Telephone Dam drilling rings a bell for Trafford Resources
THE DRILL SERGEANT: Perth-based mineral exploration junior Trafford Resources has announced the results of recent drilling activity at its Telephone Dam project at Wilcherry Hill, South Australia.
The company said the drilling has confirmed extensive tabular zones of commercial grade lead, zinc and silver, over a 1500 metre strike length, which had initially been outlined by drilling programs undertaken in 2008 and 2009.
Trafford took notice of the results from one particular hole, which it considers to have opened up the deposit to the North-East – an area which was previously considered less prospective since shallow historical drilling had returned little evidence of mineralisation.
Hole 11TDRC004 returned 22 metres at 2.84 per cent lead / zinc and 68 grams per tonne silver from 12m.
The company is of the opinion this intercept appears to be related to strong mineralisation returned in 11TDRC001, drilled approximately 200 metres to the south, and the trend remains open to the north.
Recent drilling has successfully extended the mineralisation indicated by the 2009 drilling program, both along strike and down dip.
The best result received from the 2009 drilling program was 92m at 2.28% lead / zinc, with 51g/t silver from 60 metres. This result included 1m at 51.4% lead / zinc with 750g/t silver.
Drilling carried out in the latest program intercepted 12m at 6.53% lead / zinc and 93g/t silver from 158m, including 2m at 24.65% lead / zinc and 392.5g/t silver from 158m.
Rock chips from the current drilling have been submitted for metallurgical test work, which is to be carried out on both oxidised and fresh samples.
The Telephone Dam prospect is one of six lead / zinc / silver prospects identified by Trafford Resources within the 960 square kilometre area of its Wilcherry Hill tenements.
It is 15 kilometres southeast of Meninnie Dam where an inferred resource of 7.7 million tonnes at 5.3 per cent lead / zinc and 27 grams per tonne silver has been defined.
The Telephone Dam deposit is located on the Eyre Peninsula approximately 240km north west of the Port Pirie lead / zinc smelter and just 2km from the Wilcherry Hill iron ore project which is being developed by Trafford’s joint venture partner, IronClad Mining.
Trafford Managing Director Ian Finch said that the decision to resume drilling at Telephone Dam after a pause of over 12 months was the first step in the company’s intention to intensify exploration activity now that the Wilcherry Hill iron ore project was on track for production.