Forrestania Resources has reported wide, high-grade gold intersections from 15 additional reverse circulation holes at British Hill in Western Australia. A diamond rig is now being mobilised to test below current RC drilling limits as the company works towards a larger mineral resource estimate.
- 15 RC holes returned assays across 3,685 metres
- 59 metres at 2.38 g/t gold from 123 metres
- Mineralisation extended westward and at depth
- Diamond drilling to test below RC limits
- Additional exploration applications lodged for western extensions
British Hill results extend the mineralised system
Forrestania Resources Ltd (ASX:FRS) has produced another strong batch of exploration results from British Hill, led by a 59-metre intersection grading 2.38 grams per tonne gold from 123 metres. The latest assays cover 15 reverse circulation holes and 3,685 metres of drilling, with the company reporting extensions to mineralisation both west of the current drilling area and at depth.
Other notable intersections included 19 metres at 2.15 g/t gold from 43 metres, 14 metres at 2.20 g/t from 260 metres and 13 metres at 2.36 g/t from 255 metres. The results were reported using a threshold of more than 0.5 g/t gold, with internal dilution limited to intervals of less than two metres and below 0.3 g/t.
Diamond drilling targets deeper extensions
The next phase is moving beyond conventional RC drilling. Forrestania said a diamond drill rig has been mobilised to British Hill to test mineralisation below the current RC limits and collect structural information on the orientation of the gold lodes. Additional Program of Work applications have also been lodged to pursue mineralisation interpreted to lie west of the existing drilling.
Chairman David Geraghty said the results were sharpening the company’s geological model and supporting its strategy to grow the British Hill Mineral Resource Estimate. That remains an exploration objective rather than a completed resource update: the announcement does not disclose a revised estimate, mine plan, economic study or production guidance.
Strong assays still require geological definition
British Hill sits on granted Mining Lease M77/1256, about 75 kilometres south-south-east of Southern Cross in the Yilgarn Mineral Field. Forrestania describes the deposit as an orogenic gold system hosted by sheared and quartz-veined rocks, with mineralisation occurring across interpreted lodes and a quartz stockwork corridor.
The headline numbers are down-hole widths, not true widths, and the true geometry of the intersections has not yet been established. Some holes in the reported program returned no significant intersections, while the company’s own next steps point to the work still required: further drilling, metallurgical studies, mine planning and the conversion of inferred resources into indicated resources.
Bottom Line?
The immediate test is whether diamond drilling confirms continuity and true widths below the RC program, while western step-out work determines how far the system actually runs.
Questions in the middle?
- Will diamond drilling confirm that the deeper intersections have sufficient continuity and true widths to support resource growth?
- How extensive is the western mineralisation identified beyond the current drilling footprint?
- Can metallurgical, mine planning and milling studies translate the exploration results into a defined development opportunity?