Key Highlights

  • The headline intercept was 9.0 metres at 7.9 g/t gold from 242.9 metres in hole STEX178.
  • The Sovereign programme comprised 27 holes spread along roughly 2 kilometres of strike.
  • The North Kalgoorlie Hub hosts a resource of 1.2 million ounces at 3.7 g/t gold.
  • Updated resource estimates for Comet Vale, Mulwarrie and Vivien are flagged before the end of the year.

Gorilla Gold Mines (ASX:GG8) released a fresh batch of drilling results on 9 November from its North Kalgoorlie Hub in Western Australia, led by an intercept of 9.0 metres at 7.9 grams per tonne gold from 242.9 metres in hole STEX178 at the Sovereign deposit within the Comet Vale area. The company also reported results from the nearby Happy Jack, Lake View South and Cheer East prospects.

At Sovereign, the programme comprised 27 holes, a mix of diamond holes and reverse circulation pre-collars with diamond tails, spread along roughly 2 kilometres of strike. Other reported intercepts included 1.4 metres at 21.6 g/t from 39.2 metres in STEX195 at Sovereign North, 4.7 metres at 5.2 g/t from 53.6 metres in STEX175, 5.5 metres at 4.0 g/t from 38.9 metres in STEX194, and 1.0 metre at 14.2 g/t from 249.2 metres in STEX207.

All of these are downhole lengths. The company has not yet determined true widths, so the figures should not be read as the actual thickness of the mineralised zones.

The spread of depths is worth noting. Several of the better results start within about 55 metres downhole, while STEX178 and STEX207 were intersected below 240 metres downhole. Results at both shallow and deeper levels along the same corridor are what resource geologists look for when assessing whether mineralisation is continuous, although continuity has to be demonstrated through closer-spaced drilling rather than assumed.

Shallow gold at Happy Jack and other prospects

Happy Jack, about 1 kilometre north of Sovereign, was tested with 17 reverse circulation holes. Gold was intersected from surface in 12 of them, with examples including 12 metres at 1.0 g/t in HJEX033 and 5 metres at 3.1 g/t in HJEX023. In bedrock, HJEX011 returned 15 metres at 1.2 g/t from 53 metres. Further afield, Lake View South produced 2 metres at 4.7 g/t from 82 metres in LSEX050, and Cheer East returned 4 metres at 1.3 g/t from 91 metres in CVEX123.

Chief executive Charles Hughes said the results reinforced "the scale, grade and exceptional growth potential" of the hub. Those are management's views; the significance of individual intercepts will only become clearer once they are incorporated into resource modelling.

Resource base and permitting

The North Kalgoorlie Hub, which is wholly owned and lies about 100 kilometres north of Kalgoorlie, hosts a mineral resource of 1.2 million ounces at 3.7 g/t gold. Comet Vale accounts for 0.86 million ounces at 3.7 g/t, and Sovereign itself contains 410,000 ounces at 4.2 g/t.

Sovereign is permitted for underground activities, according to the company, which positions it as a potential early focus if development studies proceed. Permitting alone does not establish that Mining would be economic, and no production decision has been announced.

Next steps and caveats

Gorilla Gold plans updated resource estimates for Comet Vale, Mulwarrie and Vivien, with the next major update flagged for before the end of the year. The company noted that laboratory turnaround times have been slower than usual, which could affect when outstanding assays are returned and, potentially, the timing of that update.

Several uncertainties remain. Narrow high-grade intervals such as the 1.0 metre at 14.2 g/t result can be difficult to correlate between holes, and the near-surface Happy Jack grades are modest. The forthcoming resource update will be the clearest test of how much the latest drilling adds to the hub's inventory.