THE DRILL SERGEANT: Minotaur Exploration (ASX: MEP) is drilling for copper and other base metals in two highly endowed geological provinces; the Olympic Dam domain in South Australia and around Cloncurry in Queensland.

The Adelaide-based explorer is undertaking both programs with OZ Minerals (ASX: OZL) under differing arrangements for each.

The drilling is testing geophysical targets Bellatrix, Orion, and Jupiter (SA) plus Iris North, Iris South and Royal (Qld).

OZ Minerals has opened its exploration tenements around the Prominent Hill copper mine in South Australia to Minotaur and after several months of database research and modelling Minotaur recommended four geophysical targets for joint follow-up work, with which OZ Minerals concurred.

Work completed in the months leading up to drilling involved detailed on-ground geophysics, IP and EM, refining those targets to drill readiness status.

Diamond drilling has commenced, testing three prospective electrical-geophysical responses: Bellatrix, Orion and Jupiter.

This work is proceeding under an Alliance agreement whereby OZ Minerals and Minotaur each contribute up to $1.5 million to proof test agreed targets.

Minotaur will be awarded 20 per cent beneficial interest in any designated target and can earn an additional 10 per cent upon electing to sole fund a further $2 million of exploration expenditure.

At the Eloise JV south-east of Cloncurry, OZ Minerals is farming into Minotaur’s tenements through an initial $1.5 million spend through 2016.

Ultimately, OZ Minerals could earn 70 per cent interest by investing $10 million in the ground.

Here, the partners are targeting Cannington-style silver-lead-zinc and Eloise-style copper-gold mineralisation.

OZ Minerals provided funding for Minotaur to recent complete extensive ground gravity and electromagnetic (EM) surveys, along the Levuka Shear Zone north of the existing Eloise copper mine, locating three strong EM conductors about five kilometres from the mine.

The Iris and Royal anomalies lie just 135m below surface and represent high conductance indicators to the presence of sulphide mineralisation; potentially containing base metals.

In geological terms these prospects sit within, or immediately adjacent to, interpreted Mt Norna Quartzite, a regionally significant rock unit that hosts the Eloise and Osborne copper-gold mines and the world-class Cannington silver-lead-zinc mine.

“Minotaur would be suitably chuffed should our work ultimately reveal an economic grade mineral discovery to complement either of the existing nearby mines,” Minotaur Exploration managing director Andrew Woskett said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“It would vindicate our learnings, some favourable and some less so, through recent years around Cloncurry, now applied around Prominent Hill and Eloise.

“These are all cracking targets and we can’t wait to see the drill core evidence to explain each source of anomalism.”

Email: admin@minotaurexploration.com.au

Website: www.minotaurexploration.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Azure Minerals (ASX: AZS) has received silver assays from diamond drilling recently carried out at Mesa de Plata Norte, part of the company’s Alacrán project in Mexico.

The results come from drill holes Azure had previously assessed visually to have limited potential, however these have returned assays identifying surface silver mineralisation at Mesa de Plata Norte.

Assays of mineralised drill intercepts returned:

MDPD-023
6.2 metres at 162 grams per tonne silver from surface;

MDPD-024
4.5m at 52g/t silver from surface;

MDPD-026
6.4m at 65g/t silver from surface; and

MDPD-027
3.8m at 92g/t silver from surface;

Assays are pending from holes MDPD-028 and MDPD-030 while the company starts additional drilling to test potential mineralised extensions to the south of Mesa de Plata Norte.

“Early visual inspection of drill core from Mesa de Plata Norte led us to believe there was limited potential for this area to host significant silver mineralisation,” Azure Minerals managing director Tony Rovira said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“However, it is pleasing to see that these assay results now indicate potential for additional silver mineralisation north of the existing Mesa de Plata mineral resource.

“Although we don’t expect this new area to form a significant new body of mineralisation in its own right, the grades are reasonable and the mineralisation is situated at surface, indicating it could form a nice addition to the existing resource.

“Further drilling will be undertaken in the 300 metre gap between the northern resource boundary of the Mesa de Plata deposit and these Mesa de Plata Norte drill holes to determine the extent of the mineralisation.”

Email: admin@azureminerals.com.au

Website: www.azureminerals.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: White Rock Minerals (ASX: WRM) has identified a number of high priority volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) targets within the company’s expanded Red Mountain tenement package in Central Alaska.

The high priority VMS targets are conductors located within zones of anomalous surface geochemistry, which the company said were indicative of proximal VMS mineralisation.

The targets have resulted from two recent studies undertaken at the Red Mountain project.

The first by Dr Jim Franklin, a recognised global VMS expert, who completed an assessment of surface geochemical data recently compiled by White Rock.

