West Africa-focussed explorer Oriole Resources reports that visible free gold mineralisation has been identified in multiple drill holes at its 51%-owned Bibemi gold project, in Cameroon.
The company is conducting an ongoing maiden diamond drilling programme, for a planned 3 080 m of drilling of 28 holes. The latest discoveries were identified at the Lawa West prospect (hole BBDD019) and the Lawa East prospect (holes BBDD014 and BBDD020).
The gold is hosted by quartz-tourmaline veins up to 1 m wide, at a downhole depth of about 70 m, and has a strong association with pyrite, occurring as both finely disseminated and coarser grains, some of which is visible in the pre-cut core in holes BBDD019 and BBDD020.
The drilling programme is focussed on testing the depth extension of surface gold mineralisation identified at four key prospects – Bakassi Zone 1, Bakassi Zone 2, Lawa West and Lawa East – within the 8.3-km-long orogenic gold system that remains open to the southwest.
Previous surface exploration programmes at the site have returned up to 135.40 g/t gold from selective rock-chip sampling and 9 m grading 3.14 g/t gold from trench sampling.
As at Bakassi Zone 1, for which initial results have recently been reported, holes were predominantly drilled at an inclination of -50o towards the northwest, to intersect the dominantly north-east trending (and steeply southeast-dipping) structure.
However, at Lawa West and Lawa East, there is a second east-northeast trending shear that intersects the first and appears to have a strong control on the grade distribution in the area.
Recently reported results for the first hole – Bakassi Zone 1 – confirmed the continuity of the orogenic gold system to more than 90 m below surface, with a best intersection of 1 m grading 4.09 g/t gold, while the system remains open at depth.
To date, the drilling team is three-quarters of the way through the planned programme, with a total of 2 233.55 m having been completed in 21 holes.
Further results from the drilling programme are expected throughout the second quarter of the year.