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Murray Ward
Golden Dragon has ignited the fire at the company’s Cue gold project in Western Australia’s Murchison region, with first pass drilling at its Behring Bore prospect delivering a series of high-grade gold strikes.
The company says it is now eyeing a large-scale system after the program successfully intersected significant mineralisation close to the surface, potentially confirming both the presence and continuity of a major gold-bearing engine.
For Golden Dragon, Behring Bore presents a large-scale gold target spanning 900 metres by 500 metres. The company says the prospect is characterised by discrete high-grade lodes within a broader mineralised system.
One standout hole clocked from the 18-hole reverse circulation program produced a high-grade quartz lode hit of four metres grading 4.36 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 44 metres. Notably, this sweet spot sat within a much broader mineralised zone of 20m, going at 1.11g/t gold from 32m.
‘Importantly, the mineralisation remains open, highlighting significant upside as we continue to define the system.’
Golden Dragon managing director Simon Buswell-Smith
Multiple holes also cut broad gold mineralisation within the upper reaches of an altered, pyritic dolerite in fresh rock, reinforcing a consistent and well-defined geological control across the prospect.
Among the better results, one hole delivered 12 at 0.6 g/t gold from 80m, with a four-metre section grading 1.2 g/t gold. Another returned 16m running at 0.58g/t from the same depth, featuring a 4-metre sweet spot of 1.2g/t gold.
Technically, the mineralisation is associated with a structurally complex setting wedged between a regional drag fold and the northern extent of the Big Bell Anticline. The company says the mineralisation remains open and only lightly drilled.
Early drilling has only scratched the surface, with widely spaced holes and limited bedrock exposure, leaving much of the system untested, suggesting the current results could be just the tip of the iceberg.
It appears Golden Dragon also sees it that way. The company has already wrapped up a second phase of drilling totalling more than 2000 metres, focusing on the upper portion of the altered dolerite and lithological contacts to better define the system’s geometry and continuity. Those samples are now in the lab, with results expected in the coming weeks.
Golden Dragon managing director Simon Buswell-Smith said: “These excellent first-pass results at Behring Bore mark an important step in demonstrating the scale and potential of this emerging gold system.”
While Behring Bore is currently taking centre stage, it makes up just one piece of Golden Dragon’s strategic 612 square kilometre Cue project. The massive project also includes the highly prospective Coodardy prospect, where previous drilling outlined a 700-metre mineralised corridor. Shallow intercepts have delivered two mouthwatering results to follow up on, one of 8m at 7.3 g/t gold and another grading 4m at 9.7 g/t gold.
The company says the overall exploration work at Cue has confirmed a strong correlation between gold mineralisation and major regional structures, including the Big Bell anticline, the Big Bell shear zone and the Cuddingwarra shear. And with large areas under transported cover remaining underexplored, it may offer significant upside.
The entire Cue project sits in a blue-chip neighbourhood along strike from Westgold Resources’ Big Bell mine and Ramelius Resources’ 2.5-million-ounce Dalgaranga project.
The project also benefits from its proximity to nearby infrastructure, sitting within easy haulage distance of several operating plants, including Westgold’s Big Bell and Tuckabianna mills, and Ramelius’ Mount Magnet hub.
With the gold price holding its ground and the drill rods continuing to turn, Golden Dragon looks to have its tail up at the highly prospective Cue project.
If the pending assays from follow-up drilling can replicate the grades and widths clocked in the first pass at Behringer Bore, this Dragon might just be about to breathe some fire under its Murchison regional assets at Cue
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au
