SolGold gets lucky at Alpala

SolGold announced assay results from Hole 19 at the Alpala deposit, at the company's Cascabel copper-gold porphyry project in Ecuador on Tuesday.

The AIM-traded firm said drill hole 19 returned a broad mineralised zone of 1132m grading 0.50% copper and 0.33 g/t gold from 268m depth, across an interpreted true width of approximately 500m to date, at the growing Alpala deposit.

It said that long intersection included 802m grading 0.63% copper, and 0.43 g/t gold from 572m depth, and 516m grading 0.75% copper, and 0.50 g/t gold from 838m, across true widths of approximately 360m and 230m respectively.

The hole 19 assay results reflected intersections significantly richer in bornite, a copper rich sulphide mineral containing approximately 63% copper, than in previous drillholes, representing the southernmost and shallowest high grade mineralisation discovered at Alpala to date.

Drilling focus was now moving from Alpala Central to Hematite Hill, towards Alpala Southeast, where strong bornite mineralisation and high temperature advanced argillic alteration were mapped at surface.

Hole 20R was continuing at 1342.4m, while holes 21 and 22 were entering increasingly strong mineralisation, and at current depths of 750.4m and 702.2m respectively.

Two additional rigs were due to mobilise in February, increasing to seven drill rigs by the end of the year, SolGold’s board confirmed.

Additional exploration targets had already been selected throughout Ecuador.

“Hole 19 has returned another long and well endowed intersection at Alpala,” said CEO Nick Mather.

“Clearly, this result is endorsing the status of Alpala as not only very big, but with a rich core.”

Technical services manager Benn Whistler said the widening of the Alpala deposit at shallower levels was giving Alpala some growth in the upper portion of the deposit, which was proving “excitingly rich”, with relatively strong bornite mineralisation occurring in holes 17, 19 and now 22.

“We believe that drilling results may get better as we head south east.

“None of us, including our chief advisor Dr Steve Garwin, believes that we've hit the core of the system yet … so the best may be yet to come in our professional opinion.

“The lower extensions of Alpala have still not been tested and we are excited to continue tracking down what we believe will be Alpala's rich heart.”