Critical Resources jags rich gold and fresh upside in NZ

Critical Resources has kicked off its gold hunt across the Tasman in style, bagging high-grade rock-chip assays up to 5.42 grams per tonne gold (g/t) and defining a major new 600-metre-long soil anomaly at its early-stage Lammerlaw gold project in Central Otago, New Zealand.

The impressive initial results have flowed from a low-cost, first-pass surface campaign designed to ground-truth three of the company’s priority structural targets Devils Creek, Stony Creek and the TZ3–TZ4 Structural Boundary, flagged during a recent desktop appraisal.

It appears that the strategy has paid off immediately, confirming the historical Devils Creek lode and shear system is mineralised at surface and remains wide open along strike.

A targeted rock-chip sampling program focused on historical workings at Devils Creek delivered a headline assay of 5.42g/t gold from an old-timer’s adit. Further underscoring the broader potential of the system, a series of nearby rock-chip samples collected along the interpreted strike of the veining returned results of 1.63g/t gold, 1.45g/t gold and 0.48g/t gold.

‘The 5.42 g/t Au result is an early outcome; what matters is that several low-cost, surface-based methods are generating their own targets.’

Critical Resources managing director Tim Wither

Soil geochemistry at the prospect indicates the mineralised system remains open along strike, with hand auger sampling revealing highly anomalous, 757 parts per million arsenic values in the primary zone. These elevated pathfinder element levels have bolstered management’s belief that the underlying lode and shear complex continues into untested areas.

More significantly, the soil program successfully illuminated an entirely separate, previously untested geophysical target, mapping out a brand-new 600-metre-long arsenic soil anomaly that had completely evaded historical exploration.

In tandem with standard exploration methods, the company trialled an innovative trace-element catchment-water sampling technique across 15 streams. The highly sensitive geochemical survey found dissolved arsenic pathfinders at Devils Creek and flagged a string of additional, unmapped catchments.

Critical says given the technique’s success, it will now rapidly roll out this ultra-low-cost screening protocol across its entire 1694-square-kilometre New Zealand exploration footprint.

Critical Resources managing director Tim Wither said: “These first-pass results provide strong field support for the Devils Creek target and confirm gold mineralisation associated with the historic hard-rock workings.”

While Lammerlaw has taken centre stage for now, Critical is also keeping busy on its other multi-commodity projects.

While regional tungsten and gold-antimony assay results from its nearby Croesus project are due next month, the exploration junior is advancing desktop reviews at its Silver Peaks and Tokomairiro projects. The company is also designing a follow-up drill program at its Cap Burn gold asset and progressing fieldwork at its flagship Mavis Lake lithium project in Ontario, Canada.

Next-stage exploration programs at Devils Creek will focus on detailed structural mapping, channel rock-chip sampling and infill soil geochem to trace the open-ended strike extensions.

The company will also conduct further soil sampling, rock chipping and mapping to identify the bedrock source of the freshly discovered 600-metre anomaly.

If the early surface results are anything to go by, Critical may have arrived in New Zealand’s historic Otago goldfields at exactly the right time, with multiple mineralised structures already emerging from low-cost reconnaissance work and not a single drill hole yet punched into Devils Creek.

Punters will likely be watching closely to see whether the company can turn its growing suite of gold, tungsten and antimony targets into the next serious South Island discovery story.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au