Ironbark Zinc intersects gold, base metal mineralisation beyond historical drilling at Peakview

Ironbark Zinc (ASX: IBG) has identified strike length extensions from previous drilling at the company’s Peakview Project in New South Wales, intersecting high grade base and precious metals.

The 2011 drilling program was carried out to follow up on historical drill holes at the Peakview prospect, targeting extensions of high grade intercepts in the northern part of the prospect.

Assays from the recent program include:

- 3.2 metres at 7.5% zinc plus lead and 2.7% copper from 53 metres;
- 5.6 metres at 4.4% zinc plus lead, 0.8% copper and 256 grams per tonne (g/t) silver from 48.7 metres, including 1.2 metres at 7.4% zinc plus lead,  1.9% copper and 880g/t silver; and
- 1 metre at 25.8% zinc plus lead, 1% copper and 119g/t silver from 152.5 metres.

Mineralisation remains open along strike to the north and south, covering more than 1.3 kilometres, and down dip.

The southern portion of the prospect has not been sufficiently drilled to constrain the mineralisation.

Ironbark believes further drilling is justified to test the prospective horizon and soil anomalies in the south.

Managing director Jonathan Downes said the results highlighted the economic potential of the Peakview Project.

“The results show a very extensive initial strike of mineralisation that now extends for at least 1.3 kilometres and remains open at depth,” he said.

“We still consider this early days and we will be planning further work in the near future. Some of the grades are exceptional and highlight some potentially significant precious metal credits with single assays of silver exceeding 880 grams per tonne.”

The Peakview project

Historical drilling at Peakview, drilled by Western Mining between 1979 and 1980, returned results of:

- 2.1 metres at 17.3% zinc plus lead, 1.9% copper and 103g/t silver from 31.95 metres;
- 2.25 metres at 6% zinc plus lead, 3.6% copper and 56g/t silver from 90.95 metres; and
- 0.8 metres at 11.6% zinc plus lead, 0.7% copper and 269g/t silver from 164.75 metres.

The project is located 50 kilometres south of the historical Lake George Mine at Captains Flat, which produced 26.7 tonnes of silver, 16,100 ounces of gold and 3,841 tonnes of copper from 114,560 tonnes of ore between 1882 and 1899.

Lake George was reopened in 1937, producing a further 406,418 tonnes of zinc, 243,851 tonnes of lead, 27,230 tonnes of copper, 7.4 million ounces of silver and 220,000 ounces of gold from more than 4 million tonnes of ore until its closure in 1962.

Originally published at: http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/24783/ironbark-zinc-intersects-gold-base-metal-mineralisation-beyond-historical-drilling-at-peakview-24783.html