Location of new licences and significant conglomerate hosted gold occurrences
Earlier this year, the company applied for nine exploration licences covering 1,300 square kilometres.
Impact Minerals Limited (ASX:IPT) is reviewing previous exploration data from its licence applications which cover 1,300 square kilometres in the Pilbara region Western Australia.
The review indicates at least 90 kilometres of prospective Fortescue Group conglomerates occur at or near-surface.
READ: Impact Minerals’ major shareholder enhances position ahead of conglomerate gold hunt
Impact has a particular focus on the two most prospective conglomerate horizons within the Fortescue Group being the conglomerates of the Hardey Formation and conglomerates at the base of the Mt Roe Basalt.
The Hardey Formation rocks host the Beatons Creek resource of 6.4 million tonnes at 2.7 g/t gold for 558,000 ounces of gold held by Novo Resources Corp (CVE:NVO).
The Mt Roe Basalt rocks host the recent gold discovery at Purdeys Reward-Comet Well by Novo Resources and Artemis Resources Ltd (ASX:ARV).
Four main gold-bearing conglomerate occurrences
At the Glen Herring Prospect previous rock chip samples in 1989 returned assays of up to 11.2 g/t gold from a gold-pyrite bearing conglomerate within the Hardey Formation.
At the Shady Camp Well Prospect one diamond drill hole in 1976 returned 0.9 metres at 0.6 g/t gold from 174 metres downhole.
Gold-bearing pyritic quartz pebble conglomerates have been identified at the base of the Mt Roe Formation by several previous explorers at the Contact Creek Prospect.
The Hardey Formation sandstones and conglomerates have been mapped over at least 25 kilometres of strike and rock samples of conglomerates with very strong pyrite returned up to 0.26 g/t gold.
Site visit to Purdeys Reward-Comet Well area helps understand discovery
Dr Mike Jones, managing director, said: “We were recently privileged to visit the Purdeys Reward-Comet Well area with Novo Artemis and have seen first hand the reasons why it had not been discovered before, the potential scale of the discovery and also the difficulties of exploring and sampling for this style of deposit.
“It is evident that there is a wide range in size and distribution of gold within these conglomerates and it is this that has hampered previous exploration for this style of mineralisation.
“We are now determining the most appropriate sampling methodologies for our on-ground exploration which will commence in earnest on grant of the licences.”
