GoldArc Resources has delivered its widest and some of its highest-grade gold intercepts yet at Mt Stirling, advancing the project towards open-pit mine planning with over 60% of a partner-funded grade control drilling program completed.
- 29m intercept at 2.09 g/t Au marks widest to date
- High-grade shoots include 18m at 5.66 g/t Au with 1m at 42.8 g/t
- Grade control drilling started at adjacent Stirling Well deposit
- 61% of 34,000m drilling program completed under 50/50 profit share
- Data nearing readiness to inform preliminary mine planning
Widest Gold Intercept Reinforces Mt Stirling Potential
GoldArc Resources (ASX:GA8) has reported its broadest mineralised intercept so far from the ongoing grade control drilling at its Mt Stirling gold deposit in Western Australia. Hole BMLRC069 delivered a 29-metre intercept grading 2.09 g/t Au from just 2 metres downhole, including a high-grade 1-metre segment at 16.9 g/t Au. This result highlights a broad, continuous ore envelope that is crucial for open-pit mining scenarios.
Alongside this, the company recorded multiple high-grade shoots, notably an 18-metre intercept at 5.66 g/t Au from 1 metre, featuring sub-intervals of 42.8 g/t and 10.05 g/t Au. These combined grade-width results confirm the deposit’s capacity to deliver both bulk tonnage and high-grade zones, a key factor in project economics.
Expanding Footprint with Stirling Well Drilling
For the first time, grade control drilling has begun at the adjacent Mt Stirling Well deposit, approximately 700 metres southwest of Mt Stirling. Early results from this area, which holds a JORC Inferred Resource of 15,000 ounces at 2.3 g/t Au, include near-surface intercepts of 1 metre at 10.7 g/t and 1 metre at 6.4 g/t Au. This addition broadens the development footprint and enhances optionality for the broader Leonora North project.
Program Progress and Partnership Structure
GoldArc’s partner-funded Reverse Circulation grade control program at Mt Stirling and Stirling Well is now 61% complete, with approximately 20,639 metres drilled out of a planned 34,000 metres. The program is fully funded by BML Ventures Pty Ltd under a 50/50 net profit share arrangement, with GoldArc retaining 100% ownership of the deposits.
The drilling grid is closely spaced to define ore grades and boundaries with precision, feeding directly into mine planning and production scheduling. The data generated so far supports a consistent mineralised system extending from the north-west to the eastern sectors of Mt Stirling, confirming geological continuity that underpins mine plan optimisation.
Geological Insights and Mining Implications
The Mt Stirling gold mineralisation occurs within a high-strain schistose-mylonitic deformation zone associated with the Hydra Fault, hosted in hydrothermally altered meta-basalt. The eastern sector’s wider intercepts align with the interpretive model, suggesting the ore envelope broadens eastward while maintaining grade continuity.
In contrast, Mt Stirling Well’s gold is hosted in narrow, flat-dipping quartz veins within granitoid rock, representing a distinct structural setting. The initial high-grade results there confirm the resource model and support further grade control drilling.
Next Steps Toward Mine Planning
GoldArc plans to continue the grade control drilling program with further assay batches expected progressively. The accumulating dataset is approaching the level required to inform preliminary mine planning, advancing Mt Stirling toward potential open-pit development under the BML Ventures profit share arrangement.
Managing Director Paul Stephen highlighted the significance of the results, noting the combination of broad intercepts and high-grade shoots as key to building confidence in the ore body. The inclusion of Mt Stirling Well in the program adds strategic value to the Leonora North development scenario.
Bottom Line?
GoldArc’s latest drilling results at Mt Stirling and Stirling Well strengthen the case for open-pit development, but final mine planning awaits completion of the remaining grade control assays.
Questions in the middle?
- How will upcoming assay batches influence the final mine plan and resource model?
- What are the potential challenges in integrating the distinct geological settings of Mt Stirling and Stirling Well into a unified mining operation?
- How might the 50/50 profit share with BML Ventures impact project financing and development timelines?