Shree Minerals still on the hunt for more gold, base metal projects
While advancing its gold and base metals assets, Shree is poised to resume production at its Nelson Bay River DSO iron ore project.
Shree Minerals (ASX: SHH) is making headway on its three-project strategy with field work underway at one gold project and the company is seeking re-permitting for its former iron ore flagship project.
But it is not resting on its laurels.
“Shree is continuing to identify and assess exploration and early development opportunities throughout Australia in gold and base metals projects,” the company said in its latest quarterly report.
Shree during the September quarter increased its cash reserves through a “strongly supported” raising for $1.2 million.
Shree, which had previously been focused on developing the Nelson Bay River direct-shipping iron ore project, last year began moving into gold, in March 2019 acquiring the Golden Chimney project 180km north of Kalgoorlie and 13km south of the Ulysses gold mine originally mined by the former Sons of Gwalia and now held by Genesis Minerals (ASX: GMD).
Earlier this year, Shree added additional ground to Golden Chimney.
In late June Shree formed a joint venture with unlisted Territory Lithium to explore that latter’s Northern Territory ground for gold and base metals.
That deal set up the Arunta joint venture which takes in the Box Hole, Edwards Creek and Bruce projects in the territory. Exploration results showing gold have been reported by all the previous owners of these projects.
Then came another acquisition — a tenement on the Lachlan Fold Belt in NSW right in the middle of elephant gold country.
This NSW ground is located just 15km from the famed Hill End goldfield where, in 1872, Australia’s biggest ever gold specimen — the Holtermann nugget — was discovered.
Iron ore prices remain “robust”
On its Nelson Bay River direct ship iron ore project, Shree says that commodity’s prices remain robust.
The price of iron ore 62% fines overnight was holding at a firm US$116 per tonne.
The company is now progressing re-permitting at the project.
“The mine [is] in ready state to recommence production at short notice with existing development in place,” Shree stated.
At the Bruce project in the NT, exploration field work has begun where previous rock chip sampling returned grades up to 53 grams per tonne gold.
Shree reports that two new areas of quartz veining, with anomalous gold and copper, have been identified — and one of those veins lies just 250m south of the original vein that was sampled.
Awaiting approval for NSW gold prospect
The company is still awaiting approval for its exploration licence application on the Lachlan belt
Shree lodged an application for an exploration licence for ELA6044, 15km north of the regional city of Bathurst.
This ground covers a sequence of structures similar to those of the Hill End goldfield, 15km to the northwest.
Hill End is held by Pure Alumina (ASX: PUA), formerly listed as Hill End Gold, which has a mineral resource of 4.68Mt at 3.3g/t gold for a contained 501,552oz.
Shree’s nearby Turondale project has produced, from previous soil and stream sampling, very anomalous results with up to 2.6g/t gold, 3,700 parts per million (ppm) copper and 5,000ppm lead.
“Structures containing high-grade gold prospects [are] interpreted to strike into Shree’s tenement,” the quarterly report notes.