Auroch hits nickel sulphides near Kalgoorlie

Matt BirneySponsored
Camera IconRC drilling has confirmed strong nickel sulphide targets seen in down-hole EM surveys at ASX-listed Auroch Minerals’ Saints nickel project near Kalgoorlie. Credit: File

RC drilling has intercepted nickel sulphides at ASX-listed Auroch Minerals’ Saints nickel project near Kalgoorlie, confirming targets that were identified by down-hole EM surveys. One hole returned 12m at 0.67 per cent nickel from 22m, including 1m at 1.34 per cent, confirming that Auroch is onto a mineralised system in the Goldfields as the hunt for the source continues.

The results appear to confirm Auroch’s EM survey interpretation that the down-hole EM anomaly represented sulphides in ultramafic rocks at the base of an ancient lava-filled channel.

The Saints nickel project that is located just 7km east of the Goldfields Highway and approximately 65km north-northwest of Kalgoorlie, is strategically situated about 50km from Poseidon Nickel’s Black Swan nickel sulphide project. Black Swan boasts a nickel resource of 196,000 tonnes of contained nickel and a mothballed 2Mtpa processing plant that Auroch’s management will no doubt be eyeing off if its own drill program can yield some good results.

The company said that exploration efforts to date, including down-hole EM surveys, had defined a number of strong nickel sulphide targets. Previous air core drill results at Saints unearthed some anomalous, near-surface nickel results that included 42 metres grading 0.40% nickel from 21m and 21m grading 0.41% nickel from 33m down hole.

The latest hole drilled at the T1 channel target intersected three intersections of 12m at 0.67 per cent nickel from 22m, including 1m at 1.34 per cent nickel from 24m, 2m at 0.76 per cent nickel from 47m and 3m at 0.54 per cent nickel from 72m.

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The T1 channel target lies underneath a small salt-lake or ‘playa’ that prohibits access by a truck-mounted drill rig. As a consequence, the drill-hole that Auroch completed was located on the very edge of the playa. The drill hole was positioned to at least confirm mineralisation in the ultramafic rocks in the vicinity of the T1 channel.

Auroch said that drilling at its T2 channel target confirmed that the ultramafic rock unit at the base of the channel there was nickel-rich with high magnesium and copper values relative to low zinc and chromium values. One drill intercept at T2 returned 2m at 0.56 per cent nickel from 39m.

Whilst it is still early days for Auroch and it needs more grade, the presence of the mineralised system is good news and it is now up to company Geologists to work out how it twists and turns and where a high-grade source might be hiding.

Auroch already has an inferred mineral resource of 21,400 tonnes of contained nickel at a respectable grade of 2.0 per cent nickel at the project.

Is your ASX listed company doing something interesting ? Contact : matt.birney@wanews.com.au

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