Focus scores strong results at Burtville

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Focus Minerals has recorded a number of high-grade results from drilling underway at the Burtville mining centre in Laverton.

Focus said the drilling has confirmed depth extensions to the existing pit floor and expansion beyond the current pit shape.

Focus has been drilling a Mineral Resource definition program of 142 RC holes on the western section of the existing Burtville pit to a vertical depth of 110m.

The company’s aim has been to test up to 70m below the base of the current pit to assess the potential for Burtville’s inclusion in its near-term production schedule.

 

Plan view of the Burtville area, highlighting the focus of the
current drilling (in red box). Numerous historical shafts and spoil
heaps are evident. Interpreted structural trends are indicated (in
yellow), along with the outline of the interpreted area of the
granodiorite (white dashed lines). Source: Company announcement

 

Drilling results included:

–    6 metres at 17.3 grams per tonne gold from 33 metres;

–    5m at 19.3g/t gold from 90m;

–    4m at 57.4g/t gold from 90m;

–    1m at 139.4g/t gold from 22m;

–    5m at 16.0g/t gold from 22m;

–    5m at 21.5g/t gold from 85m;

–    1m at 169.5g/t gold from 55m;

–    2m at 84.2g/t gold from 72m;

–    8m at 9.5g/t gold from 12m; and

–    12m at 9.9g/t gold from 23m.

Focus said mineralisation at Burtville remained open in all directions and outside of the immediate existing pit area.

“It appears that the first stage of drilling has just touched on the potential of this system,” Focus Minerals chief executive officer Campbell Baird said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Burtville is a high-priority target for us as there are multiple factors pointing to the existence of a very big system.

“So far we’ve just focused on the western third of the existing Burtville pit where our modelling is indicating there’s the potential for a very low strip ratio pit expansion.

“This, in combination with what we believe to be a very large mineralised system, points to the opportunity to develop a long-term, low unit cost mining centre at Burtville.”

Burtville has been one of a series of priority development targets for Focus since the company acquired the Laverton operations last year.

Burtville was a large, low strip open pit operation that was mined in the 1990s by Sons of Gwalia producing 64,000 ounces of gold at 1.4 grams per tonne.