Breakaway Resources receives Sandfire JV drill results

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Breakaway Resources (ASX: BRW) has received results of a drilling program conducted by its Joint Venture partner Sandfire Resources (ASX: SFR) at the Broader Altia project, located south-east of Cloncurry in north-west Queensland.

 

Breakaway / Sandfire JV area (in blue). Source: Company announcement

 

Sandfire completed a maiden reconnaissance diamond drilling program at the Broader Altia project before Christmas, which comprised five diamond drill holes.

Three holes were completed at the Altia deposit and two at the Boralis prospect.

The Altia deposit has an Inferred Resource of 5.8 million tonnes at 4 per cent lead, 40 grams per tonne silver and 0.5 per cent zinc for 229,000 tonnes of contained lead, 7.5 million ounces of silver and 29,000 tonnes of contained zinc.

Breakaway explained the objective of this maiden drilling was to scope out the project’s potential for large-scale Broken Hill Type lead-zinc-silver discoveries within the joint venture area similar to the nearby Cannington deposit.

Assay results have been received for all holes, with intersections including:

–    1 metre at 4.1 per cent lead and 2.4 per cent zinc from 304.3 metres and 0.6 metres at 1.2 per cent lead and 0.5 per cent zinc from 307.8 metres; and

–    0.5m at 1.6 per cent lead from 700.4m.

Down-hole EM surveys were conducted on all holes drilled, however full interpretation of the EM data has yet to be completed.

Breakaway indicated the findings from the DHEM’s will be used for a subsequent drilling program, which is planned in the second Quarter of 2013.

“The reconnaissance drilling program has demonstrated that mineralisation extends both north and south of the existing Altia resource, with preliminary results of follow-up down-hole EM highlighting several potential off-hole conductors,” Breakaway Resources managing director Victor Rajasooriar said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“We are pleased that Sandfire was able to carry out a maiden drilling program at Altia so quickly after executing the joint venture late last year.”

Under the Joint Venture agreement Sandfire can earn an initial 60 per cent interest in the Broader Altia project by spending $4 million on exploration over a three-year period, and can then elect to increase its stake to 80 per cent by spending a further $4 million over the subsequent three years.

Sandfire can withdraw after spending a minimum of $1 million within the first year of the Joint Venture.

Drilling conducted prior to the Sandfire JV by Breakaway during 2010 and 2011 demonstrated that the Altia deposit lies within a broad mineralised system with silver-lead-zinc mineralisation drill-defined over a strike length of 1.2 kilometres and to a vertical depth of 800 metres.