REG - Empire Metals Ltd - Exploration Update for the Eclipse Gold Project

Empire MetalsAnnouncement

20/12/2021 07:01

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RNS Number : 0350W  Empire Metals Limited  20 December 2021

 

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Empire Metals Limited / AIM: EEE / Sector: Natural Resources

20 December 2021

Empire Metals Limited ('Empire' or the 'Company')

Exploration update for the Eclipse Gold Project

 

Empire Metals Limited, the AIM-quoted resource exploration and development
company, is pleased to announce an exploration update for the Eclipse Gold
Project (the 'Project') located within the Eastern Goldfields of Western
Australia.

Overview:

·    A strategic technical review has revisited all data collected over
the Project licence area and focused on developing a more advanced
understanding of the structural controls on the known gold mineralisation.

·    The current database highlights the potential of significant
additional mineralisation discovery within the licence area as it demonstrates
only 20% of the Reverse Circulation ('RC') holes drilled to date have
penetrated below the gold-depleted regolith zone into fresh rock.

·    A new series of drilling programmes, utilising both RC and Diamond
Drill ('DD') holes, is scheduled to commence Q1 2022 and has been designed to
gather further geological and structural information around the Eclipse shaft
('Eclipse') and Jack's Dream shaft ('Jack's Dream') and to prove continuity of
the gold mineralisation below the gold-depleted zone of weathering.

·    The design of a larger-scale exploration programme is also underway
to test gold targets to the north and northwest areas of the licence area.

 

Shaun Bunn, Managing Director, said: "A thorough and rigorous assessment of
the data collected to date has been completed, leading to a much better
understanding of the geological and structural controls of the gold
mineralisation, which is vital for designing and implementing the next phase
of exploration. The analysis by our technical team has confirmed that gold
mineralisation at Eclipse is associated with a NW-striking and steeply
SW-dipping shear zone with significant gold mineralisation known to extend
over a strike length of more than 200 metres.

 

"This interpretation has only been possible thanks to data collected from the
recent diamond drilling programme, as there was limited structural data from
the previous RC holes drilled, particularly as only 20% of the RC holes
drilled within the licence area have been deep enough to penetrate the
gold-depleted zone of weathering into fresh rock."

 

Strategic Review Completed

The gold mineralisation at Eclipse is hosted in sheared felsic to intermediate
volcanics and volcaniclastic sediments, and associated with pyrite, pyrrhotite
and quartz veining. Analyses of the structural data collected during the
diamond drilling earlier this year has confirmed the gold mineralisation to be
associated with shear foliation within the volcaniclastic sediments.

Results from previous drilling also indicate that gold mineralisation likely
continues to greater depths, and that further drilling is warranted to test
the strike and depth extensions of multiple gold structures at Eclipse.

 

Figure 1: Plan view of the southern half of the Eclipse licence.

 

Magnetics (RTP), with drill intercepts indicating Eclipse and Jack's Dream
area and lines delineating the long-sections shown in Figures 2 and 3 below.

 

Eclipse Ore Zone

Two diamond holes drilled near the Eclipse shaft successfully penetrated fresh
rock (ECDD21_01 and ECDD21_03) and these have provided valuable structural
information pertaining to what controls the gold mineralisation. A total of 60
structural measurements were taken from the diamond holes, measuring the
bedding, foliation, and quartz-carbonate veining of the fresh rock. These were
plotted onto a 'stereonet' with Au assays, which showed the high-grade
mineralisation to be associated with a steeply-dipping, northwest-southeast
trending foliation. This is vital information for planning future drillholes
and targeting the mineralisation along strike.

 

When the drillhole and assay data are plotted into 3D modelling software, and
a cross-section is defined along strike of the foliation, it shows the
mineralisation is open at depth and along-strike within the fresh rock (Figure
2), highlighting areas which to date have been completely untested. In doing
so, Empire has defined several priority drill targets for the next phase of
exploration at Eclipse.

 

Figure 2: Long-section of Eclipse orientated along strike of the foliation.

 

Viewing northeast through a 20m wide window. Shaded zone indicates the higher
grade gold mineralisation which remains open at depth, and to the northwest,
where it could potentially link to Jack's Dream.

 

Jack's Dream

At Jack's Dream, where only RC holes have been drilled, a similar approach has
been employed using the structural measurements from Eclipse (Figure 3). This
shows again the upside and exploration potential for discovering more gold
mineralisation within the fresh rock at depth, which remains untested. It also
supports the idea that Eclipse and Jack's Dream are upper parts of a larger,
linked gold system at depth below the regolith horizon between the two areas,
although this concept has yet to be tested adequately.

 

 

Figure 3: Long-section of Jack's Dream along strike of the foliation defined
by DD holes from Eclipse.

Viewing northeast through a 40m wide window. Shaded area indicates higher
grade gold mineralisation which remains open at depth, and towards the
southeast.

 

Further Exploration Planned

The current database for the Project shows only 20% of the RC holes drilled to
date have penetrated below the gold-depleted regolith zone into fresh rock.
This is an exciting development for the Company as it highlights the potential
for significant additional mineralisation to be discovered within the licence
area, and certainly merits further drilling. The planned drilling will be
executed as a phased approach, maximising the data collected in each phase to
guide the following phase. It is important that additional data be collected
from the fresh rock to fully understand lithological and structural contacts,
at both Eclipse and Jack's Dream, which influence controls on the gold
mineralisation. The final design and implementation planning for the next
drilling programme is underway, which will include both RC and DD drilling,
and is expected to commence in Q1 2022.

 

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

Certain information contained in this announcement would have been deemed
inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No
596/2014, as incorporated into UK law by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act
2018, until the release of this announcement.

**ENDS**

 

For further information please visit www.empiremetals.co.uk
(http://www.empiremetals.co.uk)  or contact:

 

 Shaun Bunn                   Empire Metals Ltd                            Company             Tel: 020 7907 9327
 Mike Struthers               Empire Metals Ltd                            Company             Tel: 020 7907 9327
 Ewan Leggat                  S. P. Angel Corporate Finance LLP            Nomad & Broker      Tel: 020 3470 0470
 Adam Cowl                    S. P. Angel Corporate Finance LLP            Nomad & Broker      Tel: 020 3470 0470
 Damon Heath                  Shard Capital Partners LLP                   Joint Broker        Tel: 020 7186 9950
 Susie Geliher                St Brides Partners Ltd                       PR                  Tel: 020 7236 1177
 Selina Lovell                St Brides Partners Ltd                       PR                  Tel: 020 7236 1177

 
 

 
About Empire Metals Limited
Empire Metals is an AIM-listed (LON: EEE) exploration and resource development company with a project portfolio comprising gold interests in Australia and Austria.

 

The Company strategy is to develop a pipeline of projects at different stages in the development curve. Its current focus is on the high-grade Eclipse Gold Project and the Central Menzies Gold Project in Western Australia, with the goal to expand through the addition of further projects in the region to develop a viable and compelling portfolio of precious metals assets.

 

Empire also holds a portfolio of three precious metals projects located an historically high-grade gold production region comprising the Rotgulden, Schonberg and Walchen prospects in central-southern Austria.

 

The Board continues to evaluate opportunities through which to realise the value of its wider portfolio and reviews further assets which meet the Company's investment criteria.

 

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