Predictive Discovery Ltd (ASX:PDI) is accelerating drilling at its Bankan Gold Project in Guinea, with the 25,000-metres Bankan-2 drilling program operating at full capacity as it targets a maiden JORC resource in mid-2021.
Three reverse circulation (RC) diamond drill rigs are active, with a second diamond drill (DD) now in operation at the NE Bankan Gold discovery.
All three rigs are operating on double shifts.
Assay results
The company is awaiting assay results from SGS Bamako (Mali) with 740 DD, 1,406 RC and 1,101 power auger samples now submitted for testing.
Assay results are expected by early February and will continue for some months during the extensive 25,000 metre Bankan-2 drill program.
Drilling progress
A total of 9,356 metres of power auger, 1,573 metres of RC and 989 metres of DD drilling has been undertaken under the Bankan-2 drill program.
At present, 10 RC-holes have been drilled at NE Bankan and 3 DD-holes have been completed at Bankan Creek.
The RC holes at NE Bankan have been drilled to a maximum down-hole depth of 200 metres, with DD “tails” now in progress, designed to complete the full planned length of each of these holes and completing coverage of the target zones.
The diamond tails are designed to extend the length of each hole by 110 metres on average.
At Bankan Creek, DD has tested below and along strike to the north of the outstanding KKODD020 gold intercept of 91.6 metres at 1.9 g/t gold.
Samples submitted
Samples submitted to the SGS laboratory in Bamako in the past nine days have included:
- 740 DD core samples from the first two DD-holes drilled at Bankan Creek;
- 1,406 RC samples from the first 10 RC-holes (pre-collars) at NE Bankan; and
- 1,101 auger samples, from 209 holes totalling 3,397 metres drilled to the west and east of Bankan Creek on a 320 x 80 metres spaced grid.
Once new gold assays are received from the new, deeper RC and DD holes, the company will be able to correlate gold grades and geology in fresh rock on multiple cross sections.
This is expected to offer new insights into gold grade distribution, as well as guidance for gold exploration elsewhere in the Bankan gold project area.
Going forward
At least 10,000 metres of power auger drilling will be completed in the next two months, with two rigs substantially extending auger coverage on the Bankan Project.
An airborne magnetic and radiometric survey designed to identify structural drill targets across the Bankan Project is expected to commence in about two weeks.
With cash on hand of $14 million as at end December 2020, Predictive is well-funded to complete its aggressive drill campaign and deliver its maiden JORC Resource in mid-2021.