Si6 Metals has kicked off a combined reverse-circulation (RC) and diamond drill campaign at its Airstrip copper-silver project – one of its three flagship operations in the African nation of Botswana.
Historic drill results from Airstrip show some incredibly high-grade figures including up to 60.98 per cent copper and 2833 grams per tonne silver, which management says is associated with massive copper sulphides. The high-priority program at the operation will initially include eight holes through 2500m to test targets generated by audio-frequency magnetotellurics and induced-polarisation surveys.
Historic results from the project show an 8m hit at 1.71 per cent copper and 51.1g/t silver from 159m and 11m going 7.63 per cent copper and 462g/t silver from just 52m, in addition to 1.13m grading 21.58 per cent copper and 1023g/t silver from 65m, including the previously-mentioned 0.25m reading of 60.98 per cent copper and 2833g/t silver.
Airstrip sits just 7km away from the Dibete copper-silver project where the company is charging ahead with a 15-hole campaign set to explore untested anomalies within the site’s known oxidised zones. Previous drilling at Dibete uncovered impressive results including 38m at 1.72 per cent copper and 119g/t silver from just 16m.
Additional results show a 17m hit grading 2.7 per cent copper and 40g/t silver, also from just 16m. An 11m intercept hit an impressive 4.5 per cent copper and 229g/t silver from 33m, while another section revealed 3.9 per cent copper and 110g/t silver from 43m.
A 2021 magnetic survey at Dibete outlined a vertical pipe-like feature that is geometrically similar to the breccia-pipe style of mineralisation seen at the highly-productive Messina copper district, about 200km to the east.
Si6 Metals managing director Jim Malone said: “The drilling program on our three Botswana projects is powering along and we are now at the stage where we will start priority-one drilling at the Airstrip copper-silver project. It is clear for everyone to see that Airstrip has some very compelling anomalies to test at depth and we are excited at what this next bout of drilling will uncover. We are also continuing our drilling at Dibete and expect initial back from that part of the program in the next few weeks”.
The new Airstrip campaign is part of a 10,000m program that includes the current work at Dibete and upcoming drilling at the company’s Maibele North nickel-copper-platinum group elements (PGE) project, also in Botswana.
Management says geophysical surveys suggest mineralisation at its Maibele North prospect may extend along strike and at depth, allowing its 2015 inferred resource estimate of 2.38 million tonnes at 0.72 per cent nickel and 0.21 per cent copper to grow.
Si6 has engaged experienced African driller Mitchell Drilling Botswana to roll out the new program, which it believes will take about four months to complete. It is designed to test a batch of geophysical anomalies suggesting high-grade nickel, copper and silver mineralisation, before moving on to Maibele North.
With that committed workload, there will be some intriguing assay results to follow.
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By Michael Philipps
