Iceni’s Guyer Expansion Raises Stakes Ahead of Major RC Drilling Campaign

Expanding the Guyer Gold Footprint

Iceni Gold Limited (ASX: ICL) has delivered a compelling update from its ongoing exploration at the 14 Mile Well Gold Project in Western Australia's highly prospective Leonora-Laverton district. The company’s fourth aircore (AC) drilling campaign at the Guyer North prospect has significantly expanded the known gold anomaly, now measuring up to 1100 metres wide and at least 2500 metres long within a broader 6-kilometre trend.

This expansion builds on previous campaigns that outlined a coherent bedrock gold anomaly along the granite-greenstone contact, a geological setting often associated with orogenic gold deposits. The latest results reveal three parallel, robust gold zones exceeding 0.5 g/t Au, each extending approximately 1500 metres, highlighting a complex and sizeable mineralised system.

Noteworthy Drill Intersections

The recent AC drilling intercepted broad downhole intervals of gold mineralisation in multiple vertical holes across nine infill and extensional traverses. Significant results include 8 metres at 1.52 g/t Au from 72 metres in hole FMAC1117, 4 metres at 2.07 g/t Au from 64 metres in FMAC1116, and 8 metres at 0.98 g/t Au including 1 metre at 4.51 g/t Au in FMAC1157. These intercepts, often occurring at the end of holes, suggest the mineralisation footprint remains open at depth and laterally.

Iceni’s Managing Director Wade Johnson emphasised the importance of these findings, noting the anomaly’s expansion and the identification of multiple stronger gold zones within granitic bedrock. He highlighted that the results provide a broad target for the upcoming maiden reverse circulation (RC) drilling program, which aims to evaluate the primary gold zones beneath the extensive anomaly.

Strategic Partnership with Gold Road Resources

These exploration advances coincide with Iceni’s recently announced $35 million Farm-In agreement with Gold Road Resources Limited (ASX: GOR). Under this agreement, Gold Road has committed an initial $5 million minimum exploration expenditure to be managed by Iceni, with the potential to assume management upon achieving key milestones. Additionally, Gold Road has taken a 9.9% equity stake in Iceni through a $3.05 million placement, strengthening Iceni’s financial position to accelerate exploration across its extensive 14 Mile Well tenement package.

The Farm-In area, now designated the Guyer Project, benefits from Iceni’s systematic exploration approach combining geophysics, metal detecting, surface sampling, and drilling. The upcoming RC drilling campaign, scheduled to commence in February 2025, is designed to test the primary mineralised zones beneath the broad gold footprint delineated by the AC drilling.

Geological Context and Exploration Potential

The Guyer Trend lies within a structurally complex granite-greenstone belt, a setting known for hosting significant gold deposits in the Eastern Goldfields. The trend is interpreted as part of a broader regional shear zone, with historical workings nearby underscoring the area’s prospectivity. The presence of transported overburden and leached saprolite has historically masked surface geochemical signatures, making Iceni’s methodical drilling and geophysical targeting critical to unveiling the underlying gold system.

Iceni’s exploration since 2021 has progressively built a robust geological and geochemical dataset, culminating in the current delineation of a large, multi-kilometre gold anomaly with encouraging grades. The company’s approach exemplifies the value of integrating modern exploration techniques in underexplored terrains.

Looking Ahead

With the Farm-In partnership providing both capital and technical support, Iceni is well positioned to advance the Guyer Project through its next exploration phase. The imminent RC drilling campaign will be pivotal in testing the depth and continuity of the mineralisation, potentially setting the stage for resource definition and further development.