Astro and Greenvale received initial assay results from a deep diamond drill-hole completed at the Leichhardt East prospect, last year, which showed presence of copper mineralisation, along with significant large-scale IOCG deposits

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Test results enhance mineralisation of Georgina project. (Credit: Zac Edmonds on Unsplash)

Greenvale Energy, together with its partner Astro Resources, said that the latest exploration results have enhanced the prospectivity of the Georgina IOCG project in the Northern Territory.

The company owns 20% of the Georgina IOCG project, and Astro holds the remaining 80% interest.

The partners received initial assay results from a deep diamond drill-hole completed at the Leichhardt East prospect, last year.

The results showed the presence of copper mineralisation, along with significant large-scale IOCG deposits, including strong uranium mineralisation in several samples.

A hole at Leichhardt West intersected 0.22% copper from 536.05 to 536.3m and 0.15% copper from 600 to 600.8m at the end of the hole, with elevated bismuth and silver.

The results are said to support the project partners’ ongoing search for a large-scale IOCG discovery in the emerging East Tennant mineral province in the Northern Territory.

Astro’s executive chairman Tony Leibowitz said: “I am pleased with the positive early results which suggest that drilling at the Leichhardt East prospect may have hit the outer edge of a mineralised IOCG system within our Central Tenement.

“We’re now awaiting the final results from our petrography and magnetism studies, with this data to feed into a detailed review of the Central Tenement area to help plan next steps and prioritise drill targets.”

The assay results suggest that drilling may have intersected rocks peripheral to an IOCG system, as with previous drilling results from the Banks and Leichhardt West prospects.

It indicates the encounter of a hydrothermal component to the rock packages and shows compelling similarity to Tennant Creek IOCG deposits.

The elevated copper, bismuth, silver and uranium geochemistry indicates that IOCG-style geochemical deposition processes are at play in the rocks at Leichhardt East.

The partners intend to conduct a review of the whole Central Tenement area, after receiving data from CSIRO magnetic remanence test work and petrographical thin section observations.

It will include a broader review of elevated magnetic and gravity responses interpreted to be prospective for IOCG-style mineralisation, supported by the rock types, alteration and geochemistry results.