• A review of historical exploration, new geochemical and gravity data has identified two large-scale high priority targets south of Tennant Minerals (“the Company”) high-grade Bluebird Copper-Gold Project, east of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory (NT).
• The Babbler Gold Prospect identified in 1973 by Noblex (then ‘R29’)1,2 , is located 7km SSE of Bluebird, some 35km ESE of Tennant Creek:
o Located on a prominent positive magnetic anomaly, adjacent to a gravity low.
o During the 1970’s four percussion drillholes with diamond tails and two additional percussion holes partially tested the geophysical anomalies, identifying widespread gold anomalism in pyrite and chlorite altered rhyolites (felsic volcanic rocks) in drillholes over 500m apart.
o Best historical results not previously presented include:
▪ 13m @ 0.48 g/t Au from 90m, including 7m @ 0.68 g/t Au from 94m in DDH466.
▪ 22m @ 0.42 g/t Au from 33m including 6m @ 0.61g/t Au from 33m, 3m@ 2.91g/t Au from 71m and 14m @ 0.31 g/t Au from 81m in DDH468.
▪ 12m @ 0.57 g/t Au from 6m including 1m @ 1.22 g/t Au from 3m, 6m @ 0.46g/t Au from 39m, 3m@ 0.51g/t Au and 453ppm Cu from 86m in DDH469.
▪ DDH469 contains anomalous copper intervals of 56m @ 251ppm Cu from 49m, including 2m @ 855ppm Cu from 72m and 2m @ 1200ppm Cu from 92m.
o The high level of gold anomalism in holes that are approximately 500m apart, defines a potential kilometre scale gold anomaly that offers a compelling large-scale gold-system target.
o The area has good outcrop that comprises both volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the PaleoProterozoic Ooradidgee Group. The sequence is close to the contact with, and overlies, the Lower Proterozoic Warramunga Group, which hosts the majority of the known copper-gold mines and prospects within the Tennant Creek mineral field.
o Large scale NW-SE structures intersect close to the drilled gold anomaly area.
o Recent research by the NT Geological Survey indicates possibility of copper and gold mineralisation hosted in the untested Ooradidgee Group and the presence of VHMS deposits in the region3 .
o The Company plans to conduct wide spaced Reverse Circulation (“RC”) drilling to test this area.
• The Wedge Copper-Gold Prospect, identified in 1973 by Noblex (then ‘R31’), is located 5km SW of Bluebird, some 35km south-east of Tennant Creek.
o The prospect is a discrete 1.5km x 650m fault bounded block of Lower Proterozoic Warramunga Group rocks with visible ironstone and gossan development.
o Soil targets identified significant anomalous copper, iron, bismuth.
• The Babbler Gold Prospect, the Wedge Copper-Gold Prospect as well as the recently interpreted sub-surface copper anomalism at Bluebird East4 are priority targets for wide spaced RC drilling.
• The Company continues to progress collaboration with the Strategic Alliance of companies in Tennant Creek, seeking to finalise a scoping study for the development of Bluebird as part of a shared copper-gold processing facility in the region5.
Tennant Minerals CEO, Vincent Algar commented; “At Babbler, the logging of pyrite and chlorite alteration within felsic volcanics in wide-spaced diamond drillholes during the 1970s containing elevated gold values is considered highly encouraging for presence of a large gold system in the area. No significant exploration has been conducted on the project since then, possibly because the host rocks were not typical of the Tennant Creek style copper-gold mineralisation targets at the time. Today we are aware of other factors that significantly increase the prospectivity of Babbler. These factors include the discovery of the high-grade Bluebird copper-gold system just 7km to the north, and new research recently reported by the NT Geological Survey indicating the presence of VHMS style deposits in the Paleo-Proterozoic Ooradidgee Group at the Rover Field SW of Tennant Creek. The rhyolites at Babbler are part of the Ooradidgee Group and lie close to the contact with the more typical host rocks for high-grade Tennant Creek Style Copper-Gold-Bismuth Mineralisation. In today’s environment of high gold prices and the significant advances in treatment of gold ores, we consider the size and level of anomalism of the gold target to demand significant follow up activity.”
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About us:
Tennant Minerals Limited (ASX:TMS) is a successful exploration and development company with a strong track record of discovery in the Tennant Creek area of the Northern Territory.
Tennant Mineral’s key assets are the Barkly and Babbler Copper-Gold Projects, located approximately 45km east of the major copper-gold mineral field of Tennant Creek. The Company focus is the expansion and delineation of the greenfield Bluebird high-grade copper-gold discovery.
Tennant Minerals is accelerating to grow the discovery through drilling then establish Mineral Resources and drive the project through to development.
To learn more, please visit: https://tennantminerals.com/
Contact details:
For enquiries please contact:
Stuart Usher
Joint Company Secretary
M: +61 499 900 044
Tanya Newby
Joint Company Secretary
T: +61 (8) 9481 7833
Vincent Algar
CEO
T: +61 (8) 9481 7833
