Drilling results encourage Venturex
THE DRILL SERGEANT: Venturex Resources has received encouraging results from exploration drilling currently underway at its Whim Creek copper mine project in Western Australia.
The drilling is being conducted approximately one kilometre to the west of the company’s existing Mons Cupri copper-zinc deposit, which has a JORC Resource of 4.94 million tonnes at 1.6 per cent copper equivalent.
So far Venturex has drilled eight RC/diamond holes to test induced polarisation (IP) anomalies associated with the target Mons Cupri horizon.
According to the company this drilling has revealed the dip of the Mons Cupri stratigraphy to be shallower than it expected it to be and has now provided an area measuring several square kilometres of near-surface exploration potential.
The thickness and intensity of the mineralisation intersected generally increases to the west, which the company considers suggests the presence of a second mineralising centre.
“The company is highly encouraged by the broad and shallow extent of the target horizon in the Mons Cupri West area – and also by the extent of copper-zinc mineralisation revealed by the drilling thus far,” Venturex Resources managing director Tim Sugden said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.
“We may be seeing the distal parts of a new volcanic centre that may host undiscovered copper-zinc deposits.”
Mineralisation intersected in completed holes to date includes:
– 2.0 metres of visible (~5 vol%) chalcopyrite and sphalerite mineralisation in the hanging wall Rushall Slate from 39 metres;
– 23m, from 170.4m, of disseminated pyrite (~3-7 vol%) with minor chalcopyrite-sphalerite (<1 vol%) mineralisation associated with strong chlorite-sericite alteration within the Mons Cupri unit, which the company said is typical of the known Mons Cupri feeder system;
– 1.5m, from 175.5m of disseminated chalcopyrite, sphalerite and galena (~2-5 vol%) associated within chlorite-sericite alteration on the Rushall Slate – Mons Cupri unit contact;
– Strong quartz-chlorite-sericite alteration in the Mons Cupri unit, just below the Rushall Slate contact containing a narrow zone of 0.2m from 208.2m, of strong stockwork chalcopyrite mineralisation (~5 vol%); and
– A 26.7m zone of strong chlorite-sericite alteration from 285.3 metres, containing moderate disseminated pyrite (~3-6 vol%) followed by 4.4m, from 294.3m, of disseminated sphalerite and galena (~2-5 vol%) mineralisation. A second 2.3m thick zone of disseminated sphalerite mineralisation (~2-5 vol%) was intersected at 312m.
The RC and diamond drilling is part of an ongoing near-mine exploration program being undertaken by Venturex.
The planned drilling comprises 1,400m of which 911m have been completed.
The company anticipates a further two holes will be completed prior to the commencement of a down hole geophysical survey program scheduled to commence in mid-September.