02 May 2022
Antipa’s Minyari Dome Project is now a multi-million-ounce gold asset with a massive 250% resource increase
Antipa has hit it out of the ballpark with its much
anticipated resource upgrade for its 100% owned Minyari Dome Project,
which has now surpassed 2 million gold equivalent ounces.
Antipa Minerals’ (ASX:AZY) has released the eagerly awaited resource upgrade for its 100% owned
Minyari Dome Project in one of WA’s top exploration hotspots, the
Paterson Province.
And investors should certainly be happy with the result, with the
resource growing a whopping 250% to 1.8 million ounces (Moz) of gold,
with the majority of that in the higher resource confidence Indicated
category.
Along with the 1.8Moz of gold resource is 64,300 tonnes of copper,
584,000 ounces of silver and 11,100 tonnes of the highly valuable EV
metal cobalt. On a gold equivalent basis, the resource now stands at
2.3Moz with plenty of upside potential in the tank.
Of the total resource, which is predominately hosted in the Minyari
and WACA deposits, an impressive 1Moz of gold, 41,100t of copper,
387,000oz of silver and 7,700t of cobalt is in the Indicated category.
This is important because resources in the Indicated (and Measured)
categories can be converted to a Reserve – a necessary move for a
company to transition from explorer to miner.
Managing director Roger Mason said the outstanding result confirmed
that Antipa’s 100% owned Minyari-WACA gold-copper-silver-cobalt resource
was very large-scale with significant continued growth opportunities
and strong potential to support a standalone development just 35km north
of Newcrest’s Telfer gold-copper-silver mine and hungry processing
facility.
“To have achieved a massive 250% increase in the resource at a
discovery cost of an extremely low $7.20 per gold equivalent resource
ounce is a credit to the entire Antipa team,” he said.
“The strategic significance of this resource to Antipa is huge,
providing us with the potential to deliver a standalone mining and
processing operation located in the rapidly advancing tier-one Paterson
Province, nestled between Newcrest’s Telfer mine and Rio’s Winu
development project, and surrounded by our Paterson Farm-in Project with
IGO.”
Antipa has begun a Scoping Study and expects to follow that up with a Pre-Feasibility Study.
Mason noted that the majority of the 1Moz indicated resource is
within 300m of the surface, which provided strong potential for open
pittable reserves.
“The other exciting resource highlight was the high-grade 1 million
gold equivalent ounces at 3.06 g/t gold equivalent, which provides the
potential for underground development opportunities.”
A discovery to rival the majors
Despite the already massive increase in resource, Antipa is confident
there is still more gold to be found at depth and that Minyari Dome
Project is a serious candidate to potentially rival the likes of
Greatland Gold and Newcrest Mining’s (ASX:NCM) 5.5Moz gold and 218kt copper Havieron deposit.
“The current Minyari resource delivers approximately 3,000oz per vertical metre from surface,” Mason explained.
“Given Greatland Gold’s recently revised Havieron resource of 5.5Moz
of gold is contained over an approximate 1,000m vertical deposit extent
(equating to approximately 5,500 oz per vertical metre), and also noting
that the Havieron deposit starts below approximately 430m of cover,
Antipa believes that there is further substantial growth potential down
plunge at Minyari.
“We think there is strong potential to continue to grow this resource through both extensional and greenfields drilling.”
Exploration so far supports this at several prospects. For a walk-up
resource growth start, high-grade gold mineralisation at both the
Minyari and WACA deposits, which are just 580m apart, remains open down
plunge.
Meanwhile, the shallow high-grade maiden resources at the Minyari
South, Sundown and WACA West prospects, which combined host 40,000oz of
gold and 2,400t of copper all within 250 metres or less of Minyari and
WACA, remain open in multiple directions.
To make good on its word of continuing to grow the resource, Antipa
has brought in globally recognised mineral exploration experts Dr Scott
Halley and Dr Steve Garwin to seriously boost the company’s discovery
capability.
Antipa says Dr Halley and Dr Garwin have already identified targets
at Minyari, WACA, Minyari South, Sundown and several other prospects
nearby – providing strong potential for significant continued resource
growth.
The company is now working to finalise its 2022 exploration and
drilling programme, which will focus on further increasing resources at
its 100% owned Minyari Dome Project, enhancing potential development
options and addressing any Scoping Study recommendations, Mason said.
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