Venus Metals, an Australian exploration company, has secured the Bellchambers mining lease, a part of its the Sandstone (Bellchambers) Gold Project located in Western Australia.
The lease, identified as M57/671, covers the Bellchambers deposit within tenement E57/984, where Venus Metals holds a 90% interest. This development allows for further exploration and resource expansion in the region, which is approximately 23km southwest of Sandstone town and 70km from Rox Resources’ Youanmi Gold Project.
The Bellchambers deposit comprises a total gold resource of 722,000 tonnes at 1.31g/t, equating to 30,500 ounces. This includes 22,100oz classified as indicated and 8,400oz as inferred.
According to Venus Metals, recent reverse circulation drilling in the area has provided promising results.
Significant gold assays from Bellchambers include 29m at 1.55g/t from a depth of 11m, 30m at 1.72g/t from 45m, and 19m at 3.74g/t from a depth of 11m.
Additional results from Range View South and Range View showed assays of 9m at 1.12g/t gold from 17m and 13m at 1.60g/t gold from a depth of 19m.
Metallurgical samples collected during drilling have been sent to ALS Laboratories for testing to determine expected recovery rates. Furthermore, two diamond drill holes have been completed in the Bellchambers resource area to support additional geotechnical analysis and test work.
Venus Metals plans to update the Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) to facilitate economic evaluations and optimise open-pit designs. A mining engineering group based in Kalgoorlie has been engaged to conduct pit optimisation, design work, and site layout configurations.
Furthermore, Venus Metals is sourcing quotes to meet various requirements for a comprehensive mining development and closure proposal (MDCP), necessary for securing final mining approvals.
Historically, Bellchambers recorded a production of 3,688oz of gold from 5,620 tonnes of ore at an average grade of 21g/t since its initial reporting by Gibson in 1908.
Gold mineralisation at both the Bellchambers deposit and the adjacent Range View prospect occurs within northeasterly trending, steeply dipping sequences of sheared sulphide-rich sediments and mafic rocks interlayered with chert and Banded Iron Formation.
