ECR Minerals PLC (AIM:ECR) said it has shifted its exploration focus to North Queensland following mixed results from its activities in Victoria.
In a statement, Andrew Haythorpe, CEO of ECR Minerals, commented: "While the board are pleased to have finally received assays for our drill programs in Victoria, the latest results have not been as encouraging as we would have hoped."
He highlighted the implementation of low-cost work programs such as soil geochemistry and mapping to assess prospects before drilling, a strategy that will be applied in future campaigns in both Queensland and Victoria.
Haythorpe also noted that the company's prospects for drilling and further exploration in Queensland appear more promising, with superior width and consistency compared to their historical projects in Victoria. He emphasized that the outcome of ongoing work in Victoria will be compared to the expected results in Queensland.
The gold exploration and development company operating in Australia owns 100% of three exploration licences in Victoria, namely EL006184 (Creswick), EL5433 (Blue Moon), and EL7484 (Tambo North).
The recent drilling results at the Blue Moon Prospect in Bailieston indicated limited expansion of grade trends at depth. However, a notable result of 9 meters (m) at 0.56 grams per ton (g/t) gold (Au) from a depth of 83.2m was achieved in hole BBMDD012.
At the Brewery Lane Creswick site, four diamond holes were drilled, revealing encouraging results such as 1m at 4.29 g/t Au from a depth of 94.8m in hole CSD016. Despite these positive findings, the company has decided to suspend exploration drilling at Brewery Lane for the remainder of the year due to a lack of investment interest in junior gold exploration companies.
In Eastern Victoria, ECR Minerals has commenced on-ground work in the Tambo River region. Initial investigations within the Tambo tenements have shown promising signs, with good visual findings and the presence of sulphides within quartz veins. The company expects to release initial results soon.
Looking ahead, ECR Minerals said fieldwork is beginning at the Lolworth Project in North Queensland, with initial findings from last year's field season revealing promising gold, niobium and tantalum anomalies, indicating a larger footprint of diverse mineralization. The company plans to identify several drill targets at Lolworth by the end of the year.
Additionally, ECR Minerals will commence work at the Hurricane Project in North Queensland. A recently completed LIDAR aerial mapping survey will aid in targeting and testing quartz-breccia outcrops, which have not been drilled previously. The company said its geologists will be on-site from June 2023, and the first drilling at Hurricane is scheduled for the second half of the year, pending satisfactory progress.