Podium Minerals Limited (ASX: POD) has kicked of a resource drilling programme at its 100% owned Parks Reef PGM Project in Western Australia.
Executive Chairman, Clayton Dodd, said the resource campaign is aimed at increasing and enhancing the existing Mineral Resources which currently stand at 1.14Moz of combined platinum, palladium and gold plus 37kt copper.
Drilling to date has defined Inferred Mineral Resources in three separate resource blocks in the west, central and eastern sectors of Parks Reef with contained metals.
The existing resource blocks extend along a combined total of 6.9km of the identified 15km mineralised strike length of Parks Reef and within 100m of surface with the mineralisation open along strike and at depth.
Podium is planning to undertake approximately 1,600m of reverse circulation (RC) drilling which is targeted to connect the previously defined resource blocks in the western and central sectors of Parks Reef.
Successful results from the drilling will increase the extent of the total resources to a combined length of 8.5km including a continuous resource block spanning approximately 6.1km over the western half of Parks Reef.
The drill area is bounded to the west by resource drilling completed by Podium in drill line 19W which achieved significant PGM intercepts of: 19m @ 2.05g/t 3E PGM from 5m in hole; 18m @ 1.85g/t 3E PGM from 20m in hole; 20m @ 1.56g/t 3E PGM from 77m in hole; plus a single hole in the centre of the target area completed as part of wide space drilling by Podium returned: 18m @ 1.80g/t 3E PGM from 12m.
Mr Dodd said that Podium considers the targeted drill area as highly prospective to increase and enhance the existing Mineral Resources.
The company will be undertaking assays to test for continuity of high value rhodium as identified in previous drill programmes and will then commence modelling to support an upgrade of the Parks Reef Mineral Resources.
As part of the July field work Podium plans to undertake geological mapping and rock-chip sampling to test for a possible western extension of Parks Reef.
Magnetic imagery indicates potential for a circa 1.2km long extension of the western flank of the Parks Reef which has been fault offset from the existing identified extents of the mineralisation. The area of interest lies within the company’s exploration license (E20/928) which adjoins the western end of Podium’s mining leases.
The company has planned rock-chip sampling of outcrop to test for anomalous platinum group metals (PGM) and base metals and if positive will undertake follow-up drilling.