Standout Intersection Bolsters Droughtmaster Potential
Equus Mining Limited (ASX: EQE)has achieved further drilling success at its flagship Cerro Bayo Project in southern Chile.
New assays received from a recently completed nine-hole, 2,044m maiden diamond drilling programme at the greenfields Droughtmaster Prospect, located only 12km from the Cerro Bayo gold-silver processing facility included a significant new intersection of high-grade gold-silver mineralisation at the Percheron Vein target.
The new hole hit 3.81m at 20.4 g/t gold and 55.5 g/t silverfrom 109m, including 1.06m at 62.58 g/t gold and 129.3 g/t silverfrom 112m
Importantly the mineralisation was intersected at shallow depth (<100m) and remains open at depth and along strike with a potential large deeper mineralised zone to be tested with further drilling.
Managing Director, John Braham, said reconnaissance mapping and drilling exploration programs have confirmed the company’s geological model for Droughtmaster, including:
The company has identified widespread high-grade epithermal gold-silver veining centred within a district scale, approximately 4.5km-long NW trending fault corridor, which extends 2.5km to the northwest towards the Equus controlled historic Marcela Mine (Remaining Measured and Indicated Resources of 21.8Koz gold at 2.53g/t gold and 2.74 Moz silver at 318 g/t silver)
Mr Braham said it is interpreted that drill intercepts to date relate to the upper portions of a wide, large-scale epithermal system and good potential exists for discovery of high-grade mineralisation in deeper favourable levels along this fault trend.
“These results from Droughtmaster highlight the potential of this exciting new greenfields prospect,” Mr Braham said.
“The exploration team have done excellent work in identifying an approximately 4.5km-long trend which hosts deeper, high-grade mineralisation, some of which was mined historically.
“Success from our maiden drill testing on the discovery of largely concealed high grade mineralisation has increased both our understanding of the Percheron Vein in the context of the larger Cerro Bayo district system and enhanced confidence in unveiling further greenfield discoveries as we look forward to reporting the balance of assay results from Droughtmaster.
“One of the unique things about the Cerro Bayo District is the near-surface, high-grade potential across a number of deposits and the flexibility that this can bring to a project.
“Following completion of the Taitao drilling this week and the subsequent JORC resource update, the Company will evaluate multiple re-start options for both open pittable and high grade underground resources.”
