Magna Mining Inc (TSX-V:NICU) announced positive assay results from a further nine holes drilled at the Shakespeare mine during the 2021 drilling program.
Highlights from the assay results include wide Gap Zone intersections which suggest that the West and East zones are connected both at near surface and at depth.
The results continue to support the belief that the company can add significant open pit mineral resources to its Shakespeare deposit, Magna chief executive officer Jason Jessup said in a statement.
“The East Zone results continue to impress us and where resource wireframes were intersected, the mineralization has been shown to be much wider than previously estimated," Jessup said.
READ: Magna Mining reports strong assay results from drilling at its flagship Shakespeare nickel-copper-PGM operation in Sudbury
“The deeper intersections also enhance the understanding of the orientation of the mineralized melagabbro, which is now interpreted as steeply dipping to the south at depth, opening new, relatively shallow areas for exploration and resource expansion,” he added.
Highlights include:
- Hole MMC-21-27 intersected 47.68 metres (m) at 0.25% Ni, 0.30% Cu, 0.02% Co, 0.24 g/t Pt, 0.27 g/t Pd, 0.13 g/t Au including 33m at 0.30% Ni, 0.36% Cu, 0.02% Co, 0.30 g/t Pt, 0.33 g/t Pd, 0.17 g/t Au. This hole was designed to follow up on the wide mineralized intersection in hole MMC-21-25 reported on November 4, 2021. The intersection pierced the East Zone wireframe in an area 24.5m east of hole MMC-21-25. This hole intersected the mineralization 4.5m above the current mineral resource wireframe and continued 20.70m beyond the wireframe. As a result, this hole, along with hole MMC-21-25, have demonstrated the potential to significantly grow the East Zone Mineral Resource in this area of the deposit. The up-dip extension of the East Zone in this area remains open for expansion
- Holes MMC-21-29 & MMC-21-30 each intersected multiple zones of mineralization including 64.16m at 0.34% Ni, 0.41% Cu, 0.02% Co, 0.34 g/t Pt, 0.41 g/t Pd, 0.23 g/t Au starting just 30m down hole MMC-21-29. This intersection pierced a portion of the West Zone wireframe but initially intersected the mineralization 27.30m outside the upper portion of the wireframe and inside of the current open-pit resource shell. Follow-up drilling is required to test for further mineralization closer to surface. The primary purpose of these holes was to test the Gap Zone at depth. The holes were successful in intersecting multiple zones of mineralization within the Gap Zone, lending further support to Magna's interpretation that the East and West Zones are connected through the Gap Zone.
- Hole MMC-21-34 was drilled in the Gap Zone, approximately 36m to the east of Hole MMC-21-20 that was reported on November 4, 2021. Mineralization was intersected over 11.45m grading 0.20% Ni, 0.25% Cu, 0.01% Co, 0.22 g/t Pt, 0.27 g/t Pd, 0.15 g/t Au starting at 24.5m downhole. This near-surface intersection in the Gap Zone has the potential to convert a significant amount of material within the open pit resource shell from waste to mineral resource.
Mynyr Hoxha, vice president of Exploration, said that the Shakespeare deposit has significant potential to grow along the strike to the east and west, and is open at depth.
“Due to drilling challenges around historical mining areas, the Gap Zone is not fully defined. Recent drilling targeting the Gap Zone indicates that East and West Zones are connected around the S-13 area and open at depth. To properly define the Gap Zone closer to surface, a shallow drilling program is proposed in 2022 that will be accomplished by using an underground drill capable of drilling shallow angle holes to test some of the upper part of the East Zone/Gap Zone,” Hoxha added.
“We now have evidence that the rock units are changing orientation and dipping more southerly. This opens up tremendous exploration potential and is generating multiple new exploration targets we intend to drill in 2022."
When the assay results from the final holes of the 2021 program are received, a detailed interpretation will be completed and used to design a follow-up program in 2022 to test the remaining areas of the Gap Zone, as well as extensions of the deposit at depth and to the west, the company said.
The goal is to incorporate the next phase of Shakespeare drilling into an updated Mineral Resource estimate, it added.
Magna also reported that drilling is currently underway at the P-4 Discovery. The program at P-4 is currently budgeted for 3,500m of drilling, and the program will expand based on successful results.
The initial hole that was collared on January 4, 2022, is targeting a 200m step down below the deepest mineralized intersection, within a recently identified new electromagnetic plate. Once this hole is completed, borehole EM will be conducted on this hole while the drill moves 400 m to the east to test the second EM plate target associated with P-4.