Latitude 66 has wrapped up what could prove to be a pivotal 18-hole, 2197m diamond drilling program at the K South target within its Kuusamo Schist Belt (KSB) play in Finland, in a bid to lift the project’s gold resource.
The company has today confirmed that all samples from the program that bored through four prospects – K8, K9, K10 and K12 – have now been submitted to MSALABS in Canada and is expecting assay results to be returned in early November.
The end of the drilling marks a key step in exploring and defining the resource potential of K South. According to management, the results will help it assess whether a maiden JORC-compliant resource estimate can be established for the K8 and K9 prospects, potentially adding to the company’s existing K North resource base of 7.2 million tonnes at 2.7 grams per tonne gold and 0.08 per cent cobalt, totalling 650,000 ounces of gold and 5840 tonnes of cobalt.
K North sits just 15km to the north-east of K South.
Latitude 66 managing director Grant Coyle said: "Our summer field activities, including prospecting and sampling at both the KSB and PSB Projects are continuing and we look forward to commencing our follow-up downhole electromagnetic survey in mid-October, which will enhance our understanding of the project’s potential."
At K8, where five drill holes were completed, Latitude targeted down-dip and down-plunge downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) conductive plates, aiming to build on previous historic intercepts. They included 22.4m at 2.4g/t gold, 0.07 per cent cobalt and 0.16 per cent copper from 44m, 13.45m at 6.25g/t gold and 0.18 per cent cobalt from 21.1m and 50.15m at 0.45 per cent cobalt from 124.75m.
Similarly, drilling at K8 focused on down-dip and down-plunge DHEM plates, expanding on earlier results such as 19m at 6g/t gold and 0.04 per cent cobalt from 97.5m, 10.3m at 4.8g/t gold and 0.04 per cent cobalt from 89.8m and 6.5m at 8.1g/t gold from 45.1m. Four more holes were drilled at the K10 and K12 satellite prospects where previous mapping and geochemical signatures highlighted lookalike target zones.
Although the current drilling is now complete, the company will still be busying itself with field work before the Finnish winter weather starts to set in, which is expected in late November. Lithological and structural mapping is ongoing, as well as more boulder and rock-chip sampling.
With assays anticipated for early November, the rig has been kept on site for further drilling and to continue exploration, depending on the how the results shape up. Additionally, several of the K8 and K9 holes have proven to be useable for a DHEM program, which with the help of a geophysics team, will kick off in the next fortnight and allow the company to test for further conductive plates.
Concurrently and 200km to the north-east of the KSB, Latitude is working through data at its earlier-stage Peräpohja Schist Belt Project (PSB) project. Recent rock-chip samples have generated 20 new targets with similar tenor to the KSB, including surface samples as high as 137.7g/t gold, 10.6 per cent copper, 0.16 per cent cobalt and 73g/t silver.
Further work, involving electromagnetic (EM) structural surveys and induced-polarisation (IP), has also been conducted on the company’s Petaja, Reutu and Vinsa prospects.
Although the summer exploration window is rapidly closing, the PSB has given management plenty to think about going into next year and a glimpse of what may possibly lie beneath.
Northern Finland is proving rich pickings for Latitude and with a maiden resource at K South potentially only a couple of months away, the next few months could prove pivotal for the company in lifting its overall estimate – especially given the current runaway price of its key metal, gold.
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By James Pearson
