PROSPECTS for more high-grade gold continue to unfold at Tuvatu Gold Mine, owned and operated by Canadian miner Lion One Metals Ltd.
The Toronto Stock Exchange-listed gold miner released its latest drilling results last week, confirming more positive results and adding to a series of high mineralization gold discovery.
“Drill results include multiple bonanza grade gold intercepts over narrow widths, such as 236.00 g/t over 0.4 m, 101.58 g/t over 0.5 m, 102.35 g/t over 0.3 m, 94.23 g/t over 0.3 m, and 89.63 g/t over 0.4 m,” it stated.
“Due to the proximity of drill results to existing workings there is a strong probability that these intercepts can be incorporated into the mine plan in the next six to twelve months.”
The drill results were from Zone 5, an area that is currently being mined.
“Tuvatu is a high-grade narrow vein alkaline gold deposit and bonanza grade drill results are not uncommon on the project,” the company stated.
“In January the company released the highest grade assay ever returned from Zone 5 drilling; 2,749.86 g/t over 0.3 m
“Previous high-grade drill results from Zone 5 include 1,517.79 g/t gold over 0.3 m, 1,568.55 g/t over 0.3 metres, and 1,986.23 g/t gold over 0.6 m.”
In March, Lion One reported drill results of 142.66 g/t over 2.2 m, 489.52 g/t over 0.4 m, 168.95 g/t over 0.5 m, 189.15 g/t over 0.3 m, and 179.95 g/t over 0.3 m from its Ura Lode System, also currently mined.
These results point to Tuvatu’s prospects, which mining experts believe has the potential to become a bigger mine than nearby Vatukoula Gold Mine.
In response to questions sent by this newspaper, the Mineral Resources Department (MRD) said the drill results indicated the presence of high-grade gold mineralization.
“This is exceptionally high grade, as anything above 5g/t is generally considered high grade in underground mining,” MRD stated.
“This is encouraging for the mine’s economics, as high grade ore is more valuable and cost effective to extract.
“[However], it is vital to note that in any circumstance, high-grade drill results, although promising, do not always guarantee that a deposit will be economically mineable.
“A cautious approach is necessary, as a single drill result does not define an entire deposit. Several factors must be considered before determining the true potential of a deposit,” MRD stated.
