Initial Stages To Test Historical Workings
Western Mines Group Ltd (ASX:WMG) has commenced a maiden drilling programme at the Rock of Ages Project in Western Australia.
WMG has contracted JDC Drilling to undertaken a maiden drilling programme, with the drill rig recently mobilised to site to commence drilling.
An initial 800m programme has been designed to test the extensive trend of historical shafts and workings, with six holes ranging from 100m to 170m depth targeting high-grade gold shoots or lodes beneath the main central workings.
A second Program of Work has recently been granted to facilitate an expansion of the programme if necessary.
The historical Rock of Ages workings, consist of a series of shallow mine shafts and workings over approximately 600m strike, associated with quartz veining and ferruginous cherts, within felsic volcanic schists.
Historical records indicate 2,074oz Au was mined from the workings between 1902 and 1911 at an average grade of 50g/t Au.
This will be the first program to properly test the depth potential of the high-grade gold mineralisation since a poor attempt by Esmeralda Exploration in the 1980’s.
Managing Director, Caedmon Marriott, said Esmeralda drilled seven holes to a maximum depth of 50m and average depth of 42m but this drilling was largely ineffective, either encountering mined out stopes down to a vertical depth of approximately 35m or ending in the hanging wall before reaching the target mineralised horizon.
“It’s exciting to get the company’s maiden drilling programme underway! The depth potential of the mineralisation at Rock of Ages has never been properly tested and this programme will be the first to do so,” Mr Marriott said.
“The old timers chased high-grade gold at 50g/t Au down hand dug shafts and stopes to 30-35m below surface, along what appears to be a consistent mineralised horizon. We’re hoping this well mineralised system could open out at depth.”
The Rock of Ages Project comprises prospecting licence P38/4203 and is located approximately 32km southeast of Laverton.
The project lies on the Laverton Greenstone Belt, around 4.5km south of the historical Burtville Mining Centre and is surrounded by Focus Minerals Laverton Gold Project, with the neighbouring deposits of Burtville (206,000oz at 0.96g/t Au) and Karridale (1.19Moz at 1.33g/t Au) within a 5km radius.
WMG has planned a six hole programme totalling 800m designed to test beneath the main central cluster of shafts and workings and area of extensive mullock dumps.
The holes will range from 100m to 170m depth targeting an inferred sub-vertical mineralised horizon dipping towards the west. This initial programme is anticipated to take five to seven days to complete.
For further information please visit: https://www.westernmines.com.au/
