The QAQC analysis is a bit of a concern. The last time they did this was with Sly Fox, and I got the impression that when they first received the results that the grades were lower than what they were expecting, so they had them re-assayed. Hopefully that isn't the case here.
I had a look at the initial report and the mineralisation descriptions present a couple of possibilities;
- They could be questioning the grade of the Visible Gold section, although this would be unlikely as normally VG indicates a higher concentration and grade
- Another possibility is that they were hoping that the 6m and 4m sections that show potential mineralisation would come back with a higher grade so they are retesting. If these two sections had come up with a descent grade then the width would be closer to 30m which is considerably greater than the 20+m that they reported
This section is of great interest and is worth being careful with. As we can see from the graphic in the reports they believe that the deposit pinches at this point. Who knows what that is doing to the grade in this section? Is it consistent but narrower? Or is it increasing as the width decreases hence 2 sections of VG?
Interest in SPR has certainly increased over the last few months, so any perceived disappointment will have a greater impact on the value placed on the company. So I am happy for them to take their time and get it right.
However, even if these results disappoint in some way, the fact remains that we still have a high grade deposit that is at least 1klm deep. Hopefully, we will soon have more results from the Pepper prospect and they will be important for other reasons. I am still hopeful that these deposits are all part of a “sheet” type arrangement that has been formed in a shear zone or fault line. This is an image from another deposit in a shear zone, at the Wawa Gold Project in Canada. Notice the shape of the green Minto B Shear Zone, it also roughly takes the shape of a corrugated iron sheet, similar to what Simon was describing recently.
In previous posts I've suggested that the high grade deposits join up at depth. I hadn't thought of it in terms of a “sheet” but I was working under the assumption that gold mineralisation had been pushed upwards along a fault line. I still believe that this is the case, and I wonder if the Spartan Geo's are setting things up to explore this scenario fully. This seems to make the most sense of the way they have designed the decline. I suspect that the Pepper Prospect is just the beginning.
All in all these are exciting times for SPR. It has been a long, and at times very difficult journey.However, currently I see more to like here than just about anywhere else in the gold space, particularly when you consider the potential news flow and accelerated pathway to production.
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