Mineralisation has been observed in all holes drilled in the latest campaign by junior explorer PolarX at its Star Canyon gold-silver target at the northern end of its overarching Humboldt Range project in Nevada.
The explorer says its observations from its 10 holes mark a strong start to the program with visual results consistent with the styles of alteration and mineralisation seen in the region.
PolarX is now heading to its Fourth of July claim block in the southern portion of Humboldt Range to plunge a further 10 holes.
The RC percussion drilling started two weeks ago at Star Canyon – an area of high interest for the explorer, exhibiting a gold-in-soil anomaly exceeding 50 parts per billion gold that measures 645m long and 500m wide.
Notably, the Star Canyon anomaly sits within a broader gold anomaly exceeding 30ppb gold in the Black Canyon claims that measure more than 2300m long and 900m wide.
Management says the 10 holes encountered variably-altered and mineralised limestone that is locally intensely bleached and silicified in zones ranging from a few metres to many tens of metres in downhole widths.
It also notes observations of the minerals pyrite, arsenopyrite and stibnite that contain the elements iron, arsenic and antimony – interestingly the aforementioned elements are also important pathfinder elements for gold.
The company is highly encouraged as the early visual results are consistent with the styles of alteration and mineralisation commonly associated with the ‘Carlin-type’ and related deposits in the world-class precious metals province of Nevada.
Carlin-type deposits came to fame in 1961, discovered by the legendary gold miner Newmont Mining Corporation. Since then, the classification has been popping up all over China with further appearances in Australia, Spain and Russia amongst others.
The Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology estimates Nevada’s gold endowment from the Carlin-type alone is 255 million ounces of gold. At today’s prices that amounts to a staggering US$475 billion – a stark testament to the style of deposit’s significance.
Interestingly, PolarX’s holdings are only 180km west of Newmont’s original discovery site and the origin of the highly sought-after deposit.
Of further note are the two significant and large-scale operating mines surrounding the explorer to the northwest and south: the Florida Canyon gold mine and the Rochester silver-gold mine.
Interestingly PolarX has said its previously received results compare favourably to the nearby operations and it will no doubt be eager to see the latest results in five weeks when they return from the lab.
Whilst it’s still early days yet for the junior explorer, if it does end up clutching a Carlin-type deposit it may be off to the races for a long time to come.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Matt Birney
