Trident delivers more gold for Avoca Kate Hayc-ckWednesday, 4...

Trident delivers more gold for Avoca

Kate Hayc-ck
Wednesday, 4 July 2007

'SPECTACULAR' intersections with visible gold, including one hit of 0.9m at 959 grams per tonne gold, have extended the Athena lode and the Poseidon South mineralisation at Avoca Resources' Trident mine in Western Australia.


Latest drilling at Trident, designed to test for high-grade gold mineralisation south of the current 284,000 ounce resource at the lode, extended the Athena lode by some 200m.

Better results from the 10-hole program included 6m at 148gpt gold from 100m, encompassing the 0.9m at 959gpt gold hit, and 5.5m at 25.6gpt gold from 63.8m, which also encompassed 0.75m at 175gpt gold.

Avoca said the intersections showed the characteristic Athena-style mineralisation over a flat, northerly plunge with high ounces per vertical metre, which were favourable for mining.

The company reported additional intersections extending the Poseidon South area, with grades as high as 8m at 8gpt gold from 15m, including 1m at 42.6gpt gold, and 12.7m at 7.3gpt gold from 23.3m, including 1m at 56.2gpt gold.

The results came from previously mined high-grade lodes but lie outside of existing resources, some 100m from the existing Trident decline.

Avoca said both the extensions to the Athena lode and the Poseidon South mineralisation would have a positive impact on the Trident resource and the profitability of the life-of-mine reserve.

The company said it could develop the new ore zones as soon as the end of 2007 and had begun updating its resource for the Trident development.

The Trident mine is part of Avoca's larger Higginsville project, which has an overall resource of 8.7 million tonnes at 4.0gpt gold for 1.1Moz contained gold. Mining began at the project earlier this year.

Shares in the company were up 6c on the back of the news to $1.395.