Advance Metals (ASX:AVM) has jagged red-hot visible gold hits in three holes in a recent diamond drilling program at its Happy Valley prospect, part of the company’s Myrtleford project in the Victorian goldfields, some 290 kilometres northeast of Melbourne.
The company last month found visible gold in the first diamond hole at site. Not to be outdone, the second and third holes drilled in the current campaign have kicked up further stunning visible gold associated with sulphide-bearing quartz veins in multiple zones downhole.
Hole two tested 15 metres below a previous eye-raising interval drilled by a former owner that hit 11.5m grading 160.4 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, including a super slice of 0.6m going 2430g/t gold.
The new downhole section below the high-grade hit encountered visible disseminated gold in the quartz and sulphides in multiple zones at 211.5m, 216m, 216.2m, 217.6m and 219.2m downhole. It was drilled to a depth of 224.6m.
The visible gold zones correlate well with the intersection above it and another result in a nearby hole that produced 7.15m at 10.5g/t gold.
The third hole was placed about 15m west of the first hole drilled and intersected strong visible gold at 159.5m, 180m and 180.9m downhole, extending the system’s strike length to the west.
Significant zones of mineralisation were unearthed, with a 1.6m quartz vein hosting multiple small gold grains at a depth of 159.5m. The most prominent visible gold was apparent at depths of 180m and 180.9m. The hole was completed to a depth of 224.5m.
“Our maiden drilling at Myrtleford is proving to be incredibly productive. We now have three holes completed, with each producing highly encouraging visible gold mineralisation in multiple zones.” Advance Metals managing director Dr Adam McKinnon
McKinnon said the visual results from the third hole drilled were particularly significant, given the hole was sited in a new area along strike to the west of previous drilling conducted over the area.
The company’s maiden diamond drilling program kicked off in February at the 418 square kilometre site and focussed on its Happy Valley prospect in the southeastern portion of the project.
Management revealed last month visual logging of the first hole confirmed the drilling had intersected at least three zones of sulphide-bearing quartz veining with visible gold mineralisation in all zones.
Visible gold grains were identified in an irregular patch of sulphides found in a cut section of core from 189m depth. The lowest section of veining from the zones extends for more than 3.35m with multiple occurrences of visible gold throughout the interval.
The company is expecting to receive assays for the first drill hole before the end of the month and assays from its second and third holes by mid-April. The core from hole two has been logged and cut and core from hole three is being processed.
Management is continuing the drill program and plans to test the continuity of the system by hammering the drill bit about 50m down plunge below hole two.
At Myrtleford, a 13km-long trend of gold mineralisation has been identified, known as the Happy Valley trend and the company has initially focussed on this area. The ground hosts many historic gold mines worked to only shallow depths, providing substantial exploration upside at the project.
Advance believes many of the mines are on mineralised structures extending for kilometres in length, which have not been exposed to modern exploration methods.
The overall project has a 45km strike length across historical workings and old gold mines, including the Happy Valley trend, the Twist Creek trend extending for 7km and the Magpie trend running for 16km. It lies within the renowned Lachlan Fold belt, which is responsible for some of the country’s biggest gold deposits.
Twist Creek will be subjected to shallow drilling when the company’s drill program at Happy Valley is completed. Twist Creek sits at the northern end of the project and features multiple mined structures that previously averaged 31g/t gold.
Advance recently signed a binding agreement with Serra Energy Metals Corporation to acquire 80 per cent of the Myrtleford and Beaufort gold projects via a joint venture.
Advance will acquire 80 per cent of the fully paid shares in E79 Resources Pty Ltd, the legal owner of the tenements comprising the two Victorian projects.
The company will buy its stake in E79 via an initial issue of company shares, followed by three staged payments made by issuing further fully paid company shares, plus a 1 per cent net smelter royalty from gold production.
The highly prospective Beaufort project is in Victoria’s southwest, 145km west of Melbourne. The region has produced more than one million ounces of alluvial gold and presents a massive opportunity to discover large-scale gold deposits, given its proximity to the world-class Bendigo goldfields and the global-leading Fosterville underground gold mine that produced more than 300,000 ounces of high-grade gold in 2023.
The project consists of a 20km trend extensively mined for alluvial gold deposits. It has not been worked by modern technology, presenting a promising exploration opportunity for the company.
The Myrtleford and Beaufort projects are within the monumental Victorian goldfields, known for producing more than 80 million ounces of the precious yellow metal.
Advance is on the hunt for gold at a time of ever-rising prices, with the recent surge through the US$3000 (A$4700) per ounce barrier providing massive upside for Advance if it can find a truly eye-watering discovery, especially in this tier-one Victorian location.
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