Perth, Australia -
Wiluna Mining Corp. Limited (ASX:WMX) (FRA:NZ3) (OTCMKTS:BKHRF) is pleased to report further results from drilling at Golden Age and Lennon within the Wiluna Mining Centre. This drilling programme commenced in November 2019 to delineate Mineral Resources and provide further transitional feed to the free milling operations. Lennon and Golden Age are part of the northern mining area at Wiluna (Figure 1*) and will continue to be mined during Stage 1 and 2 expansion phases.
Milan Jerkovic, Wiluna Mining's Executive Chair commented: "These results continue to deliver on our strategy to extend the Golden Age zone and surrounding areas. We aim to sustain or increase production and improve transitional cashflow over the next 15 months ahead of sulphides production from September 2021".
Mine Extension Drilling
The Company continues to extend the Golden Age orebody, which is a non-refractory quartz-reef style of deposit located at the Wiluna Mining Centre (Figure 1). Latest results are from a further 11 holes for 2,086m drilled at Golden Age Lower and the adjacent Lennon target (Figure 2*).
Increasing Mineral Resources and conversion to Reserves is key to the Company's 24-month, five-point strategy to:
1.Strengthen the balance sheet
2.Increase operational cash flow
3.Transition to include gold concentrate production
4.Expand production, and
5.Undertake exploration and feasibility studies to fully develop a more than 250kozpa, longlife gold operation.
For further information on the transition and the Stage 1 and Stage 2 expansion please see the latest company presentation released to the ASX on 1 July 2020 and ASX release dated 23 December 2019.
The Wiluna Mining Centre is divided into four geographical areas (Figure 1)*, centred on underground mine portals and planned mining areas of the Stage 1 Sulphides Expansion plan. Golden Age and Lennon are within the Wiluna North Mine Area and are accessed from the Bulletin decline.
In November 2019, the Company quantified Exploration Targets at the Golden Age mine (see ASX release dated 13 November 2019). The Company has progressively completed drilling at the Golden Age Footwall and Golden Age Main targets, (see ASX release dated 4 June 2020) with resource modelling currently in progress. Drilling is now focussed on the Golden Age Lower and Lennon targets, with results to follow in due course (Figure 2*).
Golden Age Lower
Drilling is now focussed on the Golden Age Lower zone. Together with previously reported results (see ASX release dated 4 June 2020) including GARD0112: 7.1m @ 7.47g/t, these results show that high-grade Golden Age mineralisation remains open for a considerable distance below the current workings (Figure 3*).
Drilling is ongoing and further results will be reported when they become available. Latest results from the Golden Age Lower programme are positive, confirming Golden Age reef mineralisation of similar tenor to previous holes:
GARD0101: 8.35m @ 1.67g/t from 168.3m
GARD0102: 1.82m @ 8.92g/t from 259.1m, incl. 0.68m @ 23.2g/t
GARD0104: 2.50m @ 10.53g/t from 303.5m & 2.4m @ 12.67g/t from 308.1m
GARD0105: 0.55m @ 2.20g/t from 284.1m
GARD0106: 2.12m @ 8.55g/t from 304.7m
Lennon
A resource development programme at the Lennon target has also commenced. Lennon sits in the immediate footwall below Golden Age and mine development has commenced to access the mineralisation (Figure 2). Lennon mineralisation comprises multiple high-grade partially refractory sulphide shears, with economic gold recoveries expected through the existing free-milling circuit and as part of the proposed staged expansion of the Wiluna Mining Operations processing plant at Wiluna.
Latest results from Lennon (Figure 4 & 5*), include:
BUUD0081A:
5.5m @ 1.37g/t, including 0.75m @ 6.01g/t
0.6m @ 9.23g/t
BUUD0092:
1.35m @ 5.65g/t
BUUD0093:
3.65m @ 2.07g/t, including 0.25m @ 7.40g/t, 0.3m @ 11.9g/t
0.9m @ 5.55g/t
BUUD0094:
1.5m @ 4.71g/t, including 0.4m @ 9.06g/t
1.1m @ 6.92g/t
2.25m @ 4.36g/t
11.25m @ 4.26g/t, including 7.3m @ 5.17g/t, & 0.65m @ 6.63g/t
Stage 1 Sulphide Mineral Resource Development
Mineral Resource development drilling is ongoing at the Wiluna Mining Centre, with outstanding results recently published (see ASX release dated 26 May 2020 and 23 June 2020). The Company is focussed on infill and extensional drilling to methodically increase the geological confidence in the Mineral Resources that will underpin Stage 1 production. The Company's objective is to develop and maintain four years of underground Ore Reserves in front of production through progressive infill drilling and conversion of our very large Mineral Resource base.
The Wiluna Mine is a large gold system with greater than 10 million ounces of gold endowment including current Mineral Resources and historical production. With a combined open pit and underground Mineral Resource of 35.5Mt @ 3.90g/t for 4.45Moz, including 2.2Moz (49%) in the Inferred category, there are significant opportunities to define additional Mineral Resources and life-of-mine extensions.
The aim of Stage 1 of sulphide mining is to ramp up production from September 2021 to 120kozpa of gold dore and gold in concentrate being produced, with a subsequent Stage 2 expansion envisaged to increase gold production to 250kozpa (see ASX release dated 23 December 2019).
About Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd:
Wiluna Mining Corp. (ASX:WMX) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 6.4 Moz at a grade of 2.1 g/t Au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential.
Source:
Wiluna Mining Corp. Ltd
Contact:
Milan Jerkovic Executive Chair +61 8 9322 6418 Jim Malone GM - Investor Relations +61 419 537 714 Dannika Warburton Media and Communications +61 401 094 261
