REG - East Star Resources - Heli EM Survey Results, Rudny Altai Licences

East Star ResourcesAnnouncement

17/11/2022 07:01

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RNS Number : 6816G  East Star Resources PLC  17 November 2022

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17 November 2022

East Star Resources Plc

("East Star" or the "Company")

EM Survey Preliminary Results, Rudny Altai Licences, Kazakhstan

East Star Resources Plc (LSE:EST), the Kazakhstan-focused minerals exploration
company, is pleased to announce preliminary results from the helicopter-borne
electromagnetic ("HEM") survey conducted between May and July 2022 over the
Company's five volcanic-hosted massive sulphide ("VHMS") licences in the
world-class Rudny Altai belt in Kazakhstan.

Highlights

 

·    Five 'Priority 1' targets generated - four of which are considered
drill-ready

o Three of these targets are on licences owned 100% by East Star and two are
on the 80% East Star owned licences held in a joint venture with state owned
mining company, Tau-Ken Samruk

·    Three 'Priority 2' targets generated - minor field work required
prior to being drill-ready

·    40 additional targets generated - further desktop and field work
required to eliminate or include in future exploration programmes

·    Globally renowned VHMS expert, Dr Bruce Gemmell stated: "East Star's
Rudny Altai licences are highly prospective for the discovery of new VHMS
deposits"

 

Alex Walker, East Star CEO, commented:

 

"We are extremely encouraged by these results. Our team has spent numerous
hours on the EM data, satellite imagery and in the field to firm up these EM
targets to drill-ready status. We have also progressed much of the approvals
process to ensure we are ready to drill them in the new year as soon as
practical.

 

VHMS deposits tend to form multiple mounds/lenses within deposits, and so
exploring near known deposits is a highly recommended exploration strategy for
new discoveries. Having such quality targets next to mines like Pokrovskoye -
which was an open pit mine with grades close to 25% copper equivalent - is
very exciting.

 

Though these targets are by no means guaranteed discoveries, given the quality
and size of some of the targets, the drill campaign has the potential to be a
very high impact one."

 

Figure 1: Location of Priority 1 and 2 EM targets on the Rudny Altai licences

East Star has enlisted the help of Dr Bruce Gemmell, a globally renowned VHMS
expert. Dr Gemmell is assisting with planning future exploration programmes
and stated: "East Star's Rudny Altai licences are highly prospective for the
discovery of new VHMS deposits. The adage is "look for elephants in elephant
country" and East Star is certainly in elephant country. A modern and vigorous
exploration programme is warranted."

 

EM Target Summary

 

In total, 50 targets were defined in the 2022 HEM survey with two ruled out as
'cultural' (man-made). A review of the lower priority targets will be
undertaken with particular attention paid to areas where a known geochemical
signature coincides with an Airborne Induced Polarisation ('AIP') anomaly and
where magnetic data coincides with an AIP or magnetic anomaly.

 

VHMS deposits within the belt are predominantly hosted by a Devonian felsic to
mafic rock sequence of basalt, andesite and rhyolite and are recognised as
"Kuroko" and "Besshi" types. Rhyolite is most common as footwall indicator for
the region, and indeed other Paleozoic volcanic-hosted massive sulphide
deposits such as the Hellyer, Rosebery, Que River, Hercules, Mt Lyell and
Woodlawn deposits in Eastern Australia.

 

 

 

HeliTEM _A_11 and HeliTEM_A_12 targets

Figure 2: Two EM conductors in relation to the historical mine and historical
drilling

HeliTEM _A_11 target is a strong, narrow, double peak, strike extensive and
very shallow anomaly (from about 25 m), clearly related to the mineralisation
at Pokrovskoye mine (200 m east of the old pit) and coinciding with a very
strong magnetic anomaly.

HeliTEM_A_12 target is a strong single peak late time response, coinciding
with a strong magnetic anomaly, 500 m West from the Pokrovskoye mine. It is an
extremely conductive target of small size (15 m  x 15 m), which is about 100
m deep. In June 2022, East Star geologists mapped at this target a phyllic
alteration zone in granite porphyries, rhyolitic lava and siltstones.

The Pokrovskoye Mine started in 1822 and was mined up to 1979. The massive
sulphide ore body was reported as 150 m long by 200 m wide and up to 22 m
thick with average ore grades of 11.5% Cu, 3.3% Pb and 12% Zn. The ore body
was mined in open pit to 70 m depth.

 

After the mine closure in 1979, some regional exploration drilling was
conducted in 1983. The results East Star has uncovered indicate potential
stringer zones to the east of the Pokrovskoye pit. The EM conductors in this
area do not appear to have ever been drilled. The stringer sulphide zone is
generally located directly underneath the massive sulphides within the
footwall volcanic sequence which reiterates the VHMS model and the EM
signature as a legitimate target.

