Mining

Alt Resources hits shallow high-grade gold as the metal’s price nudges A$2,680/oz

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By Robin Bromby - 
Alt Resources Quinns Mining Area ASX ARS gold

Alt Resources has unearthed shallow high-grade gold at its Mt Ida and Bottle Creek project in WA.

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Alt Resources (ASX: ARS) has reported a sequence of high-grade gold intersections from depths as shallow as 12m at its Western Australian Mt Ida and Bottle Creek project.

The company has completed a program of 48 reverse circulation (RC) holes at the Mt Ida and Bottle Creek deposits. Thirteen holes returned high-grade gold, all from shallow intersections.

At the time of writing, the spot gold market price is at US$1,573 per ounce, equivalent to A$2,674/oz.

One hole hit gold at 12m below surface, intersecting 5m at 3.61 grams per tonne. Other intercepts included 6m assaying at 11.06g/t (from 36m below surface), 26m at 4.63g/t (starting at 28m below surface), and another hole with mineralisation struck at 17m and returned 10m at 3.47g/t.

The projects are located 90km northwest of Menzies in WA’s northern goldfields.

Drilling began on 21 February and was completed in 18 days, with an average 207m of drilling per day.

The Mt Ida and Bottle Creek project now has a JORC resource estimate of 10.5 million tonnes at an average 1.54g/t gold (for 519,000oz) and a silver resource standing at 5.6Mt at 21.1g/t for 3.78Moz silver.

Two pits never mined

Bottle Creek was mined over an 18-month period in 1987-88 from two open pits and was treated on-site in a carbon-in-pulp plant, producing 93,000oz. That mining was at the Boags and VB pits.

However, the Emu and Southwark deposits are unmined and lie 4,000m up-strike from the Boags and VB pits. The Emu and Southwark deposits are the current location of Alt’s RC and diamond drilling programs which will form the maiden indicated gold resource at Bottle Creek.

Alt’s project, called the Quinns mining area, also comprises the Boudie Rat and Forrest Belle shallow pits with additional historic prospects known as Boudie West, Boudie Beach and Belvidere.

The company said limited modern drilling has been conducted on its ground. Numerous workings exist along the mineralised trend at Quinns.