Wiluna Mining Corporation continues to add grade at its Wiluna gold mining operation in Western Australia. A suite of recent high-grade drill results headlined by 2.35 metres going 61.05 grams per tonne gold continue to demonstrate that Wiluna has ounce plus dirt on its hands at its namesake Goldfields project as it looks to eventually expand production to 250,000 ounces of gold annually.
The wide and high-grade gold results released this week are from 30 holes and total over 8,000m of drilling at the Starlight, Essex, Calvert, East Lode South and Golden Age zones.
The new result comes from the Essex zone near existing mine workings that also threw up a 2.00m intersection going 43.23g/t that included 0.52m @ 159g/t where visible gold logged.
The Calvert and East Lode zones also delivered in the latest campaign with one 5.00m intersection coming in at 12.21g/t including 1.00m at a serious 55.10g/t gold. Other notable Calvert and east Lode zone results were 13.90m @ 3.29g/t including 2.66m @ 7.04g/t and 1.28m @ 7.46g/t gold.
At Golden Age, one 6.87m intersection came in at almost an ounce to the tonne gold from 106m. Wiluna believes the tenor of mineralisation at Golden Age improves in an easterly direction and at depth, where further resource expansion drilling is now planned.
Management says the new high-grade intervals lie close to multiple previously mined zones, potentially allowing for easy access and rapid low-cost development. Wiluna believes the results confirm the company’s view that the Wiluna mining operation will develop into a larger-scale, high-grade and long-life mine.
Multiple subparallel wide sulphide zones in the central portion of the deposit remain open down-plunge according to the company and further assays from Starlight remain pending.
Wiluna identifies the East Lode and Calvert zones as high-priority targets due to their proximity to surface and existing decline access that currently is being dewatered for underground drilling.
Three intercepts from one hole at Calvert of 13.90m at 3.29 g/t gold from 398.57m, 16.02m at 5.41 g/t from 470m, together with 4.64m at 12.62 g/t from 492m add to the numerous solid results previously reported.
The East Lode historically produced some 720,000 ounces of gold at 6.7 g/t between 1931 and 1946. The current drilling campaign is targeting extensions of the mineralisation to the south and at depth as Wiluna looks to grow the reserves and resources.
Only this week Wiluna reported the start of construction of its 750,000 tonne-per-annum flotation plant as part of its much-heralded production expansion plan for the Wiluna gold mining project. Current operations produce around 60,000 ounces of gold annually which the company is looking to double to 120,000 ounces before doubling that number again as it reaches for 250,000 ounces of production a year.
Six to eight drill rigs are now furiously smashing out the metres at Wiluna as part of the company’s aggressive resource and reserve expansion plans. The drilling across the Wiluna complex is already looking the goods and punters will no doubt be keeping a close eye on progress in what is shaping up to be an interesting few months for the up-and-coming miner.
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By Matt Birney
