Brightstar Resources Ltd (ASX: BTR) (Brightstar) is pleased to announce assay results from the inaugural Link Zone diamond drilling (DD) drilling program, part of the larger drilling program across the broader1.45Moz Au Brightstar portfolio in Menzies and Laverton. The program is targeting gold mineralisation for near-term development assessment of the Link Zone deposit, specifically targeting the Merriyulah and Golden Dicks deposits, located between the 287koz Au Lady Shenton System and 43koz Au Lady Harriet System at the Menzies Gold Project.
HIGHLIGHTS
Assays have been received for five diamond holes drilled at the Link Zone deposit at the Menzies Gold Project, part of the previously announced +30,000m drilling program1, with all holes at Link Zone drilled for metallurgical and geotechnical testwork purposesResults produced multiple high-grade intercepts targeting conceptual pit shells at the Merriyulah and Golden Dicks deposits within the Link Zone areaIntercepts returned at Link Zone include:LZMET24001:12.0m @ 11.90 g/t Au from 51.0m, including 1.0m @ 55.8g/t Au from 54.0m,10.0m @ 0.97 g/t Au from 23.0m, and0.6m @ 12.0g/t Au from 43.4mLZGT24001:1.0m @ 5.57 g/t Au from 45.0mLZGT24002:9.7m @ 1.77 g/t Au from 34.3mLZGT24003:8.49m @ 1.56 g/t Au from 14.0mLZGT24004:13.1m @ 1.19g/t Au from 11.3m
The program at Link Zone was focused within and adjacent to conceptual $3,000/oz Au pit shells, with holes targeting interpreted ore lode positions to gain mass for metallurgical testwork, along with varying orientations of geotechnical holes to gain information for assessment ahead of a potential small-scale mining campaign.
Brightstar’s Managing Director, Alex Rovira, commented“The diamond drilling component of our +30,000m campaign kicked off at Link Zone, with excellent grade results returned despite most holes being drilled for geotechnical purposes. Additionally, the metallurgical hole has given us valuable information for downhole lode grade variability, highlighted by a superb 6.0m @ 21.08g/t Au intercept containing six individual 1.0m +5.0 g/t Au intercepts within a broader down dip intercept of 12.0m @ 11.90g/t Au. We’re particularly encouraged by the grades returned, with these results released today along with our recently completed Link Zone RC program2 all returning grades well above the global MRE estimate for Link Zone emphasising areas for potential open pits.
Geotechnical logging was completed ahead of sampling & assaying, with the remaining core and existing RC samples being utilised for a metallurgical testwork program presently underway to feed into re-optimised pit shells and ultimately define a pathway to monetisation via a small-scale mining campaign similar to the successfully completed Selkirk Mining JV earlier this year.
Approximately 1km to the north, the Lady Shenton System RC drilling program will complete in the coming fortnight, with these results to be assessed and integrated into an updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Definitive Feasibility Study presently underway. We look forward to updating the market with these results, along with previously completed RC and diamond programs at Jasper Hills and Second Fortune with assays progressing through the laboratory.”
TECHNICAL DISCUSSION
Five shallow diamond drill holes were completed at Link Zone (refer Figure 2), with holes drilled at varying orientations for metallurgical and geotechnical purposes. Three geotechnical holes were focused on drilling across the structure, with reported assays approximating true thicknesses and geometry of ore lodes; one geotechnical hole (LZGT24003) was drilled down dip targeting the west wall of the conceptual Merriyulah pit shell, whilst the single metallurgical hole (LZMET24001) was drilled down dip for sample mass purposes and thus should not be considered representative of lode thicknesses in the Golden Dicks deposit.
As shown in core photographs for LZGT24003 (Figure 4) and LZMET24001 (Figure 6), mineralisation observed at Link Zone is largely hosted by or along the margins of quartz-sulphide veins developed within shears associated with the Menzies Shear Zone, with the highest grades observed in intervals with abundant veining. The host rock is predominately amphibolitised basalt, with intermittent evidence of sulphide mineralisation (predominately pyrite) associated with shearing, bleaching and veining on geological contacts.
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