ASX-listed Brightstar Resources continues to deliver stellar results with significant shallow gold intercepts in addition to unexpected nickel hits at its flagship Cork Tree Well prospect near Laverton in WA. The latest strikes include 12 metres going 4.25 grams per tonne gold from 131m downhole and unexpected nickel sulphide hits including a 1m interval going 1.6 per cent nickel from 41m and 1.99 per cent nickel from 61m.
Other significant gold hits at Cork Tree Well include an 11m parcel grading 3.12g/t gold from 102m, 7m going 3.5g/t gold from 176m and 1m coming in at a lofty 20.3g/t gold from 23m.
The latest gold hits extend a run of success for Brightstar in its current drilling campaign with surprising nickel hits also catching the eye. Nickel hits included a 1m intersection grading 1.64 per cent nickel from 45m downhole and a 1m hit going 1.66 per cent nickel from 64m.
Notably, multi element sampling for nickel only occurred every 20m, opening the potential for nickel mineralisation between the assayed horizons. Re-assays targeting nickel mineralisation are currently underway on the unsampled intervals between the nickel hits.
The company says nickel sulphide mineralisation is not the primary target of the current drill campaign at Cork Tree Well however, the solid nickel sniffs have likely come as a pleasant surprise.
With only 26 drill hole assays received so far at Cork Tree Well, there will likely be many interested onlookers with assays pending for a further 59 holes and the drill rods still spinning pointing at more to come.
Although not the primary target, nickel mineralisation was not completely unexpected given the Cork Tree Well deposit location. Significant nickel mineralisation exists along the same geological belt as the Cork Tree Well deposit. Other nickel deposits include the Duketon Mining owned Rosie deposit, hosting a 2.56 million tonne resource grading an enviable 3.14 per cent nickel and the Poseidon Nickel owned Mt Windarra nickel deposit, housing 71,500 tonnes going 1.64 per cent nickel.
On the back of the highly anomalous economic intersections of nickel mineralisation, the company has engaged independent industry experts to review the nickel potential. The findings are expected to be released once drilling data has been compiled and reviewed.
Drilling at Cork Tree Well is the first to occur since 2012. The ongoing 90-hole program consisting of 12,000m was designed to infill and extend the current JORC resource of 237,000 ounces at 1.9g/t gold.
The results encountered to date at Cork Tree Well have generally been in line with the geological model regarding the width of expected gold zones and gold grade providing supplementary evidence the ore body is relatively continuous at depth and along strike, according to the company.
Managing Director of Brightstar Resources, Bill Hobba said: “We are very pleased with how the drilling program has proceeded ahead of schedule, with 80 holes completed to date. The assay results reported are from the first 26 holes and it is pleasing to see significant intercepts from 18 holes and the correlation between the gold results returned and the JORC Resource model. The ore body is showing good continuity at depth and along strike, which bodes well for further JORC Resource growth and ultimately conversion to JORC Reserves for future mining studies at Cork Tree Well.”
Once the final 10 holes of the current program have been drilled at Cork Tree Well it is anticipated the drill rig will be moved to one of Brightstar’s other project areas.
With the price of Nickel trading close to 7 year highs, the unexpected mineralisation will come as a pleasant addition to Brightstar’s growing collection of solid gold hits.
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By Matt Birney
