Surefire Resources NL's (ASX:SRN) (FRA:GBL) re-processing and interpretation of geophysical data has identified the potential for a large intrusive related silver-lead to copper-gold system immediately along strike from its very-high grade Kooline Silver-Lead-Copper Project in Western Australia.
The tenements include the previously mined high-grade lead-silver +/- copper lodes of the Kooline Mineral Field where previous rock chip sampling of exposed lode structures produced grades of up to 55.3% lead and 249 g/t silver from the Bilrose workings and up to 2.62% copper and 12% lead from the Phar Lap workings.
Previous channel sampling of the Kooline lead-silver workings produced very high-grade silver-lead grades with increasing copper grades to the west.
These results include:
- 36 g/t silver, 30.9% lead and 1.23% copper (Rainbow);
- 249 g/t silver and 55.3% lead (Bilrose);
- 170 g/t silver, 48.1% lead and 0.93% copper (June Audrey);
- 232 g/t silver, 79.3% lead and 0.13% copper (June Audrey); and
- 78 g/t silver, 12% lead and 2.62% copper (Phar Lap – western side of field).
“Testing exciting new target area”
Notably, the company has been granted $150,000 of drilling co-funding by the WA Government to drill-test this key copper-gold target below/along strike from the Kooline lodes.
Surefire managing director Vladimir Nikolaenko said: “Through re-processing and interpretation of geophysical data the company has identified potential for a major silver-lead and copper-gold system at Kooline.
“A series of deep drill holes have been planned to test this exciting new target area, to be co-funded by the WA Government through the EIS program.
“We have also identified potential for high-grade gold similar to the one-million-ounce Paulsens deposit, and we will look to advance these targets in parallel with testing the major base and precious potential identified.”
VTEM depth slice at Kooline Silver-Lead Field showing mineralised trends and key target area.
VTEM conductors identified
Data from a previous Versatile Time Domain Electromagnetics (VTEM) survey has been reprocessed and interpreted, highlighting a large intrusive body and a series of VTEM conductors along strike to the west of the Kooline Mineral Field.
The VTEM conductors are on the south-eastern side of the interpreted intrusive body, possibly representing a heat and potential mineralised magmatic fluid source for an intrusive related ‘intracratonic magmatic copper-gold’ or IMCG system.
High-grade lead-silver lodes at Kooline are interpreted to represent the distal (cooler) zone of this IMCG mineralised system that shows increasing copper content in workings on the western side of the mineral field, projecting into an area of cover closer to the intrusive.
The VTEM conductors between the intrusive and the Kooline workings may indicate copper-gold mineralisation close to the intrusive, representing a key target for the discovery of a major copper-gold system.
Exploration incentive scheme
The key target area includes VTEM conductors within a 2x2 kilometre area, that correspond with an area of deep erosion/transported cover immediately along strike from the silver-lead workings.
This area is essentially untested and a series of deep pre-collared diamond drill holes have been planned and approved by the WA Government for Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS) co-funding of up to $150,000 direct drilling costs.
The drilling will target both high-grade extensions of the silver-lead lode structures as well as copper-gold mineralisation closer to the interpreted intrusive.
Regional 1st Vertical Derivative (1VD) magnetics with interpreted structures and prospect locations.
Previous rock chip results
In addition to the major VTEM targets, interpretation of detailed aeromagnetics has identified extensions to major crustal scale fault structures – including the Baring Downs Fault, that continue into the northern end of the Kooline tenements.
Interpreted splays from this major structural corridor are associated with a key gold corridor, where previous rockchip results from sub-cropping quartz veins of up to 38 g/t Au have been located.
These veins project into an area of untested cover, representing a key target corridor for high-grade orogenic gold of the Paulsens style.
Evidence of high-grade veining projecting into covered, untested, areas will be targeted by aircore drilling currently being planned.