Lachlan Star increases Indicated gold Resource by 314% at Toro in Chile

Lachlan Star (ASX: LSA) has increase its Indicated Resource for the Toro deposit at its wholly owned CMD Gold Mine in Chile to 348,000 ounces, up from 84,000 ounces, by using a lower cut-off grade of 0.15 grams per tonne (g/t).

Significantly, using the lower cut-off could maximise economic returns from low grade gold mineralisation that is currently mined as waste.

Initial results of a recent large scale trial of run of mine dump leaching indicate that it will be economic to recover gold from this material.

Managing director Declan Franzmann said the first of the 2012 mineral resource estimates show an encouraging increase in both overall ounces of gold and confidence level, and will provide a better platform for Lachlan’s mine planning work this year.

“The approximate 78% increase in total gold ounces is in line with what we have seen in the pits, where we have mined approximately two thirds of our ore in 2011 from outside the old mineral resource,” he said.

The new Resource estimate for Toro also includes a further 135,000 ounces of gold in the Inferred category, which is a decrease of 28% compared to the previous Resource estimate of 188,000 ounces.

The previous Resource estimate was based on a 0.3g/t cut-off.

Total Resources for the CMD Gold Mine now stand at 725,000 ounces of gold in the Indicated category and 923,000 ounces of gold in the Inferred category.

The new Resource for the Toro deposit is the first of the 2012 Resource updates for the CMD Gold Mine.

The deposit is open along strike to both the north and south, and across strike to the east and west in several areas.

Previous best results from the Toro Deposit are 61 metres at 0.56g/t gold from 120 metres, including 15 metres at 1.07g/t from 120 metres, and 9 metres at 1.98 g/t from 84 metres.

Work is continuing to update the resources at the other CMD Gold Mine Projects.

There also remains substantial potential to expand the resources through infill drilling between the Toro Central and Socorro pits, where there is currently insufficient drilling data to extrapolate the resource between the pits.

A 2012 drilling program is planned to infill the area between the Toro Central and Socorro pits to prove the concept of a single large pit at Toro, as well as extensional exploration on the near surface open mineralisation.

Exploration has been focused on the Tres Perlas and Churrumata deposits for the past two months, where the gold is contained within a 100-200 metre thick mineralised zone from near surface.

Previously announced drilling results from the Tres Perlas Deposit included highlights of 8 metres at 0.5% copper from 31 metres, and 130 metres at 0.52g/t gold from 39 metres, including 21 metres at 1.14g/t.

Once sufficient assay data has been received for these deposits, these will be the next Resource estimates completed for the CMD Gold Mine.

Originally published at: http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/24069/lachlan-star-increases-indicated-gold-resource-by-314-at-toro-in-chile--24069.html