Turaco Gold Unveils New High-Grade Gold Zones Near Jonction Deposit
Turaco Gold’s latest drilling at the Toilesso prospect confirms multiple high-grade gold shoots along the Afema Shear, signaling promising resource growth potential beyond the current 3.55Moz estimate.
- High-grade gold intercepts confirmed at Toilesso prospect near Jonction Deposit
- Gradient Array Induced Polarisation survey reveals extensive undrilled prospective strike
- Recent drilling supports potential short-term growth of Afema Project’s 3.55Moz resource
- Ongoing multi-rig drilling and geotechnical programs advancing pre-feasibility study
- New ‘Jonction South’ zone identified 400m south of existing deposit
Expanding the Afema Gold Footprint
Turaco Gold Limited has reported encouraging results from its ongoing exploration along the Afema Shear in Côte d’Ivoire, particularly at the Toilesso prospect located just 2 kilometres north of the established Jonction Deposit. The Jonction Deposit itself holds a substantial mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 610,000 ounces at 2.1 grams per tonne gold, and the new drilling at Toilesso has confirmed additional high-grade gold shoots along this controlling geological structure.
The Toilesso drilling program, comprising over 3,000 metres of diamond core drilling, has intersected multiple significant gold intervals, including 25 metres at 1.75 g/t and 3 metres at 6.67 g/t gold. These results build on encouraging historical shallow drilling and suggest that mineralisation remains open at depth, reinforcing the prospect’s potential to contribute materially to the Afema Project’s resource base.
Geophysical Insights and New Targets
Complementing the drilling, a Gradient Array Induced Polarisation (GAIP) survey covering approximately 8 kilometres of the Afema Shear has effectively delineated the primary controlling structure of the Jonction deposit. This geophysical work has highlighted several kilometres of undrilled prospective strike, pointing to multiple opportunities for discovering additional high-grade gold shoots akin to Jonction and Toilesso.
Encouraged by these findings, Turaco has expanded the GAIP survey to cover a further 12 kilometres of the northern Afema Shear, with over half of this work already completed. Early scout drilling along this extended structure has identified new zones of anomalous gold mineralisation, including a newly termed ‘Jonction South’ zone located 400 metres south of the Jonction Deposit, which returned 7 metres at 1.56 g/t gold.
Resource Growth and Development Outlook
These exploration successes at Toilesso and recent results from the Begnopan prospect underpin Turaco’s confidence in near-term resource growth beyond the recently updated 3.55 million ounce JORC MRE for the Afema Project. The company currently operates three drill rigs on double shifts, with a third diamond rig being mobilised to support a geotechnical drilling program integral to the ongoing pre-feasibility study.
Turaco’s Managing Director, Justin Tremain, emphasised the significance of these results, noting that Toilesso represents another higher-grade shoot in a similar geological setting to Jonction. The combination of effective geophysical targeting and robust drilling results positions the Afema Project well for continued resource expansion and advancement towards development.
With further assay results pending and additional exploration programs underway, Turaco is poised to refine its resource estimates and advance its understanding of the project’s full potential in the coming months.
Bottom Line?
Turaco’s expanding high-grade discoveries along the Afema Shear set the stage for a potentially transformative resource upgrade by year-end.
Questions in the middle?
- How will pending assay results from Toilesso and scout drilling influence the next resource update?
- What impact will the expanded GAIP survey have on identifying new high-grade zones along the Afema Shear?
- How might the geotechnical drilling outcomes affect the timeline and economics of the Afema pre-feasibility study?