Yerbas Buenas gives up more thick high-grade magnetite for Freehill Mining

Freehill Mining (ASX: FHS) has encountered more thick, high-grade magnetite at its Yerbas Buenas project in Chile.

The company has now received assays from two more holes from drilling undertaken late last year, which have revealed broad intersections of high-grade iron mineralisation.

Results were 86m at 24.1% iron from 128m, including 18m at 31.1% iron and 20m at 31.6% iron; and 129.5m at 31.9% iron from 22.5m, including 22m at 47.8% iron and 15.9m at 41.6% iron.

Freehill chief executive officer Peter Hinner said the latest results were “excellent” with “outstanding thick, high-grade intersections”.

“The scale of the project continues to grow with every new assay we report.”

“The magnetite we are encountering with the drill bit is readily and easily upgradable to a high-grade concentrate that we can readily sell into the local market.”

Mr Hinner added the company had received mounting interest from third parties in Yerbas Buenas.

“We look forward to delivering shareholders with more good news on the project’s development and on more quality assay results that will surely materialise,” he said.

Building on earlier results

Today’s results follow on from even broader and higher-grade assays received at the end of January, which were from the first two holes assayed out of a 4,805m campaign and two diamond drill rigs.

Assays were 202m at 25.6% iron from 38m, including 56m at 49.1% iron and 14.6m at 64.6% iron; and 160m at 22.1% iron from 82m, including 20m at 42.1% iron and 5.9m at 63.7% iron.

Mr Hinner said at the time the company had a “clear line of sight to a much larger resource” for Yerbas Buenas.

The majority of the 4,805m program was testing the target extensions on the Arenas XI tenement, which was acquired mid-last year.

Yerbas Buenas metallurgy proven

Trial mining has been undertaken at the project’s YB1 structure which has a resource of 18.4Mt at 15.1% iron that has been easily upgraded to a 68.4% iron concentrate.

The ore was sold to a local customer, which adds confidence to the commercial viability of Freehill’s iron mineralisation at Yerbas Buenas.

Additionally, YB1 makes up less than 10% of the entire project area and is one of the smallest magnetite structures identified at the project.