Aureka (ASX:AKA) has renewed its focus on its extensive portfolio of advanced-stage gold projects in Victoria, Australia. With the current gold price environment being favorable, the company is commissioning mineral resource estimates (MRE) on existing data to fully exploit hidden value within its project portfolio. Aureka’s Managing Director, James Gurry, identifies the St Arnaud project as a near-term production opportunity. Historical data from the St Arnaud Gold field indicates approximately 400,000 ounces of gold were produced at an average grade of 15 grams per tonne, mainly from the Lord Nelson Shaft.
In addition to St Arnaud, Aureka’s flagship Irvine Gold Project has seen significant investment since 2015. A maiden JORC mineral resource of 1.45 million tonnes at 1.21g/t gold for 56,500 ounces gold has been determined and additionally, an exploration target around the inferred resource has been estimated to range between 3Mt and 3.5Mt, at grades 1.2g/t to 1g/t resulting in an exploration target range estimate of 112,000oz to 116,000oz of gold and potentially economic amounts of silver at a grade of 2.14g/t silver for total of 100,000oz silver. This increases the global gold inventory of Aureka’s project portfolio by 19% to 360,800oz. Aureka is strategically acquiring land and focusing on community engagement to de-risk projects for potential joint ventures or acquisitions by larger industry players.
