Gold-silver mineralization is evident in eight of the first 11 reverse-circulation holes drilled by Barrick Gold (ABX-T) on the Oculto zone at the Diablillos property in Argentina’s Salta province.
Barrick can acquire a 70% interest in an Argentine subsidiary of Pacific Rim Mining (PFG-V), whose sole asset is the Diablillos property, by spending US$10.5 million on exploration over four years. At that point, if a production decision has not been reached, Barrick must spend an additional US$4 million per year.
In the early 1990s, BHP Minerals spent US$1.4 million exploring the property.
A 55-hole, 6,800-metre program of reverse-circulation drilling identified four gold-bearing zones, including the Oculto zone, and established a drill-indicated resource of 4.1 million tonnes grading 2.4 grams gold and 141 grams silver per tonne.
Pacific Rim acquired the property in late 1992 and completed five diamond drill holes in 1993, followed by 11 more holes in 1994. The results led to a revised geological resource estimate for the Oculto zone: 4 million tonnes grading 2.1 grams gold and 256 grams silver. The zone is more than 300 metres long, 50-100 metres wide and 40-75 metres thick.
A high-sulphur, epithermal-type deposit, the Oculto lies 90 metres below surface. Geologists interpret it to be a flat-lying zone, controlled by rock type and structure.
Before Barrick began drilling, it carried out three months of surface evaluation work, primarily in the Oculto and Laderas areas. The work included geological mapping, rock chip sampling and alteration studies.
Barrick followed up by drilling 11 holes on the Oculto. A 200-metre stepout along strike to the southwest intersected 46 metres grading 3.5 grams gold and 298 grams silver per tonne in hole 96-1, while a 520-metre stepout to the northeast returned 145 metres grading 0.64 gram gold and 13 grams silver (including a 41-metre interval grading 1.1 grams gold) in hole 96-10.
The remainder of the holes were drilled on either side of the Main zone or the Oculto North zone.
Drilling continues on the Diablillos property. Recent drill results are as follows:
| Hole | Interval(m) | Width(m) | Gold(g/t) | Silver(g/t) |
| RC-96-1 | 109-155 | 46 | 3.5 | 298 |
| incl. | 122-135 | 13 | 10.5 | 380 |
| RC-96-2 | 131-141 | 10 | 0.47 | 258 |
| RC-96-3 | 191-213 | 22 | 0.58 | 350 |
| RC-96-4 | 167-216 | 49 | 0.24 | 108 |
| RC-96-5 | 167-242 | 75 | 1.8 | 34 |
| incl. | 206-242 | 36 | 3.5 | 60 |
| RC-96-6 | 186-232 | 46 | 0.53 | 16 |
| RC-96-7 | 138-149 | 11 | 0.69 | 161 |
| RC-96-10 | 119-264 | 145 | 0.64 | 13 |
| incl. | 174-215 | 41 | 1.1 | 13 |
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