Aircore Drilling Intersects Zone Of Historical Workings
Manhattan Corporation (ASX:MHC) has intersected a new zone of gold mineralisation from its initial Geochemical Aircore drilling campaign of <5,000m of a planned 20,000m programme targeting shallow oxidised mineralisation near surface at the New Bendigo Prospect in NSW, Australia.
Aircore drilling 500m along strike (SSE) of the Main Zone at the New Bendigo Prospect returned 12m at 1.14 g/t Au from surface. The intersection is associated with a zone of workings that extend for at least 600m along an interpreted sinistral fault where it cuts through the New Bendigo Fault.
CEO, Kell Nielsen, said drill planning is well advanced and scheduled to recommence in March to complete the planned, fully funded ~30,000m drilling programmes comprised of Aircore (20,000m), Reverse Circulation Drilling (10,000m) and additional diamond core drilling.
Drilling will now target this trend (NE sinistral structures) in upcoming drilling, as well as infilling and extending the recent new zone of mineralisation intersected 500m SSE of the “Main Zone”. Including further diamond drilling and RC fences placed to target the SW and NE extensions to the NW trending sinistral faults.
“As we continue to explore and drill the Tibooburra Project, we continue to understand and identify significant gold mineralisation,” Mr Nielsen said.
“The newly identified zone to the south of ‘Main Zone’ at New Bendigo, plus the recently identified ‘Clone’ Prospect cements our belief in Tibooburra and its emergence as a significant gold district.”
MHC completed 105 Aircore drillholes (NBAC0001-105) for a total of 4,863m targeting geochemical responses and shallow near surface mineralisation at its New Bendigo Prospect in late 2020. Drilling covered approximately four km of prospective strike along the New Bendigo fault zone, targeting local extensions to and near the current known mineralised zones, and regionally to define the location and extent of the fault and shear system and outline further prospective mineralised zones to that already defined at “Main Zone” and “Western Lode”.
All assays have been received from the programme that successfully delivered two high priority targets for immediate follow up drilling, this includes a new discovery to the south of the “Main Zone”.
MHC is encouraged by the drilling completed to date, with parts of the programme intersecting logged structures, alteration, and mineral assemblages like those noted within the New Bendigo “Main Zone” and “Western Lode”.
Further to the new zone above, a broad spaced (~50m) regional traverse line drilled approximately two km south of the main zone, where no drilling had been completed to date. returned anomalous results on a significant regional structure. Drilling returned 8m at 0.42 g/t Au from 64m, including 4m at 0.69 g/t and 3m at 0.50 g/t Au from 76m to the end of hole.
In addition to the identification of these two priority areas that require immediate follow-up drilling, drilling delivered significant technical knowledge on the localised mineralisation and how it sits within the broader regional geology. This includes the significance of the New Bendigo Fault Zone and its associated splays and its interaction with other shears and faults, especially the NE trending intersecting faults within the region.
