Junior gold explorer Great Southern Mining says a two-hole probe at its Southern Star deposit has confirmed a significant mineralised system. The deposit forms part of the Duketon gold project about 45 kilometres north of Laverton in WA.
The company says both diamond holes intersected a mineralised quartz dolerite unit and gold-bearing assemblages that could be part of a larger system. The standout intersection from the campaign’s opening two holes was a 20-metre strike grading 1.7 grams per tonne gold from 62m. The hit housed a higher grade 1.6m section at 13.2 g/t gold from 76.6m.
According to management the high-grade interval from its latest program appears to be in tune with a previously completed RC campaign that delivered a 68m intersection going 1.9 g/t gold from 61m including 4m at 15.3 g/t gold from 89m and 5m at 7.0 g/t gold from 114m.
The projects aim was to gain a better understanding of the gold mineralisation at the deposit that is open to the north, south and at depth. Two diamond holes were drilled 580 metres apart at opposite ends of the known mineralisation in order to evaluate the structural orientation of quartz veining, folding and foliation.
Great Southern enlisted Outcrop Exploration to conduct a four-day litho-structural analysis in conjunction with its diamond drilling program to help refine a string of targets to be probed in a future campaign.
The drill rig will now be mobilised to Southern Star to drill test several strike extensions in areas with limited historical drilling.
Great Southern Mining’s Executive Chairman, John Terpu, said:“The results clearly demonstrate the significance and potential of the deposit given the noted similarities of mineralisation to the much larger million-ounce open pit and underground gold mine at Rosemount and to the Ben Hur Deposit, both along strike on the same regional mineralised structure. We remain very excited at the potential of Southern Star and the wider Duketon Gold Project for continued exploration success.”
The company’s Duketon project in WA’s prolific north-eastern Goldfields boasts over 450 square kilometres of ground and lies within the fruitful Duketon greenstone belt.
Great Southern has previously said the mineralisation at the deposit is associated with the same quartz dolerite block that hosts Regis Resources' 390,000-ounce Ben Hur gold discovery some 4km north-west. Regis' Rosemont open-pit and underground million-ounce-plus gold mine is also located just 24 kilometres to the north-west.
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By Matt Birney
