Western Gold Resources (ASX: WGR) has defined an extensive 1200m anomaly at the Top Knot Shear within its Gold Duke Project near Wiluna in Western Australia.
Gold Duke contains a combined Mineral Resource estimate JORC-2012 Mineral Resource estimate of 4,570,000 tonnes at 2.0 g/t Au for 293,000 oz Au.
Assays have been received from the ongoing Ultra Fine Fraction (UFF+) soil program being conducted over targets previously highlighted by the Sub-Audio Magnetics survey completed by WGR over the Joyners Find Shear Zone,
The northeast-southwest trending UFF+ gold anomaly feature which follows the “Top Knot Shear” is outlined by the 25 ppb contour. It is 1200m in strike length and is open off the sampling grid to the NE with Au geochemistry highlighting a clear extensive anomaly of 25-50m width which is well constrained,
“The discovery of the gold anomaly along the trend of the Top Knot Shear is extremely exciting for the exploration team as it confirms the strong structural control that NE-SW trending shears play in the localisation of gold mineralisation within the project area,” Managing Director, Warren Thorne, said.
‘The integration of the results with the recent Sub-Audio Magnetics data indicates that the historic gold workings at Wren and Top Knot are hosted by the same shear and further exploration along this structure is considered a high priority.
“We eagerly await receipt of drilling permits to enable the company to immediately embark on its extensive 22,000m drill program. Concurrently the team is working to finalise a resource upgrade to the current combined JORC-2012 Mineral Resource estimate of 4,570,000 tonnes at 2.0 g/t Au for 293,000 oz Au,
UFF+ Soil Sampling ProgramM3
WGR completed 426 UFF+ soil samples over the Wren project area with samples spaced 25m apart on lines 200m apart (25m x 200m). Samples were analysed using the UltraFine+ method (LabWest Minerals Analysis Pty Ltd, Malaga, WA) to fully assess the soil properties and relationships (to the geochemistry) to improve the chances of future discovery.
The soil sampling program is part of WGR’s industry partnership with the CSIRO ‘UltraFine+ research project. The project calls upon CSIRO’s world-leading expertise to analyse the soil sample geochemical assay data and provide new data analytics and targeting for mineral exploration.
The UFF+ data indicates that structural breaks which were interpreted from the gold contours and are also evident in contours for some of the other elements. These consist of:
- Structural cross-breaks trending 315o.
- Top Knot Shear trending 040o associated with the main gold anomaly. This shear parallels the western contact of one of the ultramafics.
- The major gold anomaly feature which follows the Top Knot Shear” is outlined by the 25 ppb contour. The anomaly is 1200m in strike length and is open off the sampling grid to the NE. The Au geochemistry highlights a clear extensive anomaly of 25-50m width which is well constrained.
- North of the Quail prospect, where previous rock chip results up to 1.59 g/t, including samples with visible gold (See ASX announcement 22nd September 2021), a 600m Au north-trending anomaly extends along a steeply west-dipping chert ridge
- To the north of Wren, a series of NW-trending Au anomalies are interpreted to be structurally controlled by NW-trending faults.
Next Steps
WGR plans to follow up prospective geochemical anomalies at the Gold King project with additional infill and extensional UFF soil sampling, rock chip sampling and geological mapping. Aircore and RC drilling will then be designed to test high priority geochemical anomalies delineated by these programmes.
Drilling is planned for Q2 2022 as part of WGR’s aggressive 22,000m regional exploration programme including a focus on three priority targets resulting from the SAM survey over the Brilliant Shear.
For further information please visit: https://westerngoldresources.com.au/