Spartan Resources delivers substantial gold resource and grade increases at Dalgaranga
Spartan Resources (ASX: SPR) has recorded a 47% increase in ounces and a 91% increase in grade in an updated mineral resource estimate (MRE) at its Dalgaranga gold project in Western Australia.
The company said that aggressive drilling at the Never Never deposit and the addition of the new Pepper discovery had helped identify an additional 1.87 million ounces of gold at 8.65 grams per tonne within 2 kilometres of its plant.
Managing director and chief executive officer Simon Lawson said the new Dalgaranga MRE of 16.1 million tonnes at 4.79g/t gold for 2.48Moz confirms the project as an emerging high-grade underground gold mining operation.
‘Incredible outcome’
“This is an incredible outcome only two years from discovery and the direct result of a consistent high-grade drill focus, a highly effective drill strategy and the team’s extensive experience interpreting, modelling and estimating high-grade gold resources,” Mr Lawson said.
“We have created a highly investable gold mining and development company which has established a reputation for consistently delivering value to our shareholders since our recapitalisation in February 2023.”
“This resource will underpin our maiden underground ore reserve, which is currently underway and due for delivery in the second half of 2024.”
New Pepper deposit
Mr Lawson said the recent discovery of the high-grade Pepper gold deposit adjacent to Never Never has been another major breakthrough.
“Given this new high-grade discovery is in such close proximity to the development associated with any Never Never underground access scenario, Pepper is the drill team’s priority-one in-fill and extensional drill target right throughout the second half of 2024.
“We will focus on closing in the drill spacing and testing extensions to the Pepper gold deposit from surface right up to the underground exploration drill drive, giving us an underground drill platform to continue this work.”
Barminco contract
News of the impressive MRE upgrade comes a day after Spartan awarded Perenti (ASX: PRN) subsidiary Barminco with an $18.3 million contract for new work at Dalgaranga.
Barminco has been engaged to deliver twin decline access for the establishment of underground drilling platforms to in-fill and extend mineralisation across four of the mine’s deposits.
Spartan plans to recommence surface drilling programs targeting the Pepper, Four Pillars, West Winds and other near-surface anomalies in the near future.