Perth, Jan 17, 2008 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Mineral Sands Limited ("Minsands") (ASX: MSN) has discovered a second prominent zone of significant soil geochemical gold anomalism on the Plumridge Project.
The project is situated on the Albany Fraser Province and the reworked transitional margin of the Yilgarn Block, which hosts the 4 Moz Tropicana gold deposit, as well as several other gold projects. It has become increasingly apparent that the "transitional zone" is gold endowed and may be highly prospective for additional discoveries.
Calcrete gold anomalism is associated with local aeromagnetic trends suggesting that it reflects basement geology and, on magnetic evidence, is adjacent to the Salt Creek Mafic Intrusive similar to Dominion Ltd's Redback Gold project to the South-west.
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In addition to the two broad zones of significant anomalism have now been identified for immediate follow-up infill sampling, there are numerous single point anomalies at this sample density that might also have significance as vectors to mineralization, and will require follow-up.
BACKGROUND
Minsands is the sole holder of an extensive area of granted exploration licences, totalling 2,220 sq.km. referred to as the "Plumridge Project". The project is situated on the western margin of the Eucla Basin where it laps against the Gunbarrel Basin, and overlies the Albany Fraser Province and the reworked transitional margin of the Yilgarn Block ( see Figure 1).
Minsands has been exploring the coastal sediments on the Plumridge Project for mineral sand accumulations and palaeochannel uranium in the cover sediments and for gold in the basement rocks. Minsands commenced a systematic first-pass regional calcrete sampling program in July 2007 to investigate, at 1000m by 200m point spacings, the gold potential of the Plumridge ground over both the "Yilgarn transition zone" and the Albany-Fraser Province. Gold-in-calcrete is an established method of targeting buried mineralization by sampling of broad dispersions of gold moving from basement rocks into the near surface environment.
SAMPLING PROGRAMME AND RESULTS
By August 2007 some 60% of the first pass sampling had been completed and an area of significant gold anomalism had been identified and reported. In September first-pass sampling was suspended whilst a targeted infill program to 500m by 100m spacing was completed. On the 23rd October 2007, Minsands announced the results of this infill sampling which better defined an anomaly covering 42 square kilometres, as well as a further 57 point anomalies, defined from the first pass, worthy of follow-up sampling.
First-pass sampling recommenced across the remainder of the tenements and is now 99% complete. Assay results from this program of sampling have become available and a second, large zone of significant soil geochemical gold anomalism has been identified in the northern portions of the Plumridge Project, This northern anomaly covers an area greater than 20 square kilometres, along a strike length of 7km. It encompasses some 28, largely contiguous samples, all in excess of the statistically designated 15ppb anomalism threshold with several samples returning in excess of 50ppb.
FUTURE WORK
The planned 250m by 200m density infill sampling program intended for the Southern Anomaly will now be expanded to include the Northern Anomaly area as well. In addition, a further 57 anomalies require secondstage infill sampling.
These work plans will be preliminary to, and will also run concurrently with, reconnaissance drilling targeting the basement sources of the gold anomalism.
As a consequence of this expanded work programme the expenditure on the Plumridge tenement is expected to be close to $1 million in 2008 representing some 40% of the company's planned exploration expenditure.
Contact
TEL: +61-8-9421-1912
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