Australian Vanadium Ltd (ASX:AVL) welcomes first results from Bryah Resources Ltd (ASX:BYH)’s aircore drilling across the Lady Alma Layered Igneous Complex (LALIC) within the Gabanintha Project, about 40 kilometres SSE of Meekatharra in WA, that located a new gold-bearing fault structure.
This recently completed aircore program was designed to investigate the extent and zonation of the LALIC, which has potential to host nickel-copper-gold and platinum group elements (PGE) mineralisation.
The joint Bryah/Australian Vanadium program was undertaken with Exploration Incentive Scheme grant funding of up to $53,000 from the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) as a contribution towards drilling costs.
Promisingly, the latest results identified mineralisation in a new fault structure at the project and a highlight was 9 metres at 1.43 g/t gold from 24 metres, including 4 metres at 2.48 g/t gold and 0.064% copper from 29 metres.
Bryah holds a suite of mineral rights over the project including nickel, copper and gold while Australian Vanadium holds the rights to vanadium, titanium, iron ore and cobalt and is a 5.0% shareholder of Bryah.
“Exploration opportunities”
Bryah’s managing director Neil Marston said: “This EIS co-funded drilling is being undertaken with the support of the WA State Government and in collaboration with Australian Vanadium Limited.
“Bryah holds the rights to various minerals include nickel, copper, gold and PGEs.
“Recent exploration has identified that the Lady Alma Layered Igneous Complex hosts copper, nickel, cobalt and gold as well as the high-grade vanadium deposit held by AVL.
“Information from this regional drilling program should advance our understanding of the exploration opportunities within the project area.”
Aircore drilling
Bryah has completed 113 holes totalling 5,539 metres with vertical holes generally spaced at intervals of 100 metres along each traverse line and drilled to blade refusal
The company is completing a full multi-element suite, including whole-rock geochemistry, rare earth elements and trace elements from the bottom of hole samples.
Importantly, this dataset will be applied in studies aimed to determine chemical zonation of the LALIC, to identify horizons that may be prospective for economic metal concentrations, both for Bryah and Australian Vanadium.
Drill results
To date, results have been received for 31 holes (21GAC001-21GAC031, 455 samples) with more than 1,000 composite and end of hole samples still outstanding.
In drill hole 21GAC013, single metre samples were collected from 28 metres to the end of the hole at 37 metres due to the strong quartz veining observed in some of the drill cuttings by company personnel.
This hole is 1.7 kilometres south-east of the New Hope prospect where previous sampling of drilling completed in 2019 recorded gold mineralisation including an impressive 10 metres at 27.5 g/t gold from 53 metres, including 4 metres at 64.3 g/t from 54 metres, which included 1-metre at 182.0 g/t.
The latest results support the potential for significant gold mineralisation in nine structural corridors over 11 kilometres in cross-cutting fault zones adjacent to the vanadium-titanium magnetite (VTM) deposit.
Forward plan
The New Hope Prospect and hole 21GAC013 will be the subject of a detailed ground magnetic survey to assist in better defining the potentially gold-bearing cross-cutting fault zones within the vanadium-titanium-magnetite deposit.
Follow-up reverse circulation drilling at New Hope and in the vicinity of 21GAC013 is planned for November 2021 with areas of immediate interest have heritage survey clearances so there are no impediments to the commencement of drilling.
The remaining assay results from the aircore drilling will be reported when they become available.
Furthermore, Bryah will also select further archived drilling pulps from the project to submit for gold, platinum and palladium analysis.
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