Adelaide, April 19, 2006 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Metallica Minerals Limited (ASX: MLM) will increase the Inferred nickel resource at its NORNICO project in North Queensland after identifying a significant extension of the Minnamoolka deposit.
Metallica Managing Director, Mr Andrew Gillies, said a recent drilling program at Minnamoolka, one of three separate deposits at NORNICO, had intersected significant nickel laterite mineralisation over a 600 metres by 300 metres area to a maximum depth of 34 metres - with the mineralisation still open to the west and south.
"The new zone of mineralisation is coherent, generally homogenous and made up of predominantly silica boxwork - the same oretype which is currently undergoing successful column testwork in Brisbane for potential development using heap leaching techniques". Mr Gillies said.
"The mineralisation should beneficiate well due to the high proportion of coarse free silica fragments and also be suitable for heap leach development.
"I believe there is scope to considerably increase the current Minnamoolka Inferred Resource base of 5.4Mt @ 0.73% Ni (39,000t contained Ni) after the latest drill test results," he said.
The March 2006 drilling program comprised 43 vertical RC holes (Min-074 to 116) for 1153m, see Table 1 and Figure 1 attached. This programme brings the total number of holes drilled at Minnamoolka to 116 holes.
The drill programme was designed on a nominal 100m by 100m drill spacing to test an 800m long by 400m wide +2000 ppm Ni soil anomaly (Minnamoolka West) on the western side of the previously drill defined resource. Drill results were good, with significant mineralisation intersected over a 600m long by 300m area to a maximum depth of 34m. Much of the Minnamoolka West mineralisation is still open.
This new area of mineralisation is located approximately 500m west of the existing Minnamoolka resource. The zone of new mineralisation is coherent, generally homogenous and made up of predominantly silica boxwork, which should beneficiate well due to the high proportion of coarse free silica fragments.
Minnamoolka March 06 Drill programme - Better Intercepts Include:-
Min - 080, 8m @ 1.10% Ni from 0mMin - 086, 13m @ 0.93% Ni from 0mMin - 087, 23m @ 0.81% Ni from 0mMin - 090, 15m @ 1.02% Ni from 2mMin - 097, 34m @ 0.84% Ni from 0mMin - 099, 15m @ 0.91% Ni from 0mMin - 100, 15m @ 0.88% Ni from 0mMin - 102, 14m @ 1.15% Ni from 0mMin - 104, 7m @ 1.01% Ni from 0mMin - 116, 10m @ 1.48% Ni from 11m
Results from this current programme will be incorporated in an updated resource estimate for Minnamoolka and combined in to the NORNICO resource base which will be further upgraded once all the planned drilling is completed at Bell Creek and Kokomo by mid 2006. This drilling is intended to considerably increase the NORNICO resource base which currently stands at 20.74Mt @ 0.78%Ni containing 161,000t of Ni (see ASX release dated 22nd February 2006). The target is to define a combined resource of at least 200,000 to 250,000 t of contained nickel to underwrite a heap leach nickel operation producing in the order of 10,000 tpa nickel for at least 20 years.
"This is a good start for the year, we are particularly pleased with the results so far received at Minnamoolka, should we get the Minnamoolka resource base to in excess of 8 - 10Mt, we will seriously consider extending the feasibility studies to incorporate a heap leach nickel operation at Minnamoolka in addition and to and in parallel with the proposed Bell Creek heap leach nickel operation which would be based around 10,000 tpa nickel (in concentrate) production," he said.
Drilling on the other NORNICO nickel deposits has been hampered by the late wet season which the Mt Garnet - Greenvale area is currently experiencing
Contact
Mr Andrew Gillies
Managing Director, Metallica Minerals Ltd
TEL: +61 7 3891 9611, Mob: 0416 137 556
Kevin Skinner
Senior Consultant
FIELD PUBLIC RELATIONS
231 South Road
MILE END SA 5031
Tel: (08) 8234 9555
Fax: (08) 8234 9566
Mob: 0414 822 631
kevin@fieldpr.com.au
"This is a good start for the year, we are particularly pleased with the results so far received at Minnamoolka, should we get the Minnamoolka resource base to in excess of 8 - 10Mt, we will seriously consider extending the feasibility studies to incorporate a heap leach nickel operation at Minnamoolka in addition and to and in parallel with the proposed Bell Creek heap leach nickel operation which would be based around 10,000 tpa nickel (in concentrate) production," he said.
Drilling on the other NORNICO nickel deposits has been hampered by the late wet season which the Mt Garnet - Greenvale area is currently experiencing
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