General Mining Corporation is pleased to announce that drilling has started at its 100% owned Chesterfield Gold Project in WA, targeting significant extensions to the known high-grade mineralisation. Chesterfield, which is 50km north-west of Meekatharra, has generated drilling results of up to 51g/t gold in early-stage exploration activity undertaken by previous owners. General Mining acquired Chesterfield last year from Black Raven Mining Pty Ltd who acquired the project from St Barbara Mines Limited. St Barbara held the project in a joint venture with Independence Group Limited in 2003, around the time Independence bought the Long Nickel Mine in WA and switched its focus to these nickel assets.

General Mining believes Chesterfield has outstanding potential due to the combination of its high-grade mineralisation, extensive exploration upside and its close proximity to new processing plants which have emerged in the area in recent times. Chesterfield comprises 246sqkm of prospective ground in the Murchison Province of the Yilgarn Block and covers a projected extension of the Big Bell Fault. Old workings have produced about 10,000oz of gold at an average grade of 22g/t. The main target zone of mineralisation has produced several high-grade intersections at the Marguaritta and Dorothy prospects. There are also other prospects and soil anomalies which General Mining intends to target within this zone.

These and other prospects have been tested sporadically over a strike length of 2km. Marguaritta itself has been intersected over 950m from Marguaritta North to Marguaritta South and remains open to the north and south. At Dorothy, the mineralisation remains open to the south-east and at depth. RC drilling will initially focus on following up high-grade gold intercepts returned from historic RC drilling at the Dorothy and Marguaritta prospects in the southern part of the project area. General Mining Chairman Michael Wright said there was potential to outline a larger deposit by testing for extensions to the mineralisation over the 2km strike length between Dorothy and Marguaritta.

“The early-stage evidence also suggests that there is significant scope to grow the known mineralisation at depth as well as at targets to the north and south which have been identified by geochemical anomalies and shallow aircore holes,” Mr Wright said. “Our confidence in the economic potential of Chesterfield is also underpinned by the project’s close proximity to third-party processing plants, which could help make a relatively small, high-grade resource  a very attractive undertaking for General Mining shareholders.”