Legend Mining Limited (ASX:LEG) has registered massive nickel-copper sulphide intercepts in two diamond drill holes that highlight the scale of the Mawson nickel-copper-cobalt discovery within the Rockford Project on Western Australia’s Fraser Range.
The new intersections are from holes RKDD043 and RKDD044 400 metres ESE and 1.2 kilometres northeast of the Mawson discovery zone respectively.
Sulphides intersected
RKDD043 intersected a wide sulphide zone including 2.45 metres of semi-massive and massive sulphide along with 10.4 metres of net-textured and semi-massive sulphide.
Semi-massive and massive sulphide was intersected in RKDD044, including 1.15 metres of massive sulphide and 3.75 metres of net-textured and semi-massive sulphide.
Massive nickel-copper sulphide from RKDD044 from 457 metres.
The company is further encouraged by the downhole EM carried out in RKDD043 that identified in-hole and off-hole conductions while downhole EM in hole 44 is pending.
“Very large system driving Mawson”
Legend managing director Mark Wilson said: “The success of this year’s diamond drill program has ramped up with two new intercepts of massive nickel-copper sulphide within broad bands of sulphide mineralisation.
“The distance between these holes and the discovery zone, along with the developing story from downhole EM surveys, continue to demonstrate a very large system driving Mawson, which is consistent with the potential of a significant deposit.”
Shares open higher
Shares have jumped more than 16% in early trade to 14 cents while Legend’s market cap has grown to approximately $330.6 million.
A total of four further diamond drill holes have been completed - RKDD037, RKDD042, RKDD043 and RKDD044 - with drilling of RKDD045 in progress.
Step-out diamond drilling across Mawson continues to add weight to existing datasets, with visual intercepts over a 1.2 kilometres strike length now adding additional support that a large mineralised system is driving Mawson.
Accurate 3D model
The 3D model driving predictive exploration continues to be very accurate, which bodes well for continued selection of targets to test for the preferred host lithologies and structurally favourable positions to host massive nickel-copper mineralisation across the Mawson intrusion.
In RKDD043 the conductors identified in the DHTEM are interpreted to be extensions of the massive and semi-massive nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation encountered in-hole with diamond drilling planned to test these conductors.
RKDD044 in addition to RKDD043 deliver the first visual confirmation that the Mawson intrusion displays the ability to host multiple accumulations of massive nickel-copper sulphide.
The drill traverse of RKDD044 will be extended east, west, and north with planned diamond drilling.
Hole RKDD037 was re-entered and extended to a depth of 513.2 metres.
Massive nickel-copper sulphide from RKDD044 from 456 metres.
A package of meta-BIF and metasedimentary units to 307.95 metres downhole was intersected before entering a thick package of prospective gabbronorites with disseminated and blebby magmatic sulphides from 307.95 to 476.26 metres downhole, before finishing in a metasedimentary package.
This 168-metre-thick mineralised envelope adds further support to Mawson hosting a large mineralised system, that appears hidden largely below a thickened metasedimentary package.
This increases the search space for fertile intrusives and associated nickel-copper accumulations.
Additional drilling is planned west of RKDD037 to target the prospective intrusive package and associated mineralisation, below the depth penetrative capabilities of surface MLTEM/FLTEM.
DHTEM has been completed and modelling is pending.
Future programs
Ongoing drilling across Mawson will focus on continued definition of these intrusive bodies and targeting of structural trap sites for massive nickel-copper sulphide accumulation.
- Diamond drilling continuing with two diamond rigs at Mawson across priority areas.
- DHTEM to be undertaken on all completed diamond drill holes to assist follow up drilling.
- Integration of DD, RC, aircore geochemical and geophysical datasets to evolve 3D emplacement model of Mawson, with new constrained gravity and magnetic inversions ongoing.