Stawell-based explorer Navarre Minerals (ASX: NML) has reported further “outstanding” gold and silver results at its wholly-owned Glenlyle project in western Victoria, with the potential for additional zones of broader polymetallic mineralisation.
The latest intercepts come from a recently-completed expansion aircore drilling program at the Morning Bill prospect and from wide-spaced reconnaissance drilling on a host of regional targets elsewhere on the Glenlyle tenement.
The targets were selected due to the presence of geophysical signatures similar to Morning Bill or the nearby Cayley Lode discovery, where Stavely Minerals (ASX: SVY) encountered “exceptional” copper, gold and silver grades in late 2019 nearby to its Thursdays Gossan deposit.
Drilling results
Navarre’s drilling program comprised 8388m across 102 angled drill holes, of which 63 holes for a total 5508m were drilled into Morning Bill.
The remaining 39 holes explored the regional targets for 2880m of drilling.
Best results were 38m at 7.8 grams per tonne silver from 73m, including 1m at 41.5g/t silver; 65m at 0.3g/t gold from 16m, including 1m at 3.1g/t gold; and 16m at 2.7g/t silver from 29m, including 1m at 18.3g/t silver and 1m at 18.0g/t silver.
Navarre said drilling continues to intersect strongly anomalous gold, silver, lead and zinc grades, taking the strike extent of Morning Bill beyond 1000m, with a width of approximately 400m.
The mineralisation is believed to occur beneath a veneer of younger, unmineralised cover known as the Newer Volcanics, ranging in thicknesses up to 30 metres.
In addition, regional reconnaissance aircore drilling has identified two new areas of anomalous silver approximately 3 kilometres from Morning Bill, which returned grades of up to 18.0g/t and will be subject to follow-up drilling.
Strike extensions
Managing director Ian Holland said the results add to Morning Bill’s mineralised footprint and potential for strike extensions.
“Morning Bill is a 500-million year old, large gold-silver system concealed beneath a veneer of unmineralised cover [so] detecting it has many technical challenges however our drilling is progressing well,” he said.
“It is still early days in the exploration of this mineral system, but we are already of the belief that this prospect could emerge as one of our best mineral discoveries in Victoria.”
Mr Holland said a planned diamond drilling program was expected to provide a better understanding of the geometry and orientation of the mineralised system to assist with targeting of the highest grade areas.
