Strickland spins rods for Yandal gold hunt

A second drill rig has rolled onto Strickland Metals’ Yandal project in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields region to target high-grade gold intercepts from last year’s reconnaissance air-core (AC) drilling program that pulled up 39m averaging 6.1 grams per tonne, including a 7m core running at 22.2g/t of the precious yellow metal.

The news comes hot off the tail of the company’s revelation yesterday that it has entered the lucrative Serbian gold game after shelling out $37 million to nab the Rogozna project that already boasts a whopping resource of 5.44 million JORC-compliant ounces of gold equivalent.

With $54 million in cash and Northern Star Resources shares in its coffers following the savvy sale of its Millrose project last year, Strickland is in a healthy position to aggressively pursue both projects – and is quickly getting about doing just that.

A reverse-circulation (RC) rig arrived at the Yandal site last week and has already plugged several pre-collars in preparation for the arrival of the diamond rig. Both rigs will remain on site well into the second half of this year to plunge at least 10,000m into a clutch of prospects in the Horse Well gold camp.

And the company is gearing up to keep the rods spinning to follow up on what it expects will be significant results.

Strickland Metals chairman Anthony McClure said: “After our significant acquisition announcement yesterday, we are pleased to announce that our Yandal programs are continuing as originally planned.”

The first target off the rank is the Palomino-Clydesdale trend where the RC drill rig will focus on defining high-quality oxide resources, while the diamond rig will probe depth extensions for high-grade lodes. Palomino and Clydesdale are thought to be part of a bigger combined mineralised system, with Clydesdale being a splay off the main Palomino structure.

Previous drilling at Palomino scored a 17m intercept going 4.6g/t gold from 89m that included 7m running 10.2g/t gold, while a second hole bored through 25m going 3.8g/t gold from 140m including 6m at 13.6g/t gold. Current geological modelling suggests the main Palamino mineralised shear structure continues for at least 400m past the current gold resource envelope.

The diamond rig has a follow-up booking at the Bronco-Konik prospect where the company’s previous attempt with the drill bit highlighted the potential for substantial bulk-tonnage mineralisation.

Interestingly, the Konik discovery hole that delivered 58m averaging 1.7g/t gold from only 17m downhole has since been linked up to historic drilling at the Bronco prospect, which hit thick shallow zones of 79m at 1g/t gold from 10m and a further 95m at 0.7g/t. Gold mineralisation along the Bronco-Konik trend remains tantalisingly open both along strike and at depth.

Several other targets are also scheduled for follow-up RC drilling, including the Warmblood-Filly South and Marwari prospects. Additionally, several lines of RC drilling are planned at the Great Western prospect where the company intersected significant intrusive-related geochemical signatures prospective for gold in drilling last year.

To date, Strickland has etched out a combined mineral resource estimate for the Horsewell gold camp of 2.23 million tonnes at a grade of 2.07g/t gold for 148,000 ounces. The company is aiming to increase that tally as the rigs continue to plumb the depths of the gold system.

Investors are responding favourably to the steady flow of news from the company, with the share price bouncing from 8.4c late last month to a high of 14.5c in yesterday’s trade. With two rigs spinning, market meerkats will no doubt be paying attention, with plenty more news in the company’s pipeline.

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