Orford Mining drills 0.43% nickel over 21 metres at West Raglan, Quebec
Orford Mining Corp. [ORM-TSXV] reported exploration results from the 2022 summer program on the high-grade nickel-copper-PGE (platinum group element) West Raglan property, Nunavik, Quebec.
The program was Wyloo Metals Pty. Ltd.’s second year of spending on the project toward its earn-in, with Orford operating. In July and August 2022, 2,589 metres of diamond drilling were completed in nine holes at three zones (Frontier, Beverly and Boomerang) over 35 km along the Raglan trend.
The program included surface work involving the collection of 939 frost boil samples, 102 grab samples and mapping data at over 1,000 stations. Four of the nine drill holes reported nickel-copper mineralization intercepts up to 1.56% nickel, 0.27% copper, 0.71 g/t palladium (Pd) and 0.32 g/t platinum (Pt) (WR-22-201). Grab samples reported up to 2.7% nickel and 8% copper.
David Christie, President and CEO, commented, “Orford has successfully intersected a new high-grade nickel copper sulphide lens in drilling at Boomerang with the highest grade outside of the Frontier zone. Drilling also successfully extended the high-grade Frontier nickel copper sulphide lens 30 metres westward and down dip. We look forward to testing the multitude of other untested targets in the coming field seasons and building on the mineral endowment of this very underexplored property. Grab samples point to the exciting potential with several new high-grade surface samples taken in 2022.”
Historically, much of the drilling on the West Raglan property was completed at the Frontier Zone which covers 2 km of the Raglan trend, where nickel sulphide intercepts yielded intersections up to 28.3 metres grading 3.2% Ni, 1.32% Cu, 2.4 g/t Pd, and 0.7 g/t Pt. The focus of the 2022 drill program was to test geophysical targets defined in 2021 to extend the Frontier mineralization westward and make new discoveries along the 50-km strike of the underexplored Raglan Trend on the West Raglan property. Drilling was completed at three zones (Frontier, Beverly and Boomerang) over 35 km along the Raglan Trend.
Hole WR-22-195 was drilled in the Boomerang area of the West Raglan property and reported 4.2 metres grading 0.60% Ni, 0.16% Cu, 0.44 g/t Pd, 0.18 g/t Pt, including 2 metres grading 0.95% Ni, 0.25% Cu 0.72 g/t Pd, 0.29 g/t Pd, from 178.8 to 180.8 metres. This is the most significant intercept outside of the Frontier Zone on the West Raglan Property. Limited drill testing has occurred outside the Frontier Zone. Nickel rich sulfides in this environment typically occur as lens clusters, discovering one, such as the intercept in WR-22-195 may lead to the discovery of additional proximal lenses. In addition to this intercept, several new high-grade grab samples which reported up to 1.3% Ni and 0.35% Cu along the Boomerang trend renders this area highly prospective for additional lens clusters. Future work will focus on reviewing at available geophysical products to look for follow up targets in the Boomerang area.
Hole WR-22-201 and WR-22-202 were drilled at the Western edge of the Frontier Zone where limited exploration had been conducted. The intercepts reported up to 13.5 metres grading 0.53% Ni, 0.19% Cu, 0.29 g/t Pd and 0.06 g/t Pt (WR-22-201), including 0.45 metres grading 1.56% Ni, 0.27% Cu, 0.71 g/t Pd and 0.32 g/t Pt (WR-22-201) extended the West Pipe Nickel Sulfide lens down-dip and westward by 30 metres and intercepted higher-grade Ni-Cu than the easterly part of the known lens. The nickel sulfide ratios in these intercepts are approximately 3:1 (S:Ni) consistent with the nickel-rich sulfide minerals encountered at Raglan.
WR-22-203 was drilled at Frontier Central, where there was historically limited drill testing and a large volume of ultramafic is present. Two intervals of interest were intercepted: 4.35 metres grading 0.45% Ni, 0.04% Cu, 0.39 g/t Pd and 0.11 g/t Pt from 147.25 to 159.85 metres, including 0.5 metres of 0.83% Ni, 0.06% Cu, 1.67 g/t Pd and 0.46 g/t Pt).
One anomalous gold value reported 3.21 g/t Au over 1 metre from 178 to 179 metres; 23.75 metres of nickel sulphides where intercepted, reporting 0.31% Ni, 0.1% Cu from 261.5 to 285.25 metres.
During the 2022 field season, field teams focused on the lesser explored southern part of the West Raglan property, the highlight is the discovery of a new high-grade Ni-S outcrop (Big Potato) which reported grades up to 2.71% Ni and 0.24% Cu.
The recently conducted West Raglan exploration program was funded by Wyloo Metals Pty Ltd as part of the earn-in agreement announced by Orford January 19 2021 whereby Wyloo can earn up to up to 80% of the West Ragan Project by spening $25.0 million over 7 years.
The West Raglan property is a large 713 km2 property situated in the Cape Smith Belt in the Nunavik Region of northern Quebec.