PNX Metals Ltd (ASX:PNX) has satisfied the terms of a farm-in agreement with private operators Oz Uranium and Rockland Resources, which increases its Northern Territory exploration footprint in an area highly prospective for gold, base metals and uranium.
The area boasts historic intercepts including 4 metres at 118 g/t gold from 40 metres (TPCRC159), which makes this a highly strategic move for the company.
This farm-in covers two granted Mineral Leases, one Mining Lease Application and five Exploration Licences. All are contiguous with PNX’s existing tenements at Hayes Creek that host the zinc-gold-silver mineral resource at Iron Blow.
The Iron Blow and Mt Bonnie massive sulphide zinc-gold-silver deposits form a core part of PNX’s proposed Fountain Head and Hayes Creek Project development.
Location of farm-in agreement and PNX’s existing Mining and Exploration Leases. Other MLs also shown. Mineral occurrences adapted from Northern Territory Geological Survey STRIKE system.
PNX can earn a 100% interest in the Exploration Licences and a 100% interest in the hard-rock rights over the two Mining Leases and one Mining Lease Application. Currently, a 20% ownership interest is held by a private third-party over the two granted Mining Leases.
The company has paid an initial $60,000 and completed earn-in expenditure of $80,000. Foreign Investment Review Board approval and transfer of title is pending, but when the title transfer is completed a 1% Net Smelter Royalty over all minerals will be granted to Oz Uranium, which also keeps the uranium rights over the tenure until late 2023.
Improving development prospects
PNX managing director James Fox said: “The completion of this earn-in to obtain 100% ownership of five ELs and the hard-rock rights over three MLs contiguous with our Hayes Creek Zinc-Gold-Silver project continues to improve our development prospects and strengthen our position in the highly prospective Pine Creek area.
“These titles contain a number of advanced gold exploration targets which we have reviewed and now look forward to testing. The location of these titles also provides additional flexibility around proposed infrastructure.”
History to define best gold targets
Having reviewed the historic work across these new licences, PNX will start its 2022 field season by mapping and sampling the best of the new gold targets.
The company will conduct a drone magnetic survey, to be co-funded by the Northern Territory Government. The survey has been expanded to cover more of the Priscilla 'line-of-lode' that is expected to lead to the delineation of new high-priority drill targets.
MLs 29933 and 29937 are contiguous with PNX’s existing MLs at Iron Blow and Good Shepherd and cover additional parts of the Golden Dyke-North Point gold-trend.
ML29933 hosts the Priscilla gold prospect which is along strike and within 100 metres of the southern boundary of the historic Princess Louise opencut gold mine mined by Crocodile Gold Australia Pty Ltd between 2011 and 2013.
Historic drill collars and significant gold intercepts in ML29933 with existing PNX Mineral Leases and PNXs surrounding exploration tenure.
RC drilling at the Priscilla prospect in 2011 by Thundelarra Exploration Ltd intersected a high-grade intercept of 4 metres at 118 g/t gold from 40 metres in TPCRC159, (follow-up assays included 1 metre at 908 g/t.
The Red Hill prospect is off-set about 200 metres east of the Princess Louise 'line-of-lode' where TPCRC167 returned 4 metres at 4.6 g/t gold from 64 metres.
Three follow-up RC drill holes at Red Hill in 2013 returned a best result of 4 metres at 0.81 g/t from 24 metres in TPCRC178, thus failing to repeat the ‘bonanza’ gold grades and suggesting coarse nuggety gold typical of the Pine Creek area. ML29933 also includes extensive alluvial-eluvial gold workings.
The remaining tenure is also highly prospective for gold, as highlighted by PNX’s previous positive gold results from near the Thunderball uranium resource.