Tolu Minerals Limited has successfully extended the mineralisation of its Tolukuma gold and silver deposit, announcing strong results from its latest drilling program at the nearby Taula vein system.
Located 4.5 kilometers southeast of the existing Tolukuma gold mine, the exploration effort confirmed high-grade gold and silver intersections, opening up the potential for significant resource expansion and suggesting continuity of mineralisation beyond the proven historically mined Tolukuma ore bodies.
Managing Director and CEO of Tolu Minerals Ltd, Iain Macpherson, expressed his satisfaction with the results, saying the drilling marks a significant step in the company’s strategy to expand the Tolukuma mineral resource estimate and ultimately redevelop the site into a major gold and silver producer.
In an exclusive interview with PNG Business News, Macpherson said: “It is exceptionally pleasing that Tolu has achieved this very important and significant milestone in the execution of the Company’s strategy of leveraging the existing Tolukuma infrastructure and proven operational performance.”
He said it is also confirmation of the validity of Tolu’s previously released Exploration Target focused on the southern and eastern areas of the mining lease and surrounding exploration license.
Tolu Minerals’ maiden nine-hole diamond drill program at Taula, totalling 638.85 meters, has yielded promising results, particularly from drill holes TDH07 and TDH08.
TDH08 intersected a remarkable 4.80 meters of mineralisation averaging 22.79 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold and 513 g/t of silver, including a standout 1.0-meter section with 61.20 g/t gold and 1979 g/t silver.
These results come from a structural inflexion zone, a key feature previously identified at the Tolukuma mine, suggesting the mineralisation could continue to expand along these zones.
The drilling has extended the known gold and silver mineralisation by over 450 meters at depth and has confirmed that the Taula vein system, which has a surface strike length of over 1,500 meters, remains open to both the North and South.
These results are expected to form the basis for a maiden JORC (Joint Ore Reserves Committee) Resource estimate, with further drilling and evaluation already underway.
Tolu Minerals has used a combination of geophysical surveys and historical data to guide its drilling efforts. The company’s 3D Induced Polarisation (IP) and Airborne Magneto Telluric (AMT) surveys have been instrumental in identifying potential mineralised zones at depths down to in excess of 1,000m.
The recent drilling has confirmed the effectiveness of these surveys in targeting high-grade areas, with results reinforcing the validity of Tolu's exploration models.
Macpherson said, “This program is the first absolute verification that Tolu’s geophysical programs including historical, 3D Induced Polarisation and the more recent Airborne Magneto Telluric survey provide an effective tool for targeted exploration.”
“The small, nine-hole Taula diamond drilling program, utilising our own equipment, planned on a combination of the geophysical results and surface exploration, has defined a further zone of gold mineralisation at depth extending 450m of strike and continuity that is open ended to the North and South.”
“The confirmation of higher grade gold and silver zones along structural inflexion zones is an important indication, as that was an important feature of mining at Tolukuma and supports our model that the mineralisation extends well beyond the historical mining zones.”
The company is now focused on expanding its exploration efforts southward towards the Miliahamba prospect and eastward along the broader Taula and Tolukuma vein systems.
In addition to the drilling at Taula, Tolu Minerals plans further surface exploration, including trench sampling and rock sampling, to map out the full extent of the mineralisation. The company is positioning itself for long-term development and potential production increases.
“This drilling program has demonstrated strong results extending mineralisation further to the South of Tolukuma mine,” Macpherson said.
“This represents an important milestone as it is the first drilling program out of the ML and having confirmed the geophysical results, it is now a relatively simple exercise to connect the dots to expand the Mineral Resource Estimate Resources that may be exploited by existing infrastructure well into the future,” he said.
