Phase 2 Drilling Confirms Shallow High-Grade Gold Continuity and Expansion at Zelica

Phase 2 Drilling Validates and Extends Gold Mineralisation

Strata Minerals Limited (ASX:SMX) has delivered a strong follow-up to its maiden drilling campaign at the Zelica Gold Project, with initial results from the Phase 2 reverse circulation (RC) program confirming the continuation of shallow, high-grade gold mineralisation. Eight of nine step-out holes received so far have intersected significant gold, extending the known mineralised system along approximately 1km of strike and down to 115m vertical depth.

Key intercepts include 7m at 3.32g/t Au from 71m (including 3m at 5.37g/t) and 5m at 2.45g/t Au from 99m (including 1m at 6.29g/t), underscoring the consistency of the mineralisation near surface. The drilling also revealed an emerging hanging-wall lode with intercepts such as 1m at 3.52g/t Au, hinting at stacked parallel lodes that could substantially increase the project’s scale.

Exploration Upside Across a 9.5km Mineralised Corridor

The Zelica system now covers an interpreted 9.5km gold mineralised corridor within the Eastern Goldfields’ Laverton Greenstone Belt, a region renowned for world-class deposits. Despite this extensive footprint, much of the corridor remains underexplored, presenting considerable upside potential for resource growth. This aligns with Strata’s recent strategic acquisitions that have expanded the corridor to nearly 10km, reinforcing the district-scale opportunity at Zelica expanded gold corridor.

Managing Director Peter Woods emphasised the significance of these results, noting the “consistent and scalable gold system” and the importance of higher-grade plunging shoots as priority drill targets. The discovery of mineralisation above the main ore zone could de-risk future mining by offering additional extraction options.

Project Positioned for Development with Granted Mining Licence

Zelica’s location on a granted mining licence, coupled with proximity to established processing infrastructure, supports a potential low-capex development pathway. The shallow nature of the mineralisation, predominantly oxide and transitional gold, enhances its amenability to cost-effective extraction methods.

Strata is actively awaiting assays from the remaining eight holes of the Phase 2 program, which are expected imminently. These results will be critical for refining the understanding of higher-grade shoots and guiding targeted follow-up drilling. The company is progressing toward a maiden JORC Mineral Resource Estimate, a key milestone for advancing the project’s economic assessment and development planning Phase 2 drilling push.

Geological Insights and Future Exploration

The mineralisation is hosted within an east-dipping shear zone comprising highly deformed quartz-sericite-carbonate schist enclosed by basalt. Gold occurs within quartz vein arrays, with the fresh rock component largely untested, suggesting potential for deeper mineralisation. Drilling has also intersected felsic intrusive units, warranting further investigation to understand their relationship with gold mineralisation.

Importantly, the drilling orientation is designed to intersect the orebody close to perpendicular, providing reliable intercept widths reported as down-hole lengths with some internal dilution. The ongoing identification of parallel and stacked lodes, along with untested repetitions along the corridor, sets the stage for a systematic exploration campaign aimed at unlocking the full scale of the Zelica system.