Reverse circulation drilling has expanded the known mineralisation at Venus Metals’ (ASX: VMC) Youanmi platinum group element and base metals project in Western Australia.
Drilling was undertaken at Venus’ majority-owned prospects Vidure, Vidure South and P57/1365 and followed up on PGE-base metal hits from 2019 of 38m at 0.78 grams per tonne platinum and palladium from 20m, including 12m at 1.32g/t platinum and palladium.
Best intersections in this latest campaign were 30m at 0.95g/t platinum, palladium, gold, plus 0.22% copper and 0.24% nickel from 40m, including 11m at 1.12g/t platinum, palladium, gold, plus 0.18% copper and 0.26% nickel from 52m, and 3m at 1.64g/t platinum, palladium gold, plus 0.32% copper and 0.42% nickel from 66m.
Venus noted the PGE mineralisation remains open at depth and along strike.
Grades also appear to increase with depth.
Drilling was targeting anomalies that were identified in an electromagnetic survey earlier this year.
Follow up work
Venus is planning further “immediate” RC drilling to target the Vidure PGE-copper and nickel mineralisation at depth beneath the most recent hole.
Mineralisation will also be tested along strike to the north and to the south.
To underpin this work, a comprehensive review of all historical geophysical data for the project is underway.
Venus expects these results “shortly”.
The company is chasing PGE-copper-nickel-cobalt mineralisation within the Youanmi Igneous Complex.
The complex’s potential has been highlighted with Chalice Mining’s (ASX: CHN) Julimar PGE-copper-nickel-cobalt discovery.
Historical exploration at Youanmi
Venus is the latest explorer to test the potential within the Youanmi tenements.
Back in 1973, WMC drilled a hole into the Vidure prospect that unearthed 1.22m at 2.2% nickel and 0.14% copper.
A decade later, BHP (ASX: BHP) drilled a hole close to the 1973 one and encountered 8m at 1.47% copper, 0.13% nickel and 5g/t silver from 120.5m, including 0.71m at 7.01% copper, 0.8% nickel and 21g/t silver from 122.35m.
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