Stelar Metals Ltd (ASX:SLB) has confirmed high-grade zinc mineralisation of up to 16.5% in new laboratory multi-element assays of rock chips from the Linda Zinc Project in South Australia.
The company is buoyed by the assays and a petrological report that confirm high-grade zinc mineralisation on the surface at the 100%-owned project.
Rock-chip samples collected by the company from outcrop at the project have assayed up to 16.5% zinc and 1% lead as well as 14.1% zinc and 8.5% lead.
Meanwhile, petrological and XRD examination of the rock chips confirms zinc mineralisation in dolomitised limestone.
Moving forward, Stelar has immediate follow-up fieldwork underway at Linda as part of a plan to kick off drilling in the December quarter.
“Very high grades”
Stelar chief executive officer Colin Skidmore said: “Stelar’s new high-grade zinc results from whole-rock laboratory analysis confirms the company’s field exploration techniques at Linda.
“The very high grades at this early stage are exciting as 20% combined lead-zinc is generally considered direct shipping ore (DSO), which is similar to past zinc production from Perilya’s Beltana Zinc Mine nearby.”
Forward plan
Stelar recommenced additional soil sampling and mapping at Linda in mid-July this year.
The aims of the current work program include:
- Extending the Linda Project soil coverage to the north and to the south as far as the main bounding fault of the regional graben structure to assist in determining structural controls on mineralisation.
- Mapping and soil sampling the Linda Diapir where in 2013 Perilya reported significant zinc anomalies. The diapir is thought to be an important part of the plumbing system for metalliferous brines from deep within the basin pile. There is also potential for rare-earth minerals to be discovered at the margins of these diapiric breccias.
- Mapping and soil sampling of the area to the west of Linda where BHP in the 1980s mapped parallel units of calc-mudstone and grainstone with numerous occurrences of visible base-metal mineralisation.
- Subsequent field work over the coming months will continue to extend the surface sampling coverage and mapping to evaluate multiple areas on EL 6263 identified as prospective in satellite imagery and to define targets worthy of drill testing later in 2022.
Stelar Metals continues to negotiate a Native Title management agreement with the traditional owners and once agreed will commence heritage clearance surveys and seek drilling approval from the South Australian regulators.