Accelerate Resources encounters significant cobalt at Thomas Creek

Exploration junior Accelerate Resources (ASX: AX8) has intersected significant cobalt mineralisation and sulphide veining at depth during a drilling campaign at the Thomas Creek prospect within the wholly-owned Mount Read project in western Tasmania.

Drilling at the copper-cobalt-gold prospect returned a best result of 3m at 0.23% cobalt from 150m including 1m at 0.33% cobalt.

Cobalt-pyrite mineralised veins encountered in the drill hole include 150.6m to 151.8m of 30% semi-massive pyrite with clots up to 8mm and trace chalcopyrite veinlets; 152.2m to 152.4m of 10% semi-massive pyrite and stringers and trace chalcopyrite veinlets; and 156.9m to 157.4m of 15% semi-massive pyrite with clots up to 8mm.

Accelerate also reported an interval within the same hole of 1m at 0.15% cobalt and 0.31% copper from 157m.

Earlier surface sampling at the prospect returned up to 0.33% cobalt, 1.52% copper and 0.59 grams per tonne gold.

Testing a new anomaly

The drill hole, which ended at 272.9m, is the first of three holes targeting a large chargeable IP anomaly located along the eastern margin of an ovoid aeromagnetic body and below a surface copper-cobalt anomaly at Thomas Creek.

This latest target was identified in April following three-dimensional IP modelling of the prospect.

In addition to returning the cobalt mineralisation, the hole confirmed the target hosts a broad zone of alteration and mineralisation prospective for copper and gold.

A large and untested target

Historic drilling at Thomas Creek identified high-grade copper and gold mineralisation at surface, comprising a 5m wide mineralised zone.

Geochemical analyses of the mineralised zone returned values of between 0.8% to 3.8% copper, 0.7g/t to 1.3g/t gold, and 0.1% to 0.78% cobalt.

Accelerate said the discovery of significant cobalt mineralisation associated with sulphide veining at depth is highly encouraging and confirms the potential of the “largely untested” Thomas Creek prospect to host further mineralisation.

At midday, shares in Accelerate Resources had increased 15.38% to A$0.15.