Maximus Resources Ltd (ASX:MXR) has established a maiden mineral resource estimate for the Wattle Dam Stockwork of 645,000 tonnes grading 1.15 g/t for 23,800 ounces of contained gold.
This estimate has increased the global mineral resource across the company’s flagship Spargoville project by 21%, to 21.1 million tonnes grading 2.1 g/t gold for 135,800 ounces.
The company holds 48 square kilometres of tenements across the fertile Spargoville Shear Zone which hosts the historic Wattle Dam Gold Mine.
Wattle Dam growth potential
Maximus managing director Tim Wither said the estimate was the starting point for rapid resource growth across the Wattle Dam area.
“Taking a broader/helicopter view across the whole Wattle Dam area, we can see a much larger interconnecting, structurally controlled gold system,” he said.
“The addition of the 23,800-ounce gold resource across the small area of the Wattle Dam Stockwork is a fantastic start, and we see huge opportunities within the greater Wattle Dam area to grow the known mineralisation and achieve new high-grade gold discoveries.
“With adequate capital following our strongly supported $12 million placement, Maximus is ideally positioned to rapidly progress our dual gold and nickel strategy and are looking forward to restarting our gold drill programs at Wattle Dam, including the two WA Government co-funded Redback Deeps holes.”
Previous data had highlighted a broad zone of remnant unmined carbonate-quartz stockwork adjacent to the mined-out Wattle Dam underground shoot and exposed in the northwest of the open-cut mine at Wattle Dam.
Stockworks are a complex system of structurally controlled or randomly oriented veins and are common in many ore deposits.
Resource estimate details
The maiden estimate is an important step in gaining geological understanding across the greater Wattle Dam area, with the mineral resource at Wattle Dam remaining open to south and at depth with no known geological features that could cause the orebody to terminate.
There is 84% of the estimate in the higher-confidence indicated category and the resource has a discovery cost of about $6/ounce following 762 metres of confirmatory drilling.
Infill drilling at Wattle Dam Stockwork has confirmed the opportunity for delineating discrete mining zones improving gold grades, with recent diamond drilling intersecting 15 metres at 2.1 g/t from 192 metres, including 3 metres at 6.7 g/t from 193 metres.
Wither said a drill program across the Wattle Dam area would commence in October, targeting extensions around Wattle Dam at Redback, S5 and Golden Orb following the Hilditch West nickel target drilling.
“We have identified analogous stockwork mineralisation at the S5 prospect and at the Golden Orb prospect, 600 metres to the south of Wattle Dam Gold Mine, which we believe are all part of a much larger mineral system,” he said.
“Across the Wattle Dam area, we have seen very high-grade shoots developed, as evident with mining of the 14.9 g/t underground high-grade gold shoot at Wattle Dam.
“Our current drilling at the Redback deposit 600 metres to the south of Wattle Dam shows a similar high-grade gold tenor, with our recent drilling at Redback intersecting 16.3 metres at 9.3 g/t and 5.8 metres at 17.9 g/t.”
A Wattle Dam mineral resource update is expected in early 2022.
- Daniel Paproth