ORANGE DISTRICT EXPLORATION JOINT VENTURE - ODEJV
Gold, Copper – NSW
In August 2005, Alkane reached agreement with Newmont Australia Limited (Newmont) to farmin to Alkane’s Orange Project which includes the Molong and Moorilda tenements located near the city of Orange in the Central West of New South Wales, adjacent to Newcrest Mining Ltd’s Cadia Valley Operations (~30Moz total resources).
During 2006, exploration programs tested targets at Charlies, Galloway and Borenore within the Molong tenements. Two deep diamond core holes were drilled to follow up encouraging alteration and mineralisation associated with monzonite type intrusives and skarn-sedimentary replacement style mineralisation intercepted by the 2005 drilling. While no significant grades were returned the drilling continued to confirm that the project area still has potential to host significant gold and gold-copper deposits.
Further modelling of the aeromagnetic data and Induced Polarisation surveys are planned to assist with target definition.
In March 2006 a soil auger sampling program over the McPhillamys Prospect within the Moorilda Project delineated a robust +100ppb gold response within a 650 x 200 metres area with coincident anomalous indicator trace elements. Reconnaissance geological mapping of this area recorded intensely altered felsic volcanic rocks hosting iron-oxide after sulphide, and sheeted quartz veins within the target zone.
A reconnaissance aircore drilling program of 30 holes tested part of the soil anomaly over a 600 metre strike length. The holes intersected highly altered volcanics with variable sulphide and quartz veining with significant gold and base metal values. A follow up drilling program of 8 RC holes and 1 core hole was completed with five sections tested on lines at approximately 150 metre spacing over a strike length of 600 metres. The results confirmed that McPhillamys hosts a major mineralised system which comprises at least two distinct gold bearing zones (Western and Eastern) which are up to 50 to 100 metres wide, are at least 400 metres in strike length, extend from the ground surface to at least 150 metres vertical depth and are separated by a zinc rich zone.
Aircore results from the Western Gold Zone:
KP 006 24
metres grading 2.03g/t gold from 4 metres
including 5
metres grading 5.69g/t gold from 5 metres
KP 007 17 metres grading 1.50g/t gold from 32 metres (to EOH)
Diamond core hole KPD 001, drilled towards the southern end of the known mineralisation, intersected the Western Gold Zone and the Central Zinc Zone. Results from this hole were summarised as:
KPD 001 77
metres grading 1.65g/t gold from 140 metres
including 13
metres grading 2.78g/t gold from 165 metres
also 7
metres grading 5.56g/t gold from 191 metres
KPD 001 31
metres grading 1.64% zinc, 12g/t silver, 0.18g/t gold from
64 metres
including 7
metres grading 2.49% zinc, 17g/t silver, 0.22g/t gold from
65 metres
RC holes also returned significant results from the Eastern Gold Zone:
KP 047 54
metres grading 1.69g/t gold from 123 metres
including 20
metres grading 3.10g/t gold from 146 metres
KP 048 123
metres grading 1.96g/t gold from the surface
including 28
metres grading 3.83g/t gold from 19 metres
and 12
metres grading 3.48g/t gold from 101 metres
While exploration of the prospect is at a very early stage, the work completed to date at McPhillamys indicates that with the geometry of the mineralisation and the outcrop of the gold bearing zones (no cover), the deposit would present no apparent open pit mining impediments. It is also apparent that with the data available, the gold and base metal rich zones are present as distinct bodies and could be mined as separate entities.
A very preliminary metallurgical scan of a composite sample from the gold mineralisation in core hole, KPD 001, gave a gold recovery of 87% from a standard cyanide leach at a nominal 75 micron grind. This would suggest that there are no refractory issues with the gold mineralisation. The metallurgical characteristics of the base metal mineralisation are still to be assessed.
Newmont, the JV manager, have advised that their preference for 2007 was to test several targets in the project area to add to the regional resource inventory and build up a substantial potential resource base before drilling out the main zone of McPhillamys. The targets include a number of geological and geophysical features, sites of historic workings and areas that have shown positive geochemical signatures.
The early-stage exploration targets around McPhillamys include extensions to the McPhillamys alteration zone, where the original drilling has only tested about 600 metres north-south strike length. The drill data suggests that the low grade mineralised envelope remains open to the north and south of McPhillamys and soil auger sampling has commenced to cover this area.
At McPhillamys East, which is about 1 kilometre to the east of the main zone, the limited 2006 drilling demonstrated the McPhillamys style alteration and mineralisation extended over a north-south strike length of 1.5 kilometres. Soil sampling to cover this in underway and has also commenced at the Grahams Prospect, located 4.5 kilometres to the northwest, to cover a geophysical anomaly.
The historic Confidence Mine is 5 kilometres east of McPhillamys and limited exploration in the 1980’s generated several intersections including 7 metres at 2.85g/t gold. Regionally there is a 20 kilometre structural corridor with scattered historical gold workings running down the centre of the project. The exploration effort in this area is minimal with the most serious being prospecting activities in the 1880’s and 1890’s.
The Moorilda Complex (15 kilometres south of McPhillamys) is a Cadia Ridgeway-style monzonite intrusive complex where previous drilling has intersected 19 metres at 1.23 g/t gold and 0.2% copper. Soil geochemistry and modelling of aeromagnetic data has defined a number of targets in this area.
Full details of results are shown in the ASX Releases or Quarterly and Annual Reports in this web site
