Auric Mining (ASX: AWJ) has recorded high-grade final assays from a recently completed grade control drill campaign at its Munda gold project in WA’s Goldfields region with a peak result approaching an ounce to the tonne gold at 29.29 grams per tonne.
Results from the program will be used to for pit optimisation and mine design for the operation near Widgiemooltha which will be based on an updated resource model.
A total of 361 holes were drilled over 11,301m that covered a conceptual starter pit defined in a recent scoping study within a large area of near-surface mineralisation.
Highlights show a single hole recorded 1m grading 12.03g/t gold from just 12m downhole with a deeper 3m section going 10.77g/t from 16m including 1m at the peak assay number of 29.29g/t gold from 18m.
Wider assays include a 7m intercept going 2.28g/t gold from 25m to the end of the hole while another 1m hit delivered 15.57g/t gold from 35m and ended in mineralisation.
The drilling program has provided guidance for mine planning, exactly what it was designed to do.
Auric Mining managing director Mark English
Back in January the company also recorded multiple high-grade intercepts from grade-control drilling at Munda, including a 1m hit grading a serious 184.6 grams per tonne gold. Auric now has plans for a starter pit at Munda to be producing gold as early as this year, before expanding the mine in 2025 and beyond.
Additional previously released drill highlights include a 9m section grading 21.37g/t gold from 18m including the impressive 1m hit at 184.6g/t from 24m. Additional high-grade results show a 4m section going 20.13g/t gold from 28m including 1m reading 77.18g/t from 29m and 4m at 18.84g/t from just 11m including 1m at 68.94g/t from 13m.
Some of the more impressive wider assays include a 16m hit grading a solid 12.54g/t gold from just 8m, in addition to 11m going 4.51g/t from 40m including 2m reading 18.11g/t from 42m.
A recently-released scoping study on Munda outlined a cashflow surplus of $76.9 million under a base-case scenario using an assumed gold price of $2600 per ounce, well below today’s spot price. The site sits just 3km south-west of Mincor Resources’ Widgiemooltha gold project, which has a mineral resource of 4.3 million tonnes at 2g/t tonne gold for 273,600 ounces.
Management says four contract mining companies have provided budget pricing estimates for mining, drill and blast services at Munda, which will contribute to a detailed assessment of mining to feasibility study level.
The drilling program has provided guidance for mine planning, exactly what it was designed to do. Our next task is to further refine the resource model and re-optimise the model using recently obtained costings from reputable mining contractors and the rising gold price. This will generate a revised starter pit design for mining in late 2024 or early 2025.
Auric Mining managing director Mark English
Since launching on the ASX back in February 2021, Auric has already produced more than 9700 ounces during two mining campaigns with joint venture partner BML Ventures at its Jeffreys Find mine near the Munda project, returning a total gold revenue last year of $29.28 million for the first stage of the two-year project.
The company has already kicked off a second stage of mining at Jeffreys Find with grade control drilling being completed in January and first ore processing scheduled for mid-late April.
Auric will be looking to replicate the success at Jeffrey’s Find at the larger Munda operation once mine design and scheduling for the site is finalised.
Production is expected to kick off late this year or early in 2025.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: office@bullsnbears.com.au