Wildara (100%)
The Wildara Project covers an area of approximately 154km2
and represents the southern continuation of the mineralised ultramafic rokcs that host the giant Leinster nickel camp, that has been in production since the 1970's, immediately south of Perseverance. The ultramafic rocks are sheared out against the Mt Keith - Kilkenny Lineament before resuming again some 35 kilometres south on Breakaway's tenements.
The broader project area comprises a multple series of poorly exposed nickel-mineralised ultramafic belts. From west to east, these include the Marsh, Roadside-Mount Clifford, Fly Bore, Weebo and Schmitz Well trends, which are interpreted to be structurally repeated equivalents. Recent work on the Roadside Ultramafic at the Horn Deposit highlights that the geology locally comprises additional opportunities through the occurrence of a vertically stacked series of flat dipping/shallowly plunging mineralised high-MgO ultramafics, which are not evident at the surface and has only become apparent from recent drilling.
In the March 2008 Quarter, Breakaway undertook diamon drilling on the Horn Prospect and located a significant nickel deposit. Breakaway estimated an Inferred Resource, based on a 0.5% nickel cut-off grade and 11 diamond drill holes and one RC drill hole, in accordance with the 2004 Guidelines of the Australasian JORC Code for reporting Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves.
|
Tonnes |
Ni (%) |
Cu (%) |
Pd + Pt (g/t) |
Ni Metal (tonnes) |
Cu Metal ( tonnes) |
Contained 2PGE’s (oz) |
|
600,000 |
1.39 |
0.30 |
0.5 |
8,300 |
1,800 |
10,000oz |
Note: The resource estimate was completed by Breakaway Resources Limited in accordance with the 2004 Guidelines of the Australasian Joint Ore Reserves Committee (JORC) Code for reporting Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC, 2004).
Resource Estimation Methodology:
The resource estimate is based on 11 diamond and 1 RC drill holes carried out on a nominal 50m by 50m spacing, cross sectional interpretations of the geology and systematic assaying by an experienced, reputable commercial laboratory. The deposit boundary was defined by a 0.5% Ni cutoff grade which coincides with the geological boundary of disseminated/matrix sulphides
The estimate adopted a conventional, cross-sectional, polygonal technique. Individual blocks were defined around drill hole intersections with block boundaries on and between cross sections defined by the midpoints with adjacent holes and geological constraints. Block volumes were estimated by digitising the cross sectional areas of the blocks multiplied by their lengths. The tonnage for each block was estimated using the volume and averaged length weighted density measurements for individual drill hole samples forming the selected intersection. Block grades were estimated from averaged length and density weighted assays for each block intersection.
The drilling, which was carried out to follow up mineralised intersections in four holes drilled by LionOre in 2005 over a plunge extent of 80 metres, has extended the mineralisation over a total strike extent of 350 metres.
Since the estimate of the maiden resource, a total of 72 diamond drill holes have been drilled as the first stage infill drilling programme to evaluate the deposit in more detail. The drill results are yet to be fully evaluated but indications are that they broadly confirm the continuity and integrity of the geological model developed to estimate the resource. Also this follow-up phase of drilling has extended the length of the deposit to about 550 metres and it remains open to the north and south. A revised resource will be estimated in the December Quarter 2008.
The deposit is well located being adjacent to the sealed Goldfields Highway and the Goldfields gas pipeline within 70 kilometres of several concentrate processing plants (BHBP & Xstrata) in a major mining district.
The deposit is lower nickel tenor/high sulphide type with a number of favourable physical attributes for mining, which include its flat orientation and the concentration of the tonnage at a shallow nominal depth of 150 metres, thick true widths of up to 20 metres particularly in the central portion of the deposit and continuity over its length. The deposit which is up to 120 metres wide, comprises an eastern lens of massive sulphides up to 15 metres in thickness and 60 metres side, and a broader western zone of matrix sulphides (40-80% sulphides) of up to 12 metres in thickness.
Prelimiinary metallurgical testwork has commenced on the deposit and it is expected that this work will be completed in the December Quarter 2008.
There is excellent potential to locate additonal resources associated with the Roadside Ultramafic. The area immediately surrounding the Horn offers potential for accretive resource additons to the deposit. These include targets on flanking ultramafics on which recent drilling has located evidence of nickel sulphides. Exploration along strike of the Horn has located targets to investigate. These include several new TEM conductors and geolgical targets including zones of nickel sulphides that require further follow-up, for example at:
- Revolution Prospect some 8 kilometres north of the Horn Deposit. At the Revolution, previous wide-spaced drilling by LionOre intersected 13 metres at 0.96% nickel, 3.08 metres at 0.61% nickel, 0.07 metres at 4.18% nickel and 1.3g/t platinum + palladium and 0.15 metres at 5.1% nickel and 3.03g/t platinum + palladium.
- Further to the south and west, a number of weathered nickel sulphides outcrops (gossans) have been located at Fly Bore and Hilltop. To the west in the Weebo belt, rock-chip sampling at the Firefly Prospect has returned results of 0.64% nickel, 0.3% copper and 0.5g/t platinum + palladium from gossan scree. Recent TEM coverage in the vicinity of the gossans has located nearby geophysical conductors, several of which remain unexplained.