Lightning Minerals Uncovers High-Grade Gold at Mt Turner, Drilling Signals Major Potential
Lightning Minerals has reported promising high-grade gold and silver intersections from its initial drilling at the Mt Turner Project in Queensland, confirming near-surface epithermal mineralisation and open potential along a 14km fault line.
- 20.4m @ 2.4g/t Au including 1.8m @ 10.6g/t Au intersected
- Eight of nine planned drill holes completed with assays pending
- Near-surface epithermal gold mineralisation confirmed
- Soil and rock chip sampling underway along 14km Drummer Fault
- Follow-up drilling planned to test extensions and new targets
Initial Drilling Confirms Significant Gold Potential
Lightning Minerals Ltd has delivered an encouraging update on its maiden drilling campaign at the Mt Turner Gold Project in Queensland. The company’s first assays reveal a substantial gold and silver mineralised system, with standout results including a 20.4-metre intersection grading 2.4 grams per tonne gold and 14.3 grams per tonne silver, featuring a higher-grade 1.8-metre section at 10.6 grams per tonne gold. These results come from Hole 25L1MP3DD001 drilled at Pit 3 (Drummer West), highlighting the presence of high-grade epithermal mineralisation close to surface.
Ongoing Drilling and Exploration Along the Drummer Fault
With eight of nine planned holes completed, Lightning Minerals is advancing its exploration along the 14-kilometre Drummer Fault, a key structural feature known for historic shallow oxide gold mining. The drilling program targets shallow mineralisation beneath historic pits and aims to extend known zones both down dip and along strike. Additional assays are awaited for several holes, including those drilled near Pit 5 (Drummer Girl) and the Cobar Line prospect, which could further define the scale and continuity of mineralisation.
Geological Context and Exploration Strategy
The Mt Turner Project sits within a complex Permo-Carboniferous porphyry system characterised by felsic intrusions and rhyolite dykes. The company’s exploration model focuses on breccia-hosted epithermal gold-silver mineralisation peripheral to the porphyry core, with structural analysis identifying tensional zones conducive to mineral deposition. Diamond core drilling provides detailed geological data, enabling the team to distinguish between mineralisation styles and refine targeting for future drilling campaigns.
Management Perspective and Market Opportunity
Managing Director Alex Biggs expressed optimism about the project’s potential, noting the encouraging grades and scale of mineralisation intersected at shallow depths. He highlighted the extensive strike length of the Drummer Fault and the multiple targets yet to be tested, positioning Mt Turner as a promising high-grade gold exploration play. The company’s exposure to the current gold market through a quality project with significant upside potential is seen as a strategic advantage.
Next Steps and Future Outlook
Lightning Minerals plans to complete the final drill hole at Pit 6 (Rocky Reward) and await pending assay results from recent drilling and soil sampling programs. These data will inform a focused exploration plan for 2026, including follow-up drilling to test extensions of mineralisation and new targets along the Drummer Fault. The company aims to delineate a significant gold system that could underpin future resource development.
Bottom Line?
Mt Turner’s early drilling success sets the stage for a potentially transformative gold discovery, with further results poised to shape Lightning Minerals’ next exploration phase.
Questions in the middle?
- How will pending assay results from the remaining holes influence the overall resource potential?
- What is the likelihood of defining a substantial gold resource given the current shallow mineralisation?
- How might the exploration strategy evolve as new geological data emerges from ongoing drilling?