ASX-listed gold producer, Troy Resources has eked out more solid exploration results at its Karouni gold mine in Guyana, South America, where the company has managed to keep the drill rods turning despite a recent spate of COVID-19 infections on site.
Perth-based Troy, forced to pull its 2020-21 Karouni gold production guidance of 35,000-40,000 ounces in November due to the COVID-19 outbreak and shortage of various supplies, is now looking to build the multi-deposit project’s ore reserves and mineral resource inventory while operating on reduced capacity.
The company has set about increasing the drilling density at its Goldstar prospect, 13km from the Karouni gold processing plant, in the hopes of expanding the mineral resource and possibly proving up a maiden ore reserve there.
Goldstar’s inferred mineral resource estimate currently stands at a near-surface 620,000 tonnes going 1.3 grams per tonne gold for 25,500 ounces predicated on a strike length of approximately one kilometre.
Troy has recently completed 51 RC holes for an aggregate 4,009m or average depth of approximately 79m per hole in an infill drilling program at Goldstar, with about 10 holes to go.
Notable gold hits from the program, drilled at a line spacing of 15m, were 4m grading 24.52 g/t gold from 14m, 3m at 6.03 g/t from 76m, 16m at 1.42 g/t from 16m, 10m at 2.09 g/t from 1m, and 27m at 1.20 g/t from 9m.
Troy also sunk three diamond holes totalling 575m into Goldstar, drilled for the purposes of gaining a better understanding of the geology and controls on the mineralisation. Assay results are yet to be received.
At the promising Smarts NW prospect, where high-grade mineralisation has been identified from previous drilling over a strike length of approximately 600m, the company has embarked on a diamond drilling campaign designed to infill previous drill lines and test for potential extensions.
Eight of the planned nine diamond holes – for an aggregate 1,600m or an average depth of about 180m per hole – have been drilled. Better intersections to date include of 7m at 4.66 g/t gold from 112m, 13m at 2.52 g/t from 99m, and 8m at 3.76 g/t from 109m.
Further drilling is slated for Smarts NW where the gold mineralisation is still open both at depth and along strike to the north-west according to Troy.
Faced with modest ore reserves at Karouni of 1.07 million tonnes at 2.1 g/t for 72,200 ounces of contained gold, dominated by the main Smarts and Hicks deposits, the company will be buoyed by the latest encouraging drilling numbers in its quest to increase the life of the mine.
Troy is also in the process of plunging another four deep diamond holes into the Smarts Underground deposit area, a target below the existing Smarts open pits. It says initial scoping study work points to robust economics for the potential development of Smarts Underground based on a gold price of US$1,500 an ounce.
As at June 30 last year, the company estimated Smarts Underground to be hosting an indicated, inferred and measured resource of 3 million tonnes at 3 g/t for 287,600 ounces of contained gold.
Troy says the four additional diamond drill holes at Smarts Underground were requested by the geotechnical consultant undertaking mapping work to increase confidence in the modelled resource.
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By Matt Birney
