Proactive Investor: Astral lifts group gold resource to 2.07Moz as Mandilla grows 22%

Astral Resources NL (ASX:AAR) has increased its consolidated mineral resource to 2.07 million ounces of gold after delivering a 22% uplift at its flagship Mandilla Gold Project in Western Australia.

The updated Mandilla mineral resource estimate now stands at 54 million tonnes at 1.0g/t gold for 1.74 million ounces, up from 1.43 million ounces previously, adding 310,000 ounces to the inventory. The increase gives the company greater scale as it pushes ahead with study and permitting work.

“This update to the Mandilla Mineral Resource Estimate is an important precursor to the detailed mine design work that is now underway to support the Mandilla DFS. A key driver for this update was to understand the MRE’s response to the 12.5m x 12.5m in-fill drilling recently completed within the Stage 1 Theia open pit," Astral Resources’ managing director Marc Ducler said. 

“Importantly, the outcome of the in-fill program was a very strong validation of the geological interpretation and estimation methodology. The metal variance in declared Mineral Resources from early January 2022 – where drill spacing in the equivalent area averaged 25m x 40m – increased by approximately 4%. The fact that both grade and ounces have increased by 5.2% and 4.2% respectively – demonstrates a strong confidence in our estimation methodology.

“In-fill drilling is ongoing at Theia, with a 23,000m program underway to continue progressing the remainder of Stage 1 to a 12.5m x 12.5m drill spacing, which will ensure the first 12 - 18 months of mine production is derived from the Measured Resource category."

Full article: https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/1090870/astral-lifts-group-gold-resource-to-2-07moz-as-mandilla-grows-22-1090870.html