White Cliff Minerals Ltd.: Aucu Gold Deposit-Exploration Update
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Summary
Heavy spring flooding and snow melt initially hampered project access during May but the exploration camp has now been established. The bulldozer and excavator have completed the access road between the camp and the high grade Quartz Zone and are currently completing drill rig access tracks at 50 metre intervals along the untested 200+ metre strike extension of the Quartz Zone (see Figure 1 in the link below). The Company expects the tracks to be completed in the next few weeks. The bulldozer will then clear multiple drill pads in preparation for drilling.
The Quartz Zone appears to extend at least 200 metres further south east of the existing drilling. Outcropping mineralised shear zones occur in a track cutting 50 metres southeast of the existing drilling with channel sample assay results of 2 metres at 5.4 g/t and 1 metre at 0.7 g/t gold within sandstone. Quartz veins outcrop a further 100 metres southeast of the channel samples.
Phase one drilling at the Quartz Zone consists of 15 holes (~1200 metres) of RC drilling. The drilling is targeting the Quartz Zone structure along strike from the existing drilling which defined an inferred resource of 244,000 tonnes at 9.5 g/t containing 75,000 ounces. Once the strike extent of the Quartz zone has been defined the Company will drill a series of deeper holes to test the mineralisation at depth.
The Company is currently finalising a drilling contract with contractor Geostandart LLC which has a 15 year history in the Kyrgyz Republic and is a substantial provider of drilling services to varied clients including several western domiciled exploration companies. Geostandart's services includes diamond drilling, reverse circulation (RC) drilling, downhole surveying, directional drilling, mining related earthworks and road construction for multiple public and private companies in the Kyrgyz Republic. Geostandart is one of only two drilling companies in the Kyrgyz Republic able to conduct reverse circulation drilling.
Drilling Program
The 2017 Phase one drill program will consist of approximately 1,200 metres Reverse Circulation drilling between, 70 and 130 metres deep, at the Quartz Zone. It is anticipated that drilling will commence as soon as sufficient drill pads have been constructed (see Figure 1 in the link below).
The Quartz Zone appears to extend at least 200 metres further south east of the existing drilling. Outcropping mineralised shear zones occur in a track cutting 50 metres southeast of the existing drilling with channel sample assay results of 2 metres at 5.4 g/t and 1 metre at 0.7 g/t gold within sandstone. Quartz veins outcrop a further 100 metres southeast of the channel samples. Once the strike extent of the Quartz zone has been defined the company will drill a series of deeper holes to test the mineralisation at depth.
Subsequent drill programs will be conducted at the north western end of the Lower Gold Zone where drilling identified 6 metres at 38 g/t gold in LGZ15-29a. This target is hosted in a quartz vein having the same orientation as the Quartz Zone. The vein has been mapped along strike for 250 metres. Several bulldozer tracks and drill pads need to be completed prior to drilling and these will be constructed once the Quartz Zone dozer program is completed.
Project Access
Heavier than normal spring flooding and snow melt initially hampered project access during May. A section of the main access road to the Chanach valley from the Chatkal was washed away in spring flooding (see figure 2 in the link below). An alternative access road from the north was established to allow bulldozer and excavator access. The access track into the Aucu gold deposit is 23 kilometres long and runs along the bottom of Chanach valley. Unusually deep snow, up to 4 metres high in some drifts, had to be cleared from the Chanach access track (see Figures 2-6 in the link below). There is a partially completed elevated access road into the Chanach valley that was built in Soviet times. As the project advances the road will be re-established to provide all season access to the project.
Further up the Chanach valley the track crosses the Chanach River several times and flooding from snow melt had washed away parts of the track and altered the river crossings (see figure 7 in the link below). The bull dozer and excavator have successfully repaired the track to allow project access.
Aucu Gold Deposit-Inferred Resource Summary
In April the Company reported an updated inferred resource reported in accordance with the JORC Code (2012) for the Aucu gold deposit (refer to ASX announcement 21 April 2017). The estimate above a cut-off grade of 1 g/t gold is:
1.8 million Tonnes grading 5.2 g/t gold, for 302,000 ounces of contained gold. The new resource represents a 93% increase in contained gold ounces and a 23% increase in average grade over the previous gold resource using the same cut-off grade reported in April 2015.
Importantly the new resource contains a new very high grade zone (Quartz Zone) of 244,000 tonnes at 9.5 g/t gold containing 75,000 ounces of gold, which starts at surface. Surface extensions of the high grade Quartz Zone have been identified and will be drilled in the coming field season.
This latest resource estimate also identified a new inferred copper resource reported in accordance with the JORC Code (2012), using a bottom cut of grade of 0.25% copper, of 608,000 tonnes at 0.64% copper, containing 3,870 tonnes of copper.
The new gold and copper resources start at surface, have only been drilled to 100 metres vertical depth and remain open along strike and at depth.
The reported gold resources represent less than 5% of mineralised faults identified by rock-chip sampling to date. Approximately 95% of the mineralised faults identified by rock chip sampling are still to be drilled. The gold bearing mineralised structures extend beyond the current resource estimate area over a length greater than 3,000 metres and occur as multiple lodes (see Figure 8 in the link below).
To view figures, please visit:
http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/790WXTD7
About White Cliff Minerals Ltd:
White Cliff Minerals Ltd. (ASX:WCN) is a Western Australian based exploration company with the following main projects:
Kyrgyz Aucu Gold Project (90%): The Project contains extensive porphyry related gold and copper mineralisation starting at the surface and extending over several kilometres. Drilling during 2014 has defined a major gold discovery with an initial inferred resource of 1.15Mt at 4.2 g/t containing 156,000 ounces of gold. Additional drilling in 2015 identified extensions of known high grade gold mineralisation with intersections as high as 8 metres at 55 g/t gold. In addition drilling has also defined a significant copper deposit at surface consisting of 10Mt at 0.41% copper containing 40,000 tonnes of copper. Extensive mineralisation occurs around both deposits demonstrating significant potential to increase the existing resources.
The project is located in the Kyrgyz Republic, 350km west-southwest of the capital city of Bishkek and covers 83 square kilometres. The Chanach project is located in the western part of the Tien Shan Belt, a highly mineralised zone that extends for over 2,500 km, from western Uzbekistan, through Tajikistan, Kyrgyz Republic and southern Kazakhstan into western China.
Merolia Gold and Nickel Project (100%): The project consists of 771 square kilometres of the Merolia Greenstone belt and contains extensive ultramafic sequences including the Diorite Hill layered ultramafic complex, the Rotorua ultramafic complex, the Coglia ultramafic complex and a 51 kilometre long zone of extrusive ultramafic lava’s. The intrusive complexes are prospective for nickel-copper sulphide accumulations possibly with platinum group elements, and the extrusive ultramafic rocks are prospective for nickel sulphide and nickel-cobalt accumulations.
The project also contains extensive basalt sequences that are prospective for gold mineralisation including the Ironstone prospect where historical drilling has
Contact:
White Cliff Minerals Ltd.
Todd Hibberd Managing Director
T: +61-8-9321-2233
www.wcminerals.com.au