Predictive Discovery says Guinea drilling confirms gold at depth

Predictive Discovery (ASX: PDI) has reported gold intersections up to 153m in width at its NE Bankan project in Guinea, with mineralisation remaining open at depth.

The assays from the first five diamond holes show a successful intersection of wide zones of “good to high-grade” gold in fresh rock — and with no reduction in grade at depth.

Assays returned 153m at 1.51 grams per tonne gold from 47m to end of hole; that included a 6m section at 10.4g/t gold from 189m downhole.

The company noted that this hole included 23m at 3.7g/t gold from 177m to end of hole, which it said confirmed that high-grade mineralisation extends well below the oxide zone and deep into fresh rock.

A second hole struck 78m at 2.58g/t gold from just 3m downhole (including 4m at 13.64g/t gold from 75m) but then went on the intersect two other intervals of 14m at 1.6g/t gold from 88m, and 17m at 1.63g/t from 141m.

Another hole returned 22.2m at 1.51g/t gold from 1.8m, including 2m at 7.65g/t.

Samples from a further 31 reverse circulation (RC) holes totalling 2,635m along with 1,168 power auger drill samples are currently in the laboratory awaiting evaluation.

Both RC and diamond drilling are continuing at NE Bankan, with the work testing depth extensions of the northern portion of the discovery.

Discovery still at an early stage but ‘great progress’ made

NE Bankan is located in the Siguiri Basin of Guinea which Predictive Discovery describes as “prospective but under-explored”.

The region hosts the 10 million ounce Siguiri mine owned by AngloGold Ashanti (ASX: AGG).

Predictive Discovery has spent 10 years building a large landholding across West Africa, with 18 projects totalling 6,000 square kilometres of ground in Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire and Burkino Faso.

It had notched up three discoveries before beginning work in Guinea last year.

Managing director Paul Roberts said that the latest announcement shows that, while discovery in Guinea is still at an early stage with the company having announced its first drill results only in April, the company has made great progress in a short period of time at NE Bankan.

“With no outcrop at surface to guide drilling orientation, we completed power auger drilling to define the surface extent of the mineralised zone, reverse circulation drilling to test the oxide mineralisation, and now diamond drilling to test the mineralisation in fresh rock at depth,” he explained.

While Auger and RC drilling may not have been optimally oriented, it has nevertheless defined the width of the gold mineralisation system. This varies from 100m to 200m in width.