Great Boulder Resources identifies conductors consistent with massive sulphides at Mt Venn

Metals explorer Great Boulder Resources (ASX: GBR) has conducted a ground-based moving loop EM (MLEM) survey at its Mt Venn copper-nickel-cobalt project in Western Australia with the discovery of more strong conductors within the Eastern Mafic complex – taking the total to more than 30.

The company has been gradually strengthening its exploration potential at Mt Venn for several months and has seen initial drill samples returning up to 3.6% copper.

One month ago, the company’s managing director Stefan Murphy alluded to the possibility of a massive sulphide resource being present at Mt Venn with today’s results indicating that Great Boulder has potentially tapped into a strong resource with excellent expansion possibilities.

Great Boulder said that many of these conductors are “large and shallow”, occurring between 50 and 120 metres below the surface and modelled down to a depth of 300-350m below the surface. One of the standout conclusions made by the explorer is that its target area exhibited a strong response consistent with a “massive sulphide source”.

This particular portion of exploration found a 1km gap in the EM survey that will now be infilled with ground EM to provide full coverage of a 4km-long trend.

The strong results from the MLEM survey have already spurred Great Boulder into pushing forward to conduct additional explorative drilling in the region.

Imminent drilling

According to Great Boulder, planning for the maiden drill program is now well advanced and will be adjusted as further EM results are received.

Given the large number of conductors already identified, the drill program has been expanded to 6,500-7,000 metres at the Eastern Mafic in addition to a further 2,000 – 3,000 metres at Mt Venn to test extensions to known mineralisation.

In a statement, Great Boulder said that it particularly noted an intersection of the eastern shear zone where some of the strongest conductor plates have been modelled with coincident copper and nickel geochemistry.

“The intersection of a mineralized feeder structure into the neck of the intrusion is considered a primary target for massive nickel sulphide mineralisation,” the company said.

Drilling is expected to commence on Mt Venn in the first week of July, expanding the copper nickel-cobalt mineralization already identified.

Upon completion of the expanded EM survey and Heritage survey, drilling will move to the Eastern Mafic, initially with an RC drill rig and joined shortly after with a diamond drill rig to test the deeper targets identified in EM surveys.

Today’s positive EM survey news helped Great Boulder shares to hit a high of $0.47 per share, up around 14% in morning trade.