 

Figure 3: Open pit of historic Pokrovskoye mine

 

Figure 4: Waste dump of Pokrovskoye deposit

 

 

HeliTEM_AA_9 and HeliTEM_A_9 targets

Figure 5: Unexplored EM anomalies, shallow and highly conductive

HeliTEM_AA_9 target is a large, shallow, highly conductive, strike-extensive,
strong north-east striking and moderately dipping conductor, coinciding with a
moderate magnetic anomaly and big enough to represent a large ore zone, with
no known prior exploration history.

A site visit to the location in October 2022 found the location of the target
is in a relief depression with multiple streams. This is highly likely the
reason there is little surface signature making a discovery by mapping
difficult. There is also very little evidence of 'man-made' infrastructure
that might be influencing this as a target.

 

Figure 6: Photo of the location of HeliTEM_AA_9 target

 

HeliTEM_A_9 target is a large, shallow, strike-extensive, double peak anomaly
dipping towards the east.

Figure 7: Photo of the location of HeliTEM_A_9 target

 

 

 

HeliTEM _A_15 target

The target represents a single peak, late time anomaly, coinciding with a
moderate magnetic anomaly and with significant IP effects in the surrounding
area. A site visit by East Star geologists in June 2022 reported occurrences
of pyrite and chalcopyrite southwest of the EM conductor. Either side of the
conductor, East Star geologists mapped tuffaceous siltstones, sandstones and
rhyolite in the form of rhyodacitic lapilli tuff, thereby providing a surface
indicator of the mafic sequence of rocks.

 

Figure 8: EM conductor NE of rock chip results and Solonovskoye deposit

The conductor is 610 m northeast of the Solonovskoye deposit. Solonovskoye was
found in 1966 and comprises 6 lenses up to 58 m thick and up to 760 m long
with grades up to 3.76% Cu, 3.3% Zn, and 1.14% Pb.

 

 

 

 

Rudny Altai Licence Summary

Licences 847-EL, 914-EL, 1794-EL, 1795-EL and 1799-EL (the "Licences") are
located in the Rudny Altai region of Eastern Kazakhstan. Administratively, the
Licences are within the Shemonaikha district and are extraordinarily well
connected to infrastructure. The regional centre of Ust-Kamenogorsk is located
45 km, and its international airport is located 35 km, southeast of the
Licences. The railway connecting the KazZinc/Glencore Ridder mine and smelter
and Tomsk crosses the Licences from the south to the northwest with two
railway stations located on the Licences. There is a network of dirt roads
within the Licences that are suitable for driving all year round. A
hard-surfaced road from Ust-Kamenogorsk to Shemonaikha crosses the western
part of the Licences.

The area is characterised by moderately hilly terrain with elevations ranging
between 270 m and 630 m.

The Rudny Altai region is one of the largest volcanic-hosted massive sulphides
provinces in the world. The Rudny Altay VHMS belt's total metal endowment
including historical production and remaining resource is estimated at 1,000
million tons in 58 deposits comprising 14 large (25-50 Mt), very large (50-100
Mt) and giant (>100 Mt) deposits.

HEM Survey

 

High electrical conductivity can indicate rock layers containing
mineralisation. It is the principal technology used in the Paterson province
of Western Australia, which was used to discover Rio Tinto's 'Winu' deposit
and Greatland Gold/Newcrest's 'Havieron' deposit. VHMS deposits can produce
significant electromagnetic, gravimetric, and magnetic responses and thus
provide great potential for detecting of ore bodies using airborne and ground
geophysics (Ford et al., 2007). For VHMS, deposits contrasting in magnetic,
electromagnetic, and gravitational properties in comparison with host rocks,
become direct exploration vectors.

The targets for the HEM survey were VHMS ores, represented in this region by
occurrences of lead-zinc, copper-zinc, and copper-iron ore. Geologically, the
area is composed of volcanic, volcanic-sedimentary, and sedimentary deposits
of the Devonian. Extrusive-subvolcanic formations are generally represented by
rocks of felsic, medium and mafic composition, with the predominance of felsic
rock (albitophyres, potassium feldspar porphyry, rhyodacites, less often
andesite and andesite-basalt porphyrites). Intrusive formations include mainly
granites.

 

For further information visit the Company's website at www.eaststarplc.com
(http://www.eaststarplc.com) , or contact:

 

East Star Resources Plc

Alex Walker, Chief Executive Officer

Tel: +44 (0)20 7390 0234 (via Vigo Consulting)

 

Peterhouse Capital Limited (Corporate Broker and Placing Agent)

Duncan Vasey / Lucy Williams

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0930

 

Vigo Consulting (Investor Relations)

Ben Simons / Peter Jacob

Tel: +44 (0)20 7390 0234

 

About East Star Resources Plc

 

East Star Resources is focused on the discovery and development of gold, rare
earth, and copper deposits in Kazakhstan. With an initial nine licences
covering 1,687 sq km in three mineral rich districts, East Star is undertaking
an intensive exploration programme, applying modern geophysics to discover
minerals under cover and at depths that were not previously explored. The
Company also intends to further expand its licence portfolio in Kazakhstan.
East Star's management are based permanently on the ground, supported by local
expertise, and joint ventures with the state mining company.

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The person who arranged for the release of this announcement was Alex Walker,
CEO of the Company.

 

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