The Northern Zone Project is situated in a highly prospective area for gold in Western Australia, approximately 25 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie. This location places it in close proximity to major gold mining operations, including the Super Pit, one of Australia’s largest open-pit gold mines. The Project area is positioned within the Eastern Goldfields granite-greenstone belt, which is known for its rich gold deposits and significant crustal structures. The underlying geology comprises Archaean greenstone lithologies with late-stage felsic intrusions, making it an ideal setting for structurally controlled orogenic lode gold deposit.
Riversgold has undertaken extensive exploration activities at the Northern Zone Project, with initial reverse circulation (RC) drilling, completed in October 2021, covering a depth of 260 metres across seven holes. The results from this phase confirmed an exploration target of 200-250 million tonnes at a grade of 0.4-0.6 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, translating to an estimated 2.5 to 4.8 million ounces of gold. Subsequent metallurgical testing indicated promising gold recovery rates, with up to 90.4% recovery over 72 hours.
In May 2023, Riversgold formed a strategic alliance with Oracle Power through a legally binding farm-in agreement, paving the way for Riversgold to potentially acquire an 80% ownership stake in the Northern Zone Gold Project.
Riversgold’s exploration strategy draws parallels with Saturn Metals Ltd’s Apollo Hill Gold Project, located 175 kilometres north of Northern Zone, which boasts a resource estimate of 105 million tonnes at 0.54 g/t gold, setting a benchmark for Riversgold’s ambitions.
In August 2023, Riversgold concluded a four-hole, 1,379-metre oriented core diamond drilling program, exceeding initial depth expectations and reaffirming the Project’s gold potential. Recent aircore drilling has more than doubled the prospective porphyry gold zone, with 27 holes drilled to blade refusal, targeting the interface between oxide gold mineralisation and fresh rock. These efforts have revealed new target zones, further expanding the known extent of the porphyry system.
A recent shallow drilling campaign reported the highest grade to date, with an interval of 27.5 g/t gold (NZAC033). The company has completed 1,903m of new shallow drilling targeting an overlying blanket of gold mineralisation in the oxide zone, building on previous results of 18m at 4.14 g/t Au from 36m (NZRC001).
Significant gold intercepts include:
Single-metre assay results for NZRC001 revealed even higher grades, including 10m at 4.94 g/t Au from 39m, 14m at 3.6 g/t Au from 39m, and 18m at 2.8 g/t Au from 36m.
The Company is well-funded, having raised $1.85 million to support its drilling plans, with further infill and step-out targeted drilling currently being planned over the expanded footprint of the mineralised porphyry.
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