Aurum Resources makes 72g/t bonanza gold hit in drilling at Boundiali project

Aurum Resources (ASX: AUE) has reported additional shallow, wide and high-grade gold intercepts from ongoing drilling at the BD tenement within its Boundiali project in West Africa.

Assays for four diamond holes over 275 metres of strike returned a best result of 73m at 2.15 grams per tonne gold from 172m including 1m at a bonanza 72.11g/t from 188m, 4m at 18.63g/t from 185m, 5m at 7.15g/t from 221m and 5m at 3.23g/t from 240m.

Other results were 36m at 2.53g/t gold from 104m including 16m at 5.03g/t from 110m, 6m at 11.39g/t from 115m and 2m at 30.80g/t from 119m, 22m at 1.98g/t gold from 35m including 9m at 2.76g/t from 38m and 14m at 1.65g/t gold from 76m including 5m at 3.07g/t from 80m.

The new assays add to the first hole reported last week, which intersected 9m at 1.98g/t gold from 137m and 4m at 22.35g/t from 226m.

Encouraging signs

Managing director Dr Caigen Wang said the company was encouraged to see shallow and high-grade mineralisation in the first five holes of the program.

“These intercepts cover a strike of approximately 275m within the known 1,300m strike length of target 1 and represent new project-high assays,” he said.

“We believe we are seeing early signs of the presence of a large and fresh high-grade gold system beyond the wide, thick oxidised mineralisation and all within open-pit mining depth.”

Aurum’s ongoing scout diamond program at the BD tenement has comprised over 6,000m to date, with more results expected in coming weeks.

Dr Wang said the company would also be drilling down-dip extensions in an effort to define a maiden gold resource by year-end.

Inaugural scout campaign

Aurum commenced an inaugural drilling campaign at Boundiali’s BM and BD tenements in October using two self-owned and -operated diamond rigs.

Exploration at the BD tenement has advanced following the completion of 91 reverse circulation holes for 6,229m that defined three new targets.

Gold mineralisation at the tenement is believed to be structurally controlled and hosted within unaltered or weakly-altered sediments.

More extensive alteration, veining and sulphidation occurs in zones of structural complication.

The first diamond hole at BD returned best results of 6m at 1.40g/t gold from 7m, 12m at 1.29g/t gold from 17m, 9m at 1.98g/t gold from 137m and 4m at 22.35g/t gold from 226m, which is 173m vertically below surface.