Alto Metals Ltd (ASX:AME) will undertake low-cost infill soil sampling to follow up on a new 6-kilometre gold and pathfinder anomaly at Sandstone North within the Sandstone Gold Project in Western Australia.
The extensive anomaly was identified following a large-scale geochemical sampling program over the project area that included broad-spaced fine fraction soil results as well as a review of regional datasets.
Aim of program
The infill soils program is designed to refine a priority area of the anomaly before first-pass drilling and forms part of Alto’s ongoing regional exploration work over the Sandstone Gold Project.
This program is expected to comprise about 400 samples over a strike of around 1 kilometre at 40-metre spacing focused around the two lines from the previous soil sampling program with the strongest gold responses.
Samples will be assayed in the laboratory for low-level gold and analysed for multi-elements using the company’s hand-held pXRF.
To follow initial program
Alto’s initial fine fraction soil sampling program at Sandstone North was completed late last year, along east-west lines on 400-metre spacing.
This work defined a significant gold-in-soil anomaly with associated pathfinder elements including arsenic over a 6-kilometre strike length.
The strongest gold response occurs across two adjacent lines in a favourable lithological and structural location similar to known gold mineralisation defined by drilling around historical workings.
Previous results
Previous drilling around the historical workings determined that the gold mineralisation occurs as northerly trending high-grade plunging shoots.
Limited previous drilling at Sandstone North returned multiple high-grade results including:
- 15 metres at 9.1 g/t gold from 82 metres including 3 metres at 32.1 g/t from 94 metres (end of hole);
- 13 metres at 5.2 g/t from 34 metres including 1 metre at 58 g/t from 39 metres;
- 15 metres at 5.4 g/t from 24 metres including 5 metres at 10.8 g/t from 30 metres; and
- 23 metres at 2.0 g/t from 101 metres including 2 metres at 11.3 g/t from 104 metres.
The high-grade shoots are defined over a limited strike length, however, the mineralisation remains open at depth and along strike and could potentially be extended with further drilling.
Aircore drilling next step
Given the strike length of the known high-grade mineralisation as currently defined by drilling, which remains open at depth and along strike, Alto has deemed it appropriate to undertake low-cost infill soil sampling to better define the soil anomaly prior to undertaking a drilling program.
Based on the ground conditions and the target mineralisation, the company expects that aircore drilling to around 100 metres depth will be ideal as a cost-effective first-pass drilling program.
Regional targeting
Low-cost regional targeting work, including the review of historical data sets, in parallel with resource growth targeting work, is continuing over the Sandstone Gold Project.
During the previous quarter, limited drilling was completed at certain tenements to meet minimum statutory expenditure requirements.