The company used a bottle roll leach metallurgical processing test on 35 samples ranging from 0.1g/t to 4.5g/t gold, sourced from lower-grade zones outside the project’s exploration target areas.
Flynn Gold (ASX:FG1) says the results are promising, matching similar extraction rates (94.5%) from precious extraction ests across a range of grades.
FG1 managing director and CEO Neil Marston said activity was accelerating on all fronts at Golden Ridge with a new mining lease application, a non-binding ore purchase agreement with Henty Gold Mine and the start of resource drilling at the Brilliant prospect.
“Undertaking these tests is vital in determining if the lower-grade gold mineralisation at Golden Ridge can be extracted using a similar style of leaching process to that used at the Henty processing plant,” Marston said.
“To achieve this gold extraction result using low-grade core samples, whilst also confirming the earlier results of 94.5% on higher-grade samples at the Trafalgar Prospect and 94.9% on samples from the nearby Grenadier Prospect, is extremely encouraging.”
Flynn’s gold recovery results from its latest round of testing ranged from 88% to 97%, averaging 94% across all 35 samples.
As the bottle roll leach method requires more intensive testing conditions, FG1 will investigate more cost-effective processing methods next.
“A more comprehensive round of metallurgical testwork is now being scoped out which will, amongst other things, aim to establish whether simple methods can be used to beneficiate run-of-mine material into a high-grade ore or concentrate to supply to Henty Gold Mine or other potential buyers,” Marston said.
The lower-grade zones outside the existing exploration target at Golden Ridge are of particular interest to the company, as they could add materially to the recoverable gold within the project’s tenure.
Golden Ridge’s exploration target – which is conceptual in nature and will require further exploration to convert into a potential mineral resource – sits at 3.5-5.4Mt at 3.0-4.0g/t gold for 449,000-520,000oz of gold.
Looking ahead, Flynn is planning to use fresh core from drilling to test gold recoveries under commercial processing conditions, while also investigating potential beneficiation options for lower-grade mineralisation.
In parallel, the company is completing a program of 21 drill holes over 2500m at the Brilliant prospect while engaging in a fresh round of trenching in the prospect area.
This is investigating extensions to a broad footprint of anomalous gold over a strike of more than 110m identified by earlier trenching.
