Centaurus Metals (ASX: CTM) has intersected a thick, near-surface zone of high-grade semi-massive to massive nickel sulphides at the Onça Preta Deposit, part of its Jaguar Nickel Sulphide Project in the Carajás Mineral Province of Northern Brazil.
Diamond drill-hole JAG-DD-20-021 returned an outstanding intercept of 14.9m at 2.94% Ni, 0.21% Cu and 0.13% Co from just 56.8m down-hole, including a high-grade zone of 9.6m at 4.19% Ni, 0.29% Cu and 0.16% Co from 62.2m.
Managing Director, Darren Gordon, said the outstanding result at Onça Preta Deposit – one of the shallowest and highest value intercepts returned from the Project to date – shows the tremendous upside that exists for the Jaguar Project as the company continues to roll out its ongoing resource drilling programme.
“The results from JAG-DD-20-021 are exceptional in any circumstances, but to have such high grades so close to surface really bodes well for potential start-up pits as we begin to think about possible development scenarios,” Mr Gordon said.
“Importantly, this clearly shows that there is abundant high-grade, high-quality nickel sulphide mineralisation close to surface at the Jaguar Project.
“I was fortunate to be on site when we drilled this hole, and to see wide intervals of fresh sulphides – which have now assayed 14.9m at 2.94% nickel including a high-grade core of almost 10m at over 4.0% nickel – so close to surface is extremely pleasing.
We’re also seeing further strong results from drilling at the Jaguar South Deposit. We have now extended the strike length of the main structure to over 350m, with the zone remaining open to the west and down dip.”
Mineralisation at the Onça Preta Deposit comes to surface where it is identified as nickeliferous magnetite outcrops and boulders along a 250m long ridge coincident with a FLEM conductor plate and strong ground magnetic anomaly.
Drill-hole JAG-DD-20-021 was collared in the centre of the ridge and was designed to test the mineralisation near-surface but beneath the base of oxidation.
Two additional shallow drill holes have been completed 50m east and west of JAG-DD-20-021. Both holes have intersected nickel sulphide mineralisation, with assays due in approximately three weeks.
The recent drilling, coupled with results from the preliminary ground magnetics survey, demonstrates that the Onça Preta body extends over a strike length of 250m. The deposit remains open along strike to the east and down-dip.
Mr Gordon said that with the exception of the recent outstanding near-surface result in JAG-DD-20-021, the drilling at Onça Preta has demonstrated that the grade and width of the mineralisation is generally increasing with depth.