Alkane Resources expands hunt for McPhillamys style gold deposits in NSW
Alkane Resources (ASX: ALK and OTCQX: ANLKY) has a proven history of discovering gold deposits such as the 2.96 million ounce McPhillamys gold deposit near Blayney with partner Newmont Australia Limited in 2006.
Alkane has now expanded its footprint in the region, and will use its considerable technical knowledge to targeting for McPhillamys style gold mineralisation.
The company has now acquired two projects considered prospective for McPhillamys style gold deposits, from Balamara Resources (ASX: BMB).
Alkane has reached agreement with Balamara to farm into two exploration licences (EL 6082 and EL 6767) located around 75 kilometres south of Blayney and the McPhillamys deposit.
Under the agreement, Alkane can earn up to an 80% interest in the tenements by spending $500,000 on exploration over three years, with a minimum $250,000 spend over two years.
After Alkane has earned the 80% interest, Balamara will have the option to pro-rata contribute or dilute according to a standard industry formula.
Highlighting Alkane's experience in the region and the ability to monetise discoveries, McPhillamys was sold to Regis Resources (ASX: RRL) for the issue of 35.7 million shares (Alkane 17.5 million shares) in August 2012.
Elsienora prospect
Balamara’s activity over the past six years, like most of the historical exploration activity in the area, has been focussed on the major historic workings at the Elsienora Prospect, with nine reverse circulation homes for 1658 metres and two diamond holes for 939 metres.
There have also been sporadic regional surface geochemical surveys, including rock chip and BLEG stream sediment sampling.
The best intercept was: 21 metres at 0.89g/t gold. The potential for disseminated gold mineralisation elsewhere in the lease has also been demonstrated at the Cuddyong Prospect.
Disseminated gold mineralisation is described associated with argillic-altered pyritic, volcaniclastic units and is currently defined by trench geochemistry (50 metres at 2.3g/t gold, including 25 metres at 3.6g/t gold - Trench 4).
Nearby sporadic drilling completed by other companies in the late 1980’s included: 24 metres at 0.9g/t gold from 6 metres.
Rockley
Alkane’s wholly-owned Rockley Project is comprised of two exploration licence applications known as ELA 4808 and ELA 4851, which total 85 square kilometres centred around 30 kilometres southeast of Blayney.
The geology of the Rockley area is similar to Elsienora and McPhillamys, with extensive altered and pyritic intermediate to felsic volcaniclastics.
Historic mining and past exploration has identified multiple target areas but recent exploration has focussed on the Rosedale prospect within ELA4808 where previous drilling has recorded intercepts of:
- 24 metres at 0.3g/t gold in RRC 004; and
- 13 metres at 0.8g/t gold to EOH in core hole RJ1.
This mineralisation is within a 1,000 metre long by 200 metre wide gold anomaly defined by soil sampling and RAB drilling. Untested, strongly chargeable IP anomalies occur along strike and down dip from existing drilling within interpreted McPhillamys-equivalent stratigraphy and form high priority drill targets.
Analysis
Alkane has a proven track-record of discoveries highlighted by McPhillamys, with the company to apply this technical knowledge to exploration on the newly acquired properties of Elsienora and Rockley.
Alkane will potentially add further tenements to its portfolio, according to the company's managing director, Ian Chalmers, who spoke exclusively to Proactive Investors today.
Chalmers said that while Alkane has looked at many tenements in the past six to twelve months, and they will continue to review more, the company is being very selective in what they acquire - as they have a clear idea of what they want.
While early days at these new tenements, Alkane is on the hunt for another multi-million ounce deposit like McPhillamys.
Most importantly, Alkane has done it all before.
