PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold junior Southern Gold has banded together with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science to uncover new gold deposits at the Canon gold mine, in Western Australia.
The collaborative project will produce a three-dimensional model of the orebody using hyperspectral data, and it will be the first time that a complete Yilgarn gold mineralisation will be modelled in this way.
All three participants will contribute equal funding amounts, some A$50 000 each, to the project, in either cash or in-kind contribution, to cover the costs of data analysis, the hyperspectral scanning of 5 000 m of drill chips and the collection of portable X-ray fluorescent geochemistry on the drill chips.
The goal of the three-dimensional model is to define a wider alteration halo, which can be used to locate similar mineralisation within the region, which could significantly increase the chances of locating mineable gold deposits.
There is also the possibility of finding concealed mineralisation, where the outer nonmineralised halo is exposed at surface.
“An important part of our corporate strategy is to strive for technical excellence. Southern Gold looks to be an innovator when it comes to exploring for and identifying new deposits, particularly in mature exploration districts,” said Southern Gold MD Simon Mitchell.
“This collaboration with the CSIRO and the commonwealth government is demonstrative of Southern Gold’s innovative, cutting-edge and science-based approach to deliver new pathways to gold discoveries.”