 6.33g/t. Other hits included 7m at 0.7g/t from 70m, 3m at 1.07g/t from 38m and 6m at 0.66g/t from 108m.
Blanc Plat was already carrying some historical gold smoke, with earlier drilling returning 2m at 4.8g/t gold from 70m and 2m at 3.23g/t from 100m. Those hits support the company’s interpretation of a potential northern extension to Mon Ami.
Almost 65 per cent of mineralisation above 0.2g/t in the latest campaign occurs in the oxide zone. The companyis targeting shallow oxide gold, which could enhance the economics of a small-scale mining operation. Supporting that view, previous metallurgical testwork at Mon Ami achieved average gold recoveries of about 95 per cent from oxide and transitional material using conventional processing methods.
Management says the combined results potentially open a second growth front north of Mon Ami. Blanc Plat lies on the gold-bearing Barnicoat Shear Zone, or a splay, with 200m between the two areas still largely untested. Cross-cutting structures may help concentrate gold along the regional shear, while mineralisation remains open another 425m north to the tenement boundary.
The deeper growth case has already delivered some serious drill-bit encouragement. Earlier holes at Mon Ami returned 16m at 3.37g/t gold from 178m, featuring 4m at 8.54g/t and 2m at 6.86g/t, while other hits included 1m at 7.28g/t within a broader six-metre interval grading 1.83g/t from 150m and 16m at 1.28g/t from 281m.
Another hole struck 19m at 1.12g/t from 213m, including separate one-metre sections going at 4g/t and 5g/t gold, extending Mon Ami mineralisation 55m down-plunge. The hole sits 140m southwest of recent Blanc Plat drilling, while the main Vertical Lode was pushed up to 60m down-dip, giving management growth potential beneath the resource and to the north.
Great Southern Mining managing director Matthew Keane said: “While it is still early days at Blanc Plat, this target is showing signs of being a potential extension to the Mon Ami deposit, which could complement the existing resource.”
With the northern opportunity taking shape, the company will assess the latest RC results in geological context before planning follow-up infill and extensional drilling. Further mapping and surface geochemical sampling may also help constrain the Blanc Plat mineralised corridor.
Blanc Plat and Mon Ami sit on a granted mining licence 12km east of Gold Fields’ Granny Smith processing facility. Great Southern considers Mon Ami a potential near-term development opportunity.
The project already has plenty of its development ducks lined up, with archaeological, ethnographic, flora and fauna surveys, metallurgical and waste-rock studies completed and a haulage route to the sealed Elora-Mount Weld road granted. A cluster of nearby mills could potentially provide future satellite feed or toll-treatment options, should sufficient economic ounces be defined.
Adding geological spice is the historic Ida H underground mine, 8km along the same regional shear. The old-timers reportedly produced 170,650 ounces of gold at an average grade of 22.6g/t, providing a high-grade example of what the structure has hosted elsewhere.
Corporate interest around Laverton is also bubbling. Industrial Minerals recently completed its acquisition of Galleon Metals’ 15-licence, approximately 205-square-kilometre Laverton gold portfolio, providing another example of gold company positioning in the district.
Great Southern currently has plenty of other exploration bullets in the chamber. With drilling continuing at its 100 per cent-owned Duketon project, assays pending from 38 RC holes at Golden Boulder and 18 at Amy Clarke, and diamond drilling ongoing with global gold major Gold Fields at Mt Dillon in northern Queensland, newsflow is likely to be thick and fast.
As Mon Ami grows deeper and with Blanc Plat pointing north, the immediate prize is closer to home. Great Southern has two fronts to chase around its 55,500-ounce resource and a tantalising 200m of largely undrilled ground between them.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Penny Taylor
