Gateway Mining commences 2023 field exploration program at Montague gold project

Gateway Mining (ASX: GML) has kicked off a 2023 exploration program at the Montague gold project in Western Australia’s Murchison district.

The program is aimed at expanding the existing 526,000-ounce mineral resource base and delivering step-change discoveries within the broader project area.

This will be achieved by continued exploration for shallow oxide deposits within 5km of existing resources, exploration of large-scale targets identified to date, including depth extensions of known mineralised structures, and identification of unexplored and highly-prospective targets within the broader tenure.

Initial field work for the March quarter will include a reverse circulation drilling campaign targeting delineation of further shallow oxide zone-hosted gold beneath the historic Caledonian open pit, as well as a major soil geochemical sampling program at the Montague North prospect.

Validating exploration

Gateway managing director Mark Cossom said the company’s work over the last two years has grown the Montague resource and validated its exploration models and approach.

“This has given us the confidence to aggressively pursue step-change discoveries at the project, which we believe has all the hallmarks of a major gold system which has been historically underexplored,” he said.

“It presents a real opportunity for our shareholders to be part of an exciting growth story at a time when macroeconomic indicators for the gold price are looking strong.”

He said field crews had mobilised to Montague, and site preparation activities are underway.

Drilling Caledonian

Gateway’s first focus will be on drilling Caledonian, where shallow mining occurred in the late 1980s but did not include drill testing of the primary ore zone.

Mr Cossom said the open pit represents a “clear target for high-grade mineralisation” similar to that seen directly along strike at the 163,000oz Montague-Boulder deposit.

Drilling will be followed by a systematic soil sampling program to provide first-pass coverage of more than 20km of strike along the highly prospective Tokay Shear Zone, which hosts the current Montague resource.

The survey results will be combined with a major structural targeting study completed by mining consultancy Model Earth to form the basis of regional scout aircore drilling planned for the June quarter.