A proposed demerger of Strickland Metals’ gold and base metals projects is pressing ahead with an eye to boost the value of its Bryah Basin and Iroquois zinc-lead projects whilst allowing the company to turn its laser focus to its flagship Yandal gold project.
The demerger comes as Strickland receives heritage clearance to fire up the drill bit at its Iroquois project and surrounds for an extensive test of its structure and interest areas to the northwest.
Previous drilling has returned assays including 23m going 5.5 per cent zinc-lead from 108m and 12m going 5.4 per cent zinc-lead from 58m.
Further hits include a 5m strike at 10.1 per cent zinc-lead from 110m and a 3m strike going 7.6 per cent zinc-lead from 65m.
The heritage clearance will allow the new company to hit the ground running upon completion of its IPO and is seen by Strickland as a key step to progressing the demerger.
Subject to shareholder, regulatory and ASX approval, the demerger will spin-out the two non-core company assets into a new firm which Strickland shareholders will gain a stake in.
Strickland Metals CEO Andrew Bray said "drafting of the prospectus is well advanced, with the main outstanding lead time item being obtaining demerger relief from the Australian Taxation Office.”
“It is expected the application for demerger relief will be lodged during the current quarter.”
“The IPO is expected to be completed during the current half-year period.”
Iroquois sits in outback WA’s Earaheedy Basin where several promising base metals discoveries are surfacing in the historic goldmining region.
The neighbourhood includes Rumble Resources’ 100-120Mt at up to 4.5 per cent zinc-lead project which the company says could more than double in size and Castle Minerals’ 930sqkm pegging to the north.
Should the demerger go ahead it will free Strickland up to turn its full attention to the Yandal gold projects in the underexplored northeast flank of the Yandal greenstone belt where Australian gold royalty Northern Star Resources is also poking around.
Strickland holds two key assets in the belt including the 6Mt Milrose deposit which holds a 1.8 g/t gold grade for 346,000 ounces, about one-third of which is inferred and where a major exploration campaign is planned.
The Horse Well prospect near the historic mining town of Wiluna meanwhile contains a 5.72Mt resource going 1.4 g/t gold for 257,000 ounces.
Northern Star’s 10-million-ounce Jundee underground mine and surrounding tenements sit directly southwest of Horse Well and nearby Red 5’s 600ktpa Darlot mine has been churning out high grade ore since 1988.
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By Matt Birney
