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ASX:RXL
ASX:RXL
There has been limited exploration around near-mine areas. Initial assay results from the 2023 drilling campaign confirmed 2 new discoveries: Paddy’s Lode discovery (located ~250 metres from the Youanmi main open pit) and Midway discovery (located within 300 m of the hanging wall of the Youanmi Main Lode).
An IP survey conducted in July 2023 has identified the southern extension of the Paddy’s Lode discovery and a potential parallel structure to Paddy’s 200m to the east. Five near-mine exploration target areas have been identified by the programme, and Rox is planning follow-up drilling in the new targeted areas:
Youanmi has the potential to deliver extensive resource growth with quality ounces through near mine discover. Confidence continues to increase that Youanmi is a large scale, high-grade system that is still in the early stages of understanding and resource evaluation.
The mineralised structure has been named the Paddy’s Lode after the former Director of Operations at Youanmi Gold Mines Ltd, Patrick (Paddy) Fitzgerald. Mr Fitzgerald led Youanmi Gold Mines through one of is most prosperous periods with the company producing more than 100,000oz of gold from shafts located just to the North of Paddy’s Lode between 1937 and 1942.
The Paddy’s Lode area just 250 m from the Youanmi pit is a structurally complex zone south of the granite margin, with recent interpretations from magnetic data highlighting a range of structural trends, including the east-northeast trending structure. The area has limited shallow historical drilling, which is primarily drilled parallel to the 060-degree trending targeted structure.
RXRC458 was the first of a series of holes to test the variety of structural trends, so it was drilled to the north in order to target more westerly-striking splay structures and has intersected an intercept of 28m @ 34.81g/t Au from 204m, including;
Diamond drilling to follow up on this intercept has confirmed the discovery of a new mineralised lode at Youanmi. Initial results for the first follow-up diamond holes include:
| RXDD080 | 5.70m @ 8.26g/t Au from 233.30m |
|---|---|
| RXDD095 | 5.08m @ 9.56g/t Au from 225.80m |
| RXDD098 | 3.32m @ 8.29g/t Au from 200.05m |
The results from the IP survey conducted in July 2023 indicate that the mineralised structure for Paddy’s continues much further to the south while also revealing a newly identified parallel lode 200m to the east of Paddy’s that is currently untested by drilling. Further drilling is planned to understand the mineralised structure at this targeted area better.
Midway is a newly defined exploration corridor that is located within 300m of the hanging-wall of the Youanmi Main Lode and open in all directions.
Gold mineralisation at Midway is shear-zone hosted within highly altered tholeiitic and komatiitic basaltic rocks. The alteration assemblage consists of sericite, quartz, carbonate, and biotite. Gold occurs in association with pyrite and lesser arsenopyrite.
The results to date define at least two gold lodes striking WNW and dipping towards the SW. Structural analysis of the mineralised zone (shear fabric and stretching mineral lineation) indicates that the lodes are dipping steeply towards the southwest and show a high-grade component plunging at 50 degrees to the WNW. The orientation of the new lodes is different to previously identified lodes at Youanmi which strike NW to NNW. This new orientation of mineralised structures is apparent in high resolution drone magnetic imagery and has generated several new exploration targets which will be tested by RC and DD drilling. So far the multi-lode structure has been intersected over approximately 100m strike and 300m down plunge.
Drilling to date showed thick continuous high-grade intersections including:
| RXDD022 | 4m @ 45.5 g/t Au from 341m, including 1.33m @ 129.3 g/t Au from 341.75m; |
|---|---|
| RXRC449 | 8m @ 5.1 g/t Au from 212m including 4m @ 9.45 g/t Au from 212m and 4m @ 6.03 g/t Au from 140m; |
| RXDD046 | 3.87m @ 9.9 g/t Au from 328.33m, including 2.45m @ 15.02 g/t Au from 328.8m; |
| RXDD045 | 3.62m @ 6.49 g/t Au from 315.42m, including 0.86m @ 21.03 g/t Au from 315.42m; |
| RXDD047 | 2.86m @ 22.03 g/t Au from 356.39m and 3.73m @ 10.25 g/t Au from 405.80m; |
| RXDD048 | 6.76m @ 15.40 g/t Au from 169.13m |
These results confirm the exciting discovery of the Midway Lode with exceptional gold grades. This potential linking cross-structure is developing as a higher-grade lode as compared to the existing NW to NNW Youanmi lodes. The extent of this new mineralised structure is at its infancy with significant potential upside both along strike and at depth. The Midway structure has an interpreted strike-length of more than 1,000m – of which only 100m has been drill tested to date. In addition to the strike-length potential along the Midway structure, another new parallel structure has been interpreted approximately 100m south of the Midway structure.
The results from Midway to date have shown that this discovery has the potential to grow substantially in all directions in a corridor previously untested with drilling. The high-grade tenor of the results to date show Midway has the potential to be higher grade than the Youanmi main lode and has the potential to significantly contribute to the gold resource.