Retail punters really ought to watch the webinar with Peter Williams that was announced to the ASX back in May. This is a complex play and it is good to have an understanding of specifics relating to Great Basin geology and exploration pathway forward.
What we've seen the last few days is negligible volume and attributed to nervous retail who lack a proper understanding of the partial results announced from the first hole. I've often experienced this with Porphyry plays because of complexity.
My summary of the webinar below, but I recommend everyone watch it for themselves.1. Depth of team:Bruno Hegner and Marat Abzalov (who is still a consultant) and Jeff Nichols have been involved with Rio Tinto. Peter Williams and MaratAbzalov were both at WMC Resources when it was acquired by BHP for$3.7bn. Peter Williams has worked with Marat for 20-25 years.
Jeff Nichols the USbased explorationist geologist is ex Newmont and Kennecott (RioTinto) with 30+ years experience in Nevada and Utah - particularly in the Great Basin where Frisco, Detroit and Valley-Crossroads projects are located, worked in the nearby Bingham Mine and on the exploration programs.
Dave Johnson the other US based Explorationist/Geophysicist is also ex WMC Resources,Independence Group and Lionore. Interestingly enough, Peter Williamsand Marat Abzalov were also at WMC Resources.
Simon Bolster with 30+ years experience and a former consulting Geochemist to Newmont globally.
2. Great BasinProjects:
Set of East West Eocene Magnetic belts which are veryimportant as Bingham Canyon is on one of the belts (Bingham belt),Detroit is on the Tintic Belt, Frisco and Valley-Crossroads on the Pioche-Marysvale belt. Eocene magnetic events very key to porphyry mineralisation and Carlin style Gold mineralisation.
3. Lateral thinking for great Basin Projects: Copper mining district, focus has been on Copper, however it is a Copper-Gold district, there is potential inthe region not only for Copper-Gold Porphyry systems but also for Carlin like sediment hosted Gold deposits. Peter Williams refers tothe company he worked for (WMC Resources) and that they were in the area looking for sediment hosted gold deposits. There is pedigree,there is mineralisation, there are a number of styles of mineralisation. Particularly interested in Gold and Copper-Gold.
4. Valley/CrossroadsCopper-Gold Complex:
- Very good evidencefor Porphyry-Copper systems there.
- Very confident there is porphyry style mineralisation in the area based onhistorical workings by Anaconda Copper (defunct in 1983)
- At least one or possibly more (porphyry style mineralisation). The area it extend sover is probably of the order of 100km2 of the 180km2 that we have.Very large altered porphyry system, within which there can be multiple porphyries.
- Also Skarn hosted gold deposits. The copper mineralisation when its oxidised can bevery high grade in near surface, not only in copper but also in gold.
- Keep in mind therehas been very little gold exploration and assaying where they havebeen mining copper. It has been of secondary interest to previous explorers. Gold off primary interest to Alderan.
- Huge exploration potential and potential to fast track mining with the excellent infrastructure, existing permitting and social license. Tremendous relationship with Utah geological survey who are helping a lot.
- Multiple open pitshave been operated in the past within the Valley/Crossroads complex.
- Of particular interest is the OK-11 Porphyry prospect (IP anomaly), lateral dimensions of 1.6km by 1.6km, which is quite significant in terms ofa Porphyry model. Intercepted and ended in porphyry style alteration~ 200metres from 1960s. No gold was assayed. Early focus of exploration efforts.
- Only 4% of samples taken by Anaconda on Valley Skarn were assayed for gold. Those that were, included:
10m @ 1.1% Cu, 0.29gpt Au
18.6m @ 1.1% Cu,1.54 gpt Au
Open in all directions
"actually quite significant, just gives you a flavour for gold in the system" -Peter Williams
- Gold Peak, verygood historic rock chip results.
- Candy B, non-Jorc resource of Copper, historic intercepts of 10-30m @ 1.2-17% Cu, 10-25gpt Silver, no gold assays undertaken. Expects to see the same sortof Gold numbers as Valley Skarn which is next to it.
5. Detroit Project:Very highly sought after, including by Newmont. Came out in top 1% of anomalies seen in the Great Basin (Newmont Geochemistry)
- Geological similarities to Cove Gold mine (3+ m oz), very similar rocks,structural setting and alteration.
- We've done what others haven't been able to do in 20-50 years by putting the projectarea together.
- Tremendous thing to get into this project and the Valley/Crossroads project
- In addition for potential to host core gold mineralisation, there is an existing porphyry copper system that is not well explored
- Jasperoids evidence of conduits occupying structural positions, interested inwhere the gold bearing fluids hit the reactive stratigraphy,carbonate sequence, very similar to what you see in Utah. Cove style of gold mineralisation, looking for a multi-million ounce position.
- Mizpah prospect isa dipping sequence of reactive stratigraphy, existing oxide gold deposit, has been shallow drilling for oxide gold only. 20-35m deep holes on average. Managed 10,000 ounces.
- Not interested inoxide gold at Mizpah but down dip and reactive stratigraphy. Thereare historic holes that have hit gold and ended in sulphide gold mineralisation. Obvious target for us.
- Historical recordsof high grade copper, plus or minus gold veins, very interesting area.
6. General:
- Very interested inmagnetics, has never been high resolution airborne magnetic survey done over valley crossroads project, fragmented exploration to date
- Interested in doing magnetics in Detroit mining centre because there is a strong suggestion of magnetite copper-gold skarns
- Magnetics component of lighting up and guiding us
- IP surveys asmineralisation does produce sulphide halo
- Geochemical program initiated (back in May, led by Simon Bolster). Full extent ofclaims, soils, modified soils, modified geochemical techniques, etc.On going for 2 months.
7. Q&A:
- "Something like the Mizpah (Detroit Project target) for example, if we go drilling there, and we start to see intercepts of 5m, 10m of 6 g/t to8 g/t and that wouldn't surprise me or see it blow out even more than that cause we have 300m of stratigraphy"
- "Mizpah gold play, terrific amount of area there ...... potential for multi-million ounce deposit sitting there... could be pretty serious grades"
- "the focus isto make at least one commercial discovery of gold or copper-gold.. atleast one in 12 months.. and I think we can do it"
- "So look,that's the story, I'm quite happy to have anyone call me about different aspects of the story, to get more information to drill down.. we're not hiding any information. We're just really going for it. Like I say, we're pretty confident we got the team on the ground,I think we got the ground, we got different styles of mineralisation,pretty happy.. we're in a good position to make a discovery within 12 months"
