Inmet extends Aussie base metal find

Drilling by Inmet Mining (INM-T) has intercepted strong zinc-copper-silver grades at the Teutonic Bore project in Western Australia, extending the strike length of a high-grade discovery to more than 200 metres.

Stepout hole 7, which focused on the Jaguar massive sulphide prospect, cut 12 metres grading 14.9% zinc, 5% copper and 0.56% lead, plus 147 grams silver and 0.04 gram gold per tonne, from a down-hole depth of 481.7-493.7 metres. The true thickness of the 12-metre intercept is about 7.9 metres.

The hole was collared 100 metres north of previously reported hole 5, which intercepted two closely spaced massive sulphide zones. Drilled at minus 65, hole 5 cut 2.75 metres grading 17% zinc, 2.7% copper and 123 grams silver at 465 metres down-hole, followed by a second intercept grading 10% zinc, 5.6% copper and 118 grams silver across 3.45 metres at a depth of 479.5-483 metres. A lower-grade zone of stringer sulphide mineralization lies directly below the high-grade intercepts and extends down-hole for a further 63.4 metres. The top 9.8 metres of the stringer zone averaged 0.5% zinc, 1.8% copper and 23 grams silver. The rest of the zone has yet to be assayed.

Hole 5 was spotted 100 metres north of the discovery hole, the second hole to be drilled by Inmet during a first pass of drilling on the project. The drilling program, which began in January, is designed to test previously unrecognized deep electromagnetic (EM) conductors. Inmet generated several anomalies after completing a “deep EM” regional survey over an 11-by-4-km portion of the project, starting 1 km south of the past-producing Teutonic Bore base metal mine. The ground survey outlined conductors at depths not tested by previous geophysical work.

Teutonic Bore was discovered in 1977 and mined as an open-pit and underground operation by BP Minerals between 1980 and 1985. The deposit originally contained a resource of 2.1 million tonnes grading 11.39% zinc, 3.53% copper, 150 grams silver and 0.5 gram gold.

The property lies at the southern end of the Yandal greenstone belt in the Northeastern Goldfields region, 260 km north of Kalgoorlie and 60 km north of Leonora. Inmet optioned the property from Australian-listed Pilbara Mines in October 2000 and can earn a 70% interest by spending A$3.5 million on base metal exploration before the end of 2004. The agreement excludes all surface resources in and around the old mine site, including tailings and stockpiles.

In 1997, Pilbara acquired the Teutonic Bore mine lease from Mt. Isa Mines, and subsequently picked up an adjoining package of ground from Mt. Isa and Goldfields of Australia.

Pilbara has 79.9 million shares outstanding and currently trades at around A28.

Inmet’s first two holes of the 2002 program were drilled 600 metres apart on a 1,800-metre-long EM conductor, 4 km south of the old mine. The first hole intersected a 5.8-metre-thick anomalous copper-zinc sequence of interbedded mafic volcanic and graphitic shale at a down-hole depth of 434 metres. Subsequent down-hole geophysical work has given a strong EM response at depth.

The second hole was collared a further 600 metres to the south and intercepted high-grade zinc and copper grades in massive sulphides at a vertical depth of 450 metres. Angled at minus 70, the discovery hole cut 7.7 metres of massive sulphides grading 16.05% zinc, 4.28% copper and 0.76% lead, plus 173 grams silver per tonne and anomalous gold at 485 metres down-hole.

Inmet followed by stepping-out 100 metres, in both directions, of the discovery hole. The southern limits of the deposit were apparently defined by hole 4, which intercepted a 3.4-metre-long interval of anomalous stringer and semi-massive sulphide mineralization in brecciated chert, beginning at a down-hole depth of 449 metres.

Based on the results of only two holes, the down-dip potential of the new zone appears to be limited. Collared 50 metres to the south and 122 metres vertically below the discovery hole, hole 6 intersected just 1.5 metres of stringer iron sulphides with low metal grades at a down-hole depth of 592 metres.

Hole 8 was drilled 100 metres north of hole 6 and angled at minus 75. It cut a narrow, 0.35-metre interval of massive sulphides at 595 metres down-hole, or 117 metres vertically beneath the discovery hole. Assays are pending.

Inmet continues to drill-off the Jaguar polymetallic prospect on 100-metre centres and is testing the mineralization along strike to the north and updip.

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