Hammer Metals tumbles on initial Bronzewing South gold assays
Hammer Metals’ initial assays from Bronzewing South were 10m at 1.97g/t gold, including 1m at 16g/t.
Hammer Metals (ASX: HMX) has completed the phase one drilling program at its Bronzewing South project with assays revealing up to 16 grams per tonne gold.
However, an early morning sell-off on the news caused the company’s share price to plunge 25% to $0.024 just after market open.
Initial assays were from a 14-hole program that comprised 2,743m and tested five targets south of the known 2.3 million ounce Bronzewing deposit in Western Australia.
Notable results were 10m at 1.97 grams per tonne from 129m, including 1m at 16g/t from 137m and 2m at 3.39g/t gold from 110m.
Another hole intersected 8m at 1.36g/t gold from 199m, including 1m at 6.2g/t gold and 4m at 2.49g/t gold from 226m.
“We are very encouraged by the results from our first drilling program at Bronzewing South,” Hammer chairman Russell Davis said.
“The wide-spaced drilling has intercepted significant gold mineralisation in most of the holes drilled and has provided useful information on the structure, geology and deportment of the gold mineralisation at the project and will guide further drilling,” he added.
Ongoing exploration at Bronzewing South
Hammer is planning a phase two reverse circulation drilling program at Bronzewing South, which it expects to begin later this month.
The new program will test an additional five targets that have been developed from induced polarisation and gravity survey data in conjunction with information gained from the current program.
One of the targets Hammer will test is the Kens Bore prospect where rock chip samples returned gold grading 6.09g/t, 7.73g/t, 12.1g/t and 22.3g/t.
“We are looking forward to commencing reverse circulation and aircore drilling programs in the near future along both the Bronzewing South and Orelia trends and at the new Ken’s Bore target,” Mr Davis said.
Nearology
As well as the reverse circulation program, Hammer plans to undertake a 15,000m aircore campaign along strike to the north of Echo Resources’ (ASX: EAR) Orelia deposit, which has a resource of 1.07Moz gold.
Echo’s Orelia deposit is part of its wider Yandal gold project which covers 1,600 square kilometres in WA’s Yandal greenstone belt, north of Kalgoorlie.
The company has firmed up global resources at Yandal of 28.6Mt at 2g/t gold for 1.8Moz.
In August, Northern Star Resources (ASX: NST) made an all cash off-market takeover offer for Echo that valued the company at $242.6 million.
Northern Star’s strategy behind the acquisition was to amalgamate the Yandal gold project with its own Jundee mine and get its hands on the project’s 1.8Mtpa processing plant that is currently on care and maintenance.
Hammer gains new managing director
As exploration at Bronzewing South advances, Hammer announced it had appointed Dan Thomas as managing director.
Mr Davis said Mr Thomas had a “strong combination” of mining and commercial experience required to unlock Hammer’s existing asset portfolio.
Mr Thomas has 20 years’ industry experience in operations, corporate development, and project management and finance.
His most recent role was business development manager with Sandfire Resources (ASX: SFR).