ASX-listed base and precious metals explorer, Si6 Metals has identified a string of polymetallic anomalies at its flagship Maibele North project in Botswana while the company’s deep diamond drill hole continues its journey to approximately 550 metres depth targeting nickel sulphide mineralisation.
The Maibele North project area covers about 1,500 square kilometres of landholdings comprising seven leases in the vicinity of the revered Limpopo Mobile Belt and Zimbabwean Craton in eastern Botswana and is located about 400km north-east of Botswana’s capital city, Gaborone.
Maibele North nickel sulphide mineralisation relates to ultramafic intrusions within mobile belt rocks and, Si6 says, may be broadly similar in style to other ultramafic intrusion-related mobile belt nickel discoveries such as Nova-Bollinger and Julimar in WA.
The Perth-based company completed more than 20 square kilometres of geophysical surveying at a line spacing of 100m across the Airstrip and Dibete prospects last month, testing for deep sulphide deposits potentially “feeding” into the high-grade mineralisation observed close to surface.
According to Si6, the gradient array induced polarisation survey showed strong chargeability responses that are often coincident with elevated copper levels in soil sampling, and in some cases, high-grade copper and silver mineralisation in historic drill holes.
Multiple copper-silver and nickel-copper-platinum group elements targets have been generated at each prospect and are now earmarked for follow-up electromagnetic geophysical work prior to a round of planned RC drilling in the current quarter.
Si6 Metals Chairman, Patrick Holywell said: “The results achieved from the induced polarisation studies carried out over the Airstrip and Dibete prospects demonstrate that multiple significant anomalies are present and very much put us on the front foot to continue with a successful 2021 program in Botswana.”
“Whilst Anomaly 1 at Airstrip demonstrates high chargeability zones extending along strike towards the Maibele North nickel-copper-PGE orebody, Anomaly 2 is an entirely new exploration target for Si6 Metals representing strong potential to contain both Airstrip-style high-grade copper-silver mineralisation as well as Maibele North-style nickel-copper-PGE mineralisation.”
The company says the copper and silver mineralisation at both Airstrip and Dibete appears similar in style and geology to the historically significant Messina copper deposits about 230km to the south-east in South Africa.
Si6 also managed to bore down to about 320m before Christmas as the Maibele North diamond drill hole vectors in on a deep electromagnetic anomaly identified by geophysical surveying below the existing Maibele North resource.
Drilling has been missing in action at Maibele North for more than five years. Results from previous drilling by Botswana Metals culminated in a mineral resource estimate over Maibele North of 2.38 million tonnes ore at an average grade of 0.72 per cent nickel and 0.21 per cent copper.
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By Matt Birney
