Mt Gilmore
Project
The Mt Gilmore Cobalt-Copper-Gold Project (Mt Gilmore) is located 35 kilometres from the city of Grafton in north-eastern New South Wales. Corazon owns an 80% interest in Mt Gilmore and is managing and sole funding exploration until any future decision to mine is made.
Corazon’s exploration of the prospective “Mt Gilmore trend” has uncovered a major copper–cobalt–silver-gold geochemical trend, potentially representing a district-scale exploration play for large intrusive related copper-cobalt-gold deposits.
The recognition of the surface expression of a large hydrothermal system of more than 20 kilometres in strike (ASX announcement 5 February 2019), possibly associated with mineralised intrusive rocks (ASX announcement 9 October 2020), presents an exciting exploration undertaking for Corazon.
A geochemical testwork program undertaken with the University of Tasmania’s Centre of Ore Deposit and Earth Sciences has confirmed that Mt Gilmore hosts key geochemical characteristics specific to large porphyry copper-gold deposits (ASX announcement 12 July 2022 and 4 October 2022).
Recent News
Altered porphyritic-intrusive rocks and copper sulphides intersected in May Queen Drilling
Drilling at the high-priority May Queen target delivers results supporting the model for large-scale porphyry copper-gold deposits
The maiden core-drilling program at the May Queen Prospect comprised two holes for a total of 798 metres, and provided a first-pass test of what has been identified as a priority target for large porphyry copper-gold deposits (ASX announcement 2 October 2024).
Encouragingly, drilling has intersected intense alteration and widespread low-level sulphide mineral assemblages, within porphyritic intrusive rocks.
Drilling commenced in August 2024 (ASX announcement 26 August 2024). The drill targets were generated from two phases of advanced alteration mineral chemistry studies, soil geochemistry surveys (ASX announcements 12 July 2022, 2 April and 5 April 2024) in conjunction with an Induced Polarisation (IP) survey (ASX announcement 23 July 2019).
Both holes intersected fine and coarse volcanoclastic rocks, andesite, diorite, and diorite porphyry. The levels of hydrothermal alteration of the lithologies drilled are considered intensive. The most common hydrothermal alteration is epidote and chlorite replacement and stockworks. Minor quartz dominated veins were also observed. Other high-temperature alteration minerals such as potassium-feldspar, actinolite, quartz and magnetite are also present.
Ongoing Exploration
The results of this first-test drilling program are considered encouraging. The large May Queen porphyry copper-gold target covers a strike of more than two kilometres and, aside from surface soil sampling, minor rock-chip sampling, two widely spaced IP geophysical lines and the recently completed two-hole drilling program, little targeted exploration has been completed.
Intense alteration and widespread sulphide mineral assemblages within the targeted porphyritic intrusive rocks have been identified by drilling the priority target defined by the innovative “mineral chemistry vectoring” techniques implemented by the University of Tasmania. More abundant, high-temperature potassic alteration minerals including biotite and potassium-feldspar were found north of the current drilling area. Epidote, chlorite and tourmaline samples with prospective mineral chemistry features were found to the north; an area that wasn’t well covered by previous exploration due to difficult access and lack of surface exposure.
The large size of the Mt Gilmore copper-gold-cobalt-silver geochemical anomaly presents a challenging exploration play. It is anticipated that more complete geophysical coverage will be required to identify targets for the next phase of drilling. Ongoing exploration is under consideration and a decision will be announced in due course.
The Mt Gilmore Trend
Exploration by Corazon has revealed multiple, large (plus-1km) priority targets within a major copper-cobalt-silver-gold feature of more than 11 kilometres in strike length, which forms part of the currently
defined 22 kilometre-long, mineralised Mt Gilmore Trend.
The Mt Gilmore geochemical trend represents a district-scale exploration play for large intrusive-related copper-cobalt-gold deposits and provides a unique early stage copper-driven opportunity in eastern Australia. The region has had little or no modern exploration or drill testing within the priority areas defined.
Corazon’s assessment that the numerous occurrences of copper-cobalt-gold mineralisation identified in late-1800’s/early-1900’s small scale mining operations may in fact be part of a much larger system, represents a significant advancement for the Project, substantially increasing its potential.
Cobalt Ridge
Mt Gilmore’s Cobalt Ridge prospect (Cobalt Ridge) hosts a unique cobalt dominant sulphide deposit. Drilling by Corazon at Cobalt Ridge has validated historical mining and exploration results and confirmed the presence of multiple zones of cobalt-copper-gold sulphide mineralisation. The mineralisation has been tested over 300 metres, remaining open and untested along strike and at depth.
The Main Cobalt Lode has been the primary target of the Company’s past drilling, as well as much of the historical drilling. This lode is up to 25 metres in true width and contains multiple narrow zones of higher-grade mineralisation, within a broad envelope of mineralisation.
Metallurgical testwork on this sulphide mineralisation demonstrated exceptional recovery of cobalt, copper and gold from drill samples from simple flotation processing, with solvent extraction following standard pressure oxidation (POX), to deliver separate high-quality cobalt and copper sulphates (up to 98.91% cobalt and 96.70% copper) suitable for use in lithium-ion batteries. Gold is captured separately from the POX residue.
Battery Grade Cobalt
Corazon’s highly successful Phase 3 metallurgical testwork at Mt Gilmore delivered a high-grade cobalt concentrate with the potential to supply the emerging global battery technology sector.
Testwork focused on defining down-stream concentrate processing options. The results successfully demonstrated exceptional recovery rates of cobalt, copper and gold from drill samples from the Cobalt Ridge Deposit, using conventional processing routes. Conventional flotation testwork delivered a high-grade cobalt-copper-gold concentrate – of up to 7.38% Co – from high grade Cobalt Ridge samples, as well as excellent concentrate grades from lower low-grade samples.
The combination of high grade concentrates and very high recoveries delivered in the testwork provides Corazon with the opportunity to potentially either produce a high-value bulk concentrate for direct sale, or to develop an in-house down-stream processing plant.