Best Copper Zone to Date Intersected at Crater Mountain, PNG
Sydney, June 20, 2012 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Gold Anomaly Limited (
ASX:GOA) is pleased to announce that NEV033, the Company's third deep drill hole, has intersected the best copper zone to date at the Nevera prospect, within the Crater Mountain project in Papua New Guinea (PNG)
NEV033 contained strongly anomalous copper and gold values in the bottom 280m of the hole. The hole was positioned following a detailed review of the 8,904 m drill core generated by the Company in 2011 and early 2012 by Gold Anomaly's Exploration Director Peter Macnab and specialist consultant Dr Greg Corbett.
The assay results from NEV033 highlight:
- The strongest coherent copper-gold mineralisation lies within the 124m interval from 704m to 828m
- The copper value averages 124m at 0.09% Cu (900 ppm Cu), starting with 18m at 0.126% Cu (1,260 ppm Cu)
- The accompanying gold values for the 124m from 704m to 828m averages 0.38 g/t Au, starting with 24m at 0.76 Au including 8m at 1.0 g/t Au and 6m of 1.02 g/t Au
- Anomalous molybdenum (Mo) values accompany anomalous copper in the bottom of the hole , the first such occurrence at Crater
This 124m intersection is the first intersection at Nevera which combines strong signs of both gold and copper over such a wide interval. GOA sees this as significant and, along with the accompanying geology, as a strong indication that the Company is getting closer to the porphyry copper-gold source.
For the 124m from 704m copper averages 0.126% Cu over 18m to 722m, then 0.084% Cu for 106m to 828m. It then reduces to 0.054% Cu for the following 128m to 956m and 0.038% for 28m to the end of the hole at 984m. Gold values average 0.38 g/t Au for the 124m between 704m depth to 828m depth. This also includes 24m averaging 0.76 g/t Au between 704m depth and 728m depth and includes 8m averaging at 1.0 g/t Au between 706m depth and 714m and 6m averaging 1.02 g/t Au between 722m depth and 728m depth.
GOA Exploration Director Peter Macnab said:
"the result from NEV033 of 280m of porphyry copper-gold style mineralisation is the largest intersection of its type in the 9,888m of drilling undertaken at Crater to date. The geological signs are very strong that we are zeroing in on a large porphyry copper-gold system at depth. I believe that NEV033 has drilled through a mineralised arm radiating from the source porphyry. The core will now be subject to a detailed petrological study, which along with similar studies of core from other holes, will help to determine the direction of heat flow and the location of the source of the mineralisation in the underlying porphyry system."
NEV033 was sited at some distance from anomalous surface Au, Ag and base metals the Company has been testing, being specifically targeted to test for porphyry copper-gold mineralisation at depth. The location was chosen as a result of alteration and veining distributed in earlier drill holes including particularly strong phyllic (silica-coarse sericite-pyrite) alteration in NEV020.
NEV033 was drilled to a depth of 984m. Strongly anomalous copper-gold values were recorded in several different sections and dominated the bottom 280m of the hole in an environment of strong phyllic (silica-sericite-pyrite-carbonate) alteration overprinting earlier outer propylitic (chlorite) alteration, silica flooding, and magnetite-chalcopyrite veining and disseminations. These features are characteristic of a setting peripheral to a porphyry copper-gold system.. Systematically elevated molybdenum values accompany the anomalous copper and are the highest values recorded at the Nevera prospect to date. This along with very low lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) values is a characteristic of some circum-Pacific porphyry copper-gold systems such as Wafi-Golpu. The total resource at Wafi-Golpu includes copper, gold and molybdenum.
The above diagram is used to illustrate the spread in size and Au/Cu grades in a number of world class porphyry copper-gold deposits. These deposits were explored and drilled for many years before their true potential was demonstrated. Based on current drill results from Crater and in particular from this drill hole NEV 033 now confirming its porphyry copper-gold potential, the Company's emerging knowledge of the mineralisation and the early stage of exploration there, the Company is optimistic that with continued focussed exploration Crater will take its place amongst the above resources.(1)
The Nevera Prospect at Crater has three key elements:
1. A mixing zone 600m along strike, 150m wide and 150m deep with an already identified 790,000 ozs inferred resource and open laterally in all directions showing potential to further increase the resource
2. A projected large porphyry copper-gold system at depth
3. High grade gold potential of the "artisanal mining area" type
GOA also believes that the system may be replicated in a number of other locations in the Crater region - not only on the historically held ground at Nimi, Awanita and Masi Creek - but also potentially in other locations within the newly applied for Crater South tenement as identified by similar geochemical anomalies.
Airborne geophysics
The Company is planning to conduct detailed airborne geophysics over its Crater Mountain tenements, with particular emphasis on its known prospects and most importantly the Nevera Prospect. This survey will entail magnetics and radiometrics mounted on a helicopter operating at little more than treetop level and flying parallel lines 50m apart. Similar surveys conducted over other mineralised terrains in Papua New Guinea are producing very high quality results from which many details of lithology, structure and alteration can be interpreted.
The results of the survey will provide invaluable data to further define the porphyry and mixing zone potential at Nevera before the next phase of drilling is undertaken.
See appendix A for further information and appendix B for further assay results.
(1) The above diagram was extracted from a Harmony presentation on the Harmony.co.za website "REVIEW OF DISCOVERY AND EMERGING POTENTIAL OF THE WAFI-GOLPU PROJECT" Mineral Exploration Round-up 2012 presented 26 January 2012. The presentation indicates that the data was sourced from Bank of America Merrill Lynch with Gold equivalent based on US$1150/oz Au, US$2.50/lb Cu at 100% recovery for both metals.
To view the complete Gold Anomaly announcement including Figures 1-6 and Appendix's A & B, please click the following link below:
http://media.abnnewswire.net/media/en/docs/ASX-GOA-242788.pdf
Contact
Gold Anomaly Limited
T: +61-2-9241-4224
F: +61-2-9252-2335
WWW: www.goldanomaly.com.au
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