Gateway Mining’s Julias target shaping up as ‘significant’ oxide gold discovery

West Australian explorer Gateway Mining (ASX: GML) is continuing to advance its long held Gidgee gold project as it works to increase the existing 449,000 ounce resource.

The company is focusing on areas within a 5km radius of its existing resource, and now believes that one of its two prime prospects, Julias, is shaping up as a significant oxide discovery, with “major” new drilling programs under way.

Gateway picked up the Gidgee project in the 2000s, initially in a joint venture with with a subsidiary of Herald Resource, then moved to take majority control two years later. 

In 2022 it plans, initially, to drill 16,000m (aircore) and 6,000m (reverse circulation) at Julias and Kashmir — the former lies to the north, the latter to the south, of Gateway’s four existing resources, including its original Airport prospect. 

Shallow bedrock mineralisation confirmed at Kashmir 

Gateway reported notable results during the March quarter from shallow reverse circulation drilling at Julias. 

These included 11m at 2.6 grams per tonne gold, 10m at 3g/t gold, and 9m at 3.5g/t gold.

At the Kashmir target, what the company describes as “significant” shallow bedrock gold mineralisation has been defined over at least 2.5km which was indicated by reverse circulation drilling at the southern portion of the target. 

This mineralisation was directly along strike from the 204,000oz Howards deposit owned by Horizon Gold (ASX: HRN). 

Highlight intersections at Kashmir included 15m at 1g/t gold and 5m at 1.7g/t gold. 

Now the 6,000m infill and extensional drilling has begun at Julias.

Now exploring area previously closed off

Gateway says Julias, and the neighbouring Flametree target, are emerging as significant shallow, oxide gold zones located immediately west of the company’s Montague-Boulder and Evermore resources. 

Historic exploration to the north was impeded by the presence of a tenement boundary, but Gateway has now acquired that neighbouring tenement and now controls the entire strike length. 

Drilling in the second half of 2021 identified the continuation of mineralisation for more than 800m toward the neighbouring Flametree target.