Antipa Minerals Ltd (ASX:AZY) assays from 41 drill holes have returned further high-grade gold and copper, along with silver and cobalt, extending the potential size of the Minyari and WACA resources in Western Australia’s Paterson Province.
The Minyari drilling at depth confirms continuity of moderate northwest plunging 'pipe-like' thick high-grade breccia mineralisation, which remains open at depth, providing further exploration upside.
A downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) survey has commenced identifying further high-grade resource extension drill targets.
The company has completed 52,600 metres of resource definition, resource extensional and brownfield plus greenfield discovery drilling at Minyari Dome and is awaiting assays for 25,500 metres.
Further resource upside
Antipa managing director Roger Mason said: “These results, and all of the results received for the Minyari drilling this year, are another very important step towards the company’s near term objective of a standalone open pit and underground mining operation.
“The confirmation of thick high-grade breccia style mineralisation at depth at both Minyari and WACA is exciting and provides the potential for further significant resource upside.
“Based on encouraging brownfield and greenfield results the 2021 drill program was further expanded to 52,600 metres with this program expected to be completed by mid-December.”
Assay results
The assays received to date have:
- Substantially extended zones of very high-grade gold-copper-silver-cobalt mineralisation outside the current Minyari and WACA deposit mineral resource estimate boundaries. This would be expected to have a material positive impact on the existing resource, which is being updated in the first quarter of 2022;
- Discovered new high-grade gold-copper mineralisation in several areas with mineralisation remaining open down plunge, along strike and variously open across strike to the east and west; and
- Further confirmed that high-grade mineralisation is commonly associated with sulphide matrixed breccia zones similar to the Havieron gold-copper style of mineralisation, with Minyari drilling at depth confirming continuity of moderate northwest plunging 'pipe-like' thick high-grade breccia mineralisation, which remains open at depth providing further exciting exploration upside.
The assay results received for 61% of the Minyari WACA 2021 resource infill and resource extensional drilling program, cover a further 56 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes, eight diamond-tail and six diamond core (DD) drill holes in total.
They demonstrate favourable compatibility with the current Minyari and WACA mineral resource domains and have discovered significant additional high-grade gold-copper mineralisation outside the limits of both the Minyari and WACA resources.
At Minyari, high-grade gold with copper, silver and cobalt mineralisation, which occurs along 500 metres of strike across a horizontal width of up to 275 metres, has now been extended down to 620 metres below the surface, and mineralisation remains open in several directions in particular, down plunge.
At WACA, high-grade mineralisation which occurs along 650 metres of strike across a horizontal width of up to 100 metres, has now been extended down to 500 metres below the surface and mineralisation remains open in several directions.
Remaining exploration program
Assay results remain pending for 16,550 metres of the Minyari-WACA drilling, including holes that evaluated the Minyari down plunge breccia style mineralisation along a further 200 metres of strike and down to 770 metres below the surface and WACA resource definition drill holes.
Due to the correlation between high-grade mineralisation and (conductive) sulphide-rich breccias a downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) survey will be completed during the first half of December for a selection of diamond core drill holes at both Minyari and WACA.
This will optimise follow-up resource extension drill testing.
Drill samples for the remainder of the 2021 drill program have been dispatched to the laboratory for assay with results expected to be received on a periodic basis during the course of the next several months.
Following this, the Minyari and WACA mineral resource estimate updates can be completed.