Northern Star upgrades Emull potential

  Diversified explorer, Northern Star Resources has further upgraded the potential of its Emull Zinc Prospect, located within its Red Billabong Project in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia, announcing that a recently completed program of deeper drilling has confirmed the extension of zinc/copper mineralisation at depth.Northern Star said that results from the latest reverse circulation drill program, which was designed to test extensions of the mineralisation defined by previous shallow drilling, showed significant mineralisation in four out of five holes. The company said that positive results included 37m @ 0.82% Zn (0.35%Cu), from 167m, including 3m @ 5.5% Zn (0.24% Cu); 17m @ 0.75% Zn (0.41%Cu), from 157m, including 2m @ 2.4% Zn (1.17% Cu); and 32m @ 1.12% Zn (0.28%Cu), from 0m, including 2m @ 4.6% Zn (0.54% Cu).Previous shallow drilling had confirmed higher-grade zinc intersections in at least three separate shoots within a 500m-long mineralised trend at Emull. The most recent intersections show continuity of this mineralisation at depth and, together with the results reported earlier in the year, have upgraded the potential of this project.The program of five reverse circulation percussion holes, totalling 954m, was completed along the Emull zinc mineralisation, where Northern Star said testing for higher-grade shoots is ongoing. The recent drill holes also confirmed a high-grade core within broader lower-grade mineralisation within each of the shoots, with broad intersections of low-grade copper also recorded, including 172m @ 0.16% Cu from 68m, 80m @ 0.17% Cu from 116m, 56m @ 0.30% Cu from 152m, and 36m @ 0.27% Cu from 0m.Northern Star’s Managing Director, Bill Beament said work had commenced to determine the nature and relationship of these copper results to the broader mineralised system with diamond drilling planned next year to assist in the geological interpretation of the structure and orientation of the mineralisation at Emull.“The latest drilling once again reinforces the potential for higher-grade shoots within the Emull mineralisation, with the deep drilling demonstrating the potential of the shoots to extend at depth,” Mr Beament said.“This system could be amenable to open cut mining and a simple flotation concentrate. “Emull is a strategic asset to Northern Star given its location in the East Kimberley mineral province, and we expect that will continue to add value to the company as we get closer to evaluating the resource potential next year,” he said.