Red Rock Resources PLC (AIM:RRR) said joint venture company New Ballarat Gold Corporation PLC (NBGC) has started its maiden drilling campaign in the Victoria Goldfields, Australia.
NBGC, which is 50.1% owned by Red Rock with Power Metals Resources PLC holding the remaining 49.9%, started its first diamond drill programme at the O'Loughlin's prospect south of Buninyong.
The joint venture was also granted a new 489 km2 exploration licence in Victoria, meaning it has now been granted eight licences covering 1,501 km2.
"NBGC reports the start of diamond drilling to test a mineralised trend that hosted historic mining activity,” said Red Rock chairman Andrew Bell. “This maiden drill campaign for NBGC follows months of ground research and testing of the area.”
“With the grant of a further licence, adjacent to that being drilled, our exploration holdings, which a few days ago were under 1,000 km2, now exceed 1,500 km2, and over half our application acreage is now granted.
“The new licence contains much of the old Yandoit goldfield in the north, where the last known work on the Pioneer reef was in 1867, and extensions to the old 700,000 oz Mt Egerton mine and the Gordon mine in the south.”