Dundee Precious Metals Inc. accelerated drilling program at Čoka Rakita in Serbia has 10 drill rigs presently in operation, and has drilled an addition 23,000 meters, with 37 holes drilled.
The company published new assay results on Wednesday from its drilling program at the Čoka Rakita prospect in eastern Serbia.
New gold intercepts from its recent drilling campaign include:
RIDD011A – 7 metres at 16.56 g/t Au and 0.16 per cent Cu from 403 metres depth and 42 metres at 6.51 g/t Au and 0.13 per cent Cu from 418 metres depth (including 12 metres at 17.89 g/t Au and 0.17 per cent Cu from 422 metres depth)
RIDD014 – 16 metres at 1.93 g/t Au from 538 metres depth and 23 metres at 8.47 g/t Au from 587 metres depth (including 8 metres at 16.15 g/t Au from same depth)
RIDD016 – 35 metres at 5.26 g/t Au and 0.26 per cent Cu from 398 metres depth and 26 metres at g/t Au and 0.48 per cent Cu from 439 metres depth
RIDD018 – 29 metres at 5.15 g/t Au and 0.14 per cent Cu from 428 metres depth (including 10 metres at 11.88 g/t Au and 0.13 per cent Cu from 441 metres depth) and 33 metres at 2.61 g/t Au and 0.45 per cent Cu from 463 metres depth
RADD039 – 5 metres at 1.64 g/t Au and 0.2 per cent Cu from 560 metres depth and 34 metres at 7.37 g/t Au and 0.28 per cent Cu from 586 metres depth (including 5 metres at 25.35 g/t Au and 0.38 per cent Cu from 604 metres depth)
Additional drilling has provided more information about a flat-shaped deposit situated between 250 and 450 meters below the surface. It is found on the inclined side of the diorite rock formation and stretches for 650 meters in length and up to 350 meters in width.
The thickness of the deposit varies, ranging from less than 20 meters at the edges to over 100 meters at its center where it is most concentrated with minerals.
Large grains discovered in several holes during drilling
During the drilling, Dundee Precious Metals discovered large gold grains in several holes, confirming the findings of earlier tests that indicated a significant amount of gold is not bound to other minerals and is instead present in larger-sized particles.
The recent drilling of RIDD014, RIDD025 and RIDD026 has expanded the known mineralized area by around 100 meters to the south and 60 meters to the west. The mineralization continues in these directions and has not yet been fully defined. When combined with the previous findings from RADD013 and RIDD007, these results indicate the possibility of an additional high-grade zone in the southern region. This new zone appears to align roughly in a northwest-southeast direction and runs parallel to the main high-grade zone.
The recent drilling results from RIDD018 and RIDD020 have verified the presence of elevated grades observed in RIDD008, and the holes also indicate an expansion of the higher-grade central area of the deposit by approximately 60 meters in both the western and southern directions.
Moreover, the findings from RIDD011A support and confirm an extension of the high-grade mineralization by 60 meters to the north of RADDMET001.
Additionally, RIDD016 and RADD039 provide support for the existence of a smaller high-grade zone on the northern side of the deposit, near the previously reported hole RIDD001.
Dundee Precious Metals shares rose by 1.5 per cent to $9.35 on Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Serbia has become a European mining hub in recent years
According to the Government of Canada, Serbia has become a prominent mining and exploration hub in Europe because of its geographical location, rich mineral deposits, long-standing mining history and availability of skilled labor at affordable rates.
Recent discoveries by international companies have confirmed Serbia’s significant mineral wealth, including deposits of lithium, copper, gold, silver and zinc. The estimated value of Serbia’s mineral resources is around $200 billion.
Zijin Mining Group Co., Limited (601899 SHA) updated its Three-Year (2023-2025) Plan and 2030 Development Goals for its Bor Copper Mine in Serbia earlier this year. The company aims to establish a comprehensive global operation and management model, with the goal of catching up with leading international metal mining companies by 2025.
Additionally, Zijin Mining plans to enhance its overall performance to become one of the top-tier mining companies globally by 2030. Specifically, it aims to rank within the top 3 to 5 in copper and gold production and among the top 10 in lithium production.
Earlier this year, Mundoro Capital Inc. started its 2023 drill program at the Vale-Mundoro Option Projects located in the southwest portion of the Timok Magmatic Complex in Serbia.
The drill program aims to test five specific areas using nine drill holes, with a total planned distance of 8,000 meters. The main target areas selected for drilling in 2023 are Tilva Rosh, Markov Kamen, Bacevica North, Orlovo and Prekostenski. These areas were chosen from a list of prospective locations for porphyry copper-molybdenum-gold deposits within the Vale-Mundoro Option Projects.
