White Rock readies for exploration at its high-grade Zinc VMS Project
White Rock Minerals Ltd (“White Rock” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on its plans to conduct a comprehensive exploration program at its globally significant 100% owned zinc VMS project at Red Mountain in Alaska.
White Rock has now completed the mobilisation of the major items necessary for its planned exploration program at Red Mountain. Completed in early April, the diamond drill rig and camp accommodation, along with support infrastructure, were mobilised to the camp site alongside the airstrip at Newman Creek, located just to the east of White Rock’s tenements (See Figures One and Two).
This infrastructure will support White Rock’s exploration plans for the upcoming field season (refer ASX Announcement dated 18 December 2017 “WRM - Exploration Program Planned – Red Mountain Zinc Project”), which is planned to include:-
- A targeted diamond drilling program aimed at in-fill and expansion of the high grade maiden Resource,
- On-ground orientation EM and possibly geochemistry exploration across the two already identified deposits,
- Regional application of the best geophysics and geochemistry exploration tools determined from the on-ground orientation work, and
- A follow-up diamond drilling program on the best of the more than 30 already identified exploration targets.
Drilling Campaign
The initial drilling campaign, to commence in late May / early June (depending on weather), will aim to infill and extend the maiden resource which already has two identified deposits (Dry Creek and West Tundra Flats) and a Resource base of 16.7Mt at 8.9% ZnEq1 including a high-grade component of 9.1Mt @ 12.9% ZnEq1 (refer ASX announcement 26 April 2017 regarding the maiden Mineral Resource).
This drilling is aimed to follow-up on drilling last done in the 1990s, which included:
(refer ASX Announcement dated 15 February 2016 “White Rock Minerals proposes to acquire VMS project in Alaska”.)
1 ZnEq = Zinc equivalent grades are estimated using long-term broker consensus estimates compiled by RFC Ambrian as at 20 March 2017 adjusted for recoveries from historical metallurgical test work and calculated with the formula: ZnEq =100 x [(Zn% x 2,206.7 x 0.9) + (Pb% x 1,922 x 0.75) + (Cu% x 6,274 x 0.70) + (Ag g/t x (19.68/31.1035) x 0.70) + (Au g/t x (1,227/31.1035) x 0.80)] / (2,206.7 x 0.9). White Rock is of the opinion that all elements included in the metal equivalent calculation have reasonable potential to be recovered and sold.
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