West Perth-based Zuleika Gold is itching to get the drill bit back in the ground after discovering a 3km-long gold-in-soil anomaly at one of the company’s prospects along the prolific Zuleika Shear zone in the WA Goldfields.
Management says heritage clearance is already in place for more than half the gold anomaly and once final approvals are obtained drilling will begin –possibly as early as March.
According to the company, the geochemical results from approximately 1100 soil samples at its Zuleika project are “very encouraging”, with best results returning 155 parts per billion, or “ppb” gold and an average background of 14ppb.
Zuleika’s 3km coherent gold anomaly sits adjacent to the interpreted location of Zuleika Shear and lies in prospective ultramafic rocks along the zone. The Zuleika Shear has produced more than 20 million ounces of gold over the past 30 years and mines operated by a number of industry majors remain in production to this day.
The company says it has also obtained significant results from soil sampling testing prospective magnetic features and lithological contacts at another of its prospects, Grants Patch West, as it chases up promising results from earlier last year.
The testing achieved a best recorded result of 408ppb gold with an average background of 32ppb. Zuleika says the geochemical testing defines a NE-SW zone of significant gold anomalism in the northern half of the prospect.
Grants Patch West lies about 5km to the east of the southern tip of the Zuleika North prospect and whilst Zuleika notes the anomalism could reflect drainage from nearby mine workings, the company plans to press ahead with its next stage of exploration. Field validation – possibly including infill soil sampling and drilling – will be carried out to determine the exact nature of the anomaly.
Zuleika Gold has a swag of prospects between and around the Carnage, Zuleika and Kunanalling shear zones running south of Ora Banda to Kalgoorlie that together make up its 230 square kilometre Zuleika Project that begins 25km west-north-west of Kalgoorlie.
Zuleika and three other projects – Credo, Coongarrie and Menzies – make up the company’s so-called Kalgoorlie portfolio. It also has a small interest in the partially developed K2 gold mine north of Meekatharra in the East Murchison Goldfield.
Aside from the potential uncovered by the 3km anomaly at the Zuleika Shear, the company has also released updates on activity at other prospects, including nine air-core drill holes at East Credo aimed at infilling existing holes from a campaign earlier in 2022 to test the mineralised trend.
Zuleika says the results reinforced the prospect’s solid potential for shallow mineralisation with best results including 8m at 0.53 grams per tonne gold from 44m, including 4m at 0.77g/t gold.
A program of 21 drill holes at Carnage North prospect for a total of 1,213m failed to uncover any anomalous results and the company will now focus its activities further to the north-west on adjoining tenements along the Carnage Shear. Soil geochemical sampling, aimed at defining new drill targets, is also continuing over the Goongarrie and Menzies East tenements.
With gold prices once more testing the US$2000 level, bullish investors looking for explorers with potential exposure to the increasingly precious yellow metal will doubtless be keeping a keen eye this year on the activities of a number of likely contenders including Zuleika Gold.
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By Matt Birney