This study aimed to use modern vector analysis to identify new exploration targets from old data from known deposits at Dry Creek and West Tundra Flats to calibrate Dr Franklin’s assessment of the regional data.

The result has prioritised the Dry Creek West, ReRun, West Tundra Flats, Smog and Glacier target areas as highly prospective for additional VMS deposits.

The second study by Condor Consulting completed a detailed interpretation of the EM and magnetics survey flown by the Alaskan Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) in 2007.

Condor also used the known deposits at Dry Creek and West Tundra Flats to calibrate the assessment of the EM and magnetics data ending up with a number of high priority conductors identified as having the potential of being caused by massive sulphide mineralisation.

“The two studies underpin our belief that the Red Mountain project could be home to a new camp of high grade zinc-silver-gold VMS deposits,” White Rock Minerals CEO and managing director Matt Gill said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Of the 30 conductors associated with geochemical anomalism, White Rock will aim to prioritise five of the best conductors for a campaign of follow-up field work that will culminate in drilling to test the best of these targets in addition to confirming the existing deposits at Dry Creek and West Tundra Flats.”

Email: info@whiterockminerals.com.au

Website: www.whiterockminerals.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Peel Mining (ASX: PEX) has encountered new copper-dominant mineralisation while recently drilling at the company’s Mallee Bull project, near Cobar in Western New South Wales.

Peel explained the drilling was designed to test an off-hole DHEM anomaly approximately 300 metres north of Mallee Bull as part of investigations to test for new mineralisation.

The programme is anticipated to involve up to 6,000m of RC and diamond drilling.

Results received to date include:

MBRC054
7 metres at 2.01 per cent copper, 37 grams per tonne silver, 0.15g/t gold from 324m; and

MBRC055
9m at 2.24 per cent copper, 27g/t silver, 0.27g/t gold from 455m.

Peel said it was waiting on assays on further mineralisation it intersected in follow-up drill holes MBRCDD059 and MBRCDD060.

“The Mallee Bull North area was identified following a review of historic DHEM surveys adjacent to the area of interest,” Peel Mining said in its ASX announcement.

“The current drill program has focussed on broader step-out drilling at Mallee Bull North and to date has encompassed eight drill holes.

“Assay results from the first two drill holes (MBRC054 and MBRC055) confirmed that the conductor responsible for the EM anomaly is caused by significant copper mineralisation.”

Peel has conducted follow-up DHEM, which it claims to have identified a moderate-strong off-hole anomaly in close proximity to the area that has been targeted, that remains untested.

Drill hole MBDD027 is now underway to target this conductor.

“Peel is highly encouraged by the discovery of new mineralisation at Mallee Bull North, approximately 300 metres north of Mallee Bull,” the company said.

“Mineralisation remains open along strike and up and down dip, with DHEM indicating that the stronger part of EM conductor remains untested.

“Follow-up geophysics and drilling is to continue.”

Email: info@peelmining.com.au

Website: www.peelmining.com.au

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Southern Gold (ASX: SAU) announced an improved net profit outcome for the company’s Cannon gold mine, an open pit operation located 30 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia.

The Cannon mine is being operated by Metals X (ASX: MLX) in a 50/50 profit share arrangement with Southern Gold.

Southern Gold informed the market of the completion of a major cutback at the pit, from which the major ore zone in the lower half of the pit is now being mined.

As a result, Cannon Mine ore processing has now recommenced at South Kalgoorlie Operation’s Jubilee Mill (SKO) with the mine now entering into the final phase where the majority of the in-pit gold will be recovered over the next seven months.

Southern Gold explained that recent operational performance, in particular the higher than budgeted metallurgical recovery rates achieved at SKO, and a revision of Cannon’s ore block model based on recent grade control drilling, has resulted in an improved overall gold recovered estimate, lower operational costs on a per ounce basis and higher net cash generation.

“We are very pleased with progress at the Cannon Gold Mine, with minimal schedule slippage, even with the high level of rainfall which has caused some disruption, and with good work being done by the Metals X team in pit and at the Jubilee Mill,” Southern Gold managing director Simon Mitchell said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Broadly speaking Southern Gold appears to be well on track to previous guidance, potentially exceeding it and with the tail wind of the higher gold price cash flow to Southern Gold should well and truly exceed previous forecasts.

“It is particularly pleasing to see the total cost base drop below $1,000 per ounce.

“Given the brownfield and greenfield asset base outside Cannon, Southern Gold will continue to emerge over the next 12 months as a solid ASX-listed gold play with significant cash backing, a strategic land position in an iconic Australian gold region and potential for additional mine projects both at Kalgoorlie and our new push into a unique and significant portfolio of vastly underexplored or developed high grade gold projects in South Korea.”

Email: info@southerngold.com.au

Website: www.southerngold.com.au