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Black Horse Mining Confirms New High-Grade Gold Zone at Mt Egerton

Mining By Maxwell Dee 3 min read

Black Horse Mining has uncovered a new high-grade gold zone at its Mt Egerton project, revealing a previously overlooked west-dipping fault lode with grades exceeding 10 g/t Au. Planned drilling aims to test the down-dip continuity and expand target areas.

  • Sister Rose No1 Splay yields 0.6m @ 10.92 g/t Au and 0.7m @ 10.67 g/t Au
  • West-dipping fault lodes confirmed alongside bedding-parallel styles
  • Historical drilling supports down-dip continuity of mineralisation
  • Rehabilitation of Sister Rose Adit provides new 3D geological insight
  • Drill program of ~10 holes and 4,000m planned from late September

High-Grade Gold Discovery in Forgotten Fault Zone

Black Horse Mining Ltd (ASX:BHL) has unveiled a new high-grade gold zone at its Mt Egerton Gold Project, centred on the recently accessed Sister Rose No1 Splay. Face sampling from the rehabilitated Sister Rose Adit returned impressive grades of 0.60 metres at 10.92 g/t Au and 0.7 metres at 10.67 g/t Au, highlighting a west-dipping fault zone that historical miners intersected but did not develop. This discovery points to a mineralised structure that was effectively overlooked during earlier mining eras due to cut-off grade thresholds at the time.

Broadening the Geological Playbook at Mt Egerton

The significance of this finding lies not only in its grade but also in confirming the presence of two distinct mineralisation styles at Mt Egerton: the classic bedding-parallel lodes familiar in central Victorian goldfields, and the newly recognised west-dipping fault lodes. This dual system effectively broadens Black Horse’s target inventory across the project, offering multiple structural settings to explore. Managing Director David Frances emphasised that underground access has allowed direct structural measurements and sampling, providing clarity that inherited plans could not offer.

Historical Drilling Corroborates Down-Dip Continuity

Crucially, the mineralised fault zone aligns down-dip with a historical drill intercept (hole RSE003) that recorded 2 metres at 5.13 g/t Au from 24 metres depth, approximately 14 metres below the crosscut exposure. This correlation between underground sampling and historical drilling provides early evidence that the fault-hosted mineralisation extends beneath the surface exposure, underpinning the rationale for the upcoming drill campaign. The ability to directly measure and model the structure in 3D marks a significant step forward in targeting precision.

Revising Historical Mine Geometry Enhances Targeting

Physical inspection underground has also corrected longstanding assumptions about the mine’s layout. Contrary to previous interpretations, the Sister Rose adit does not connect directly to the Sister Rose shaft. Instead, ore was historically transported via an ore chute to horse-drawn carts within the adit. This refined understanding removes inaccuracies from past models and strengthens the foundation for the company’s 3D geological framework, which will be further enhanced by an imminent LiDAR survey of all accessible workings.

Upcoming Drilling and Exploration Plans

Black Horse plans to mobilise a track-mounted diamond drill rig in late September to test the Sister Rose No1 Splay’s down-dip and along-strike extensions, alongside other priority targets. The program is expected to comprise roughly 10 holes totalling approximately 4,000 metres. Complementary work includes duplicate sampling, geological mapping, and portable XRF analysis to identify alteration haloes and vector mineralisation. Together, these efforts aim to refine drill targeting and expand the understanding of Mt Egerton’s mineralised systems.

Bottom Line?

Black Horse Mining’s access to a previously neglected fault zone at Mt Egerton opens new high-grade targets, but upcoming drilling will be critical to confirm the extent and economic potential of this discovery.

Questions in the middle?

  • Will the upcoming drill results confirm the down-dip continuity and lateral extent of the Sister Rose No1 Splay?
  • How might the recognition of west-dipping fault lodes alongside bedding-parallel styles reshape Mt Egerton’s resource potential?
  • What impact will the corrected historical mine geometry and new 3D modelling have on future exploration efficiency?