Eight of Nine Holes Hit Gold in Mt Turner’s Expansive Drummer Fault Zone
Lightning Minerals confirms a large-scale gold mineralised system extending over 12km along the Drummer Fault at its Mt Turner Project, with high-grade intersections and multiple new targets identified.
- Gold mineralisation intersected in 8 of 9 drill holes
- Large-scale mineralised system extends 12km along Drummer Fault
- High-grade gold assays up to 21.9g/t Au from soil and rock-chip sampling
- Significant wide gold zones at Pit 6 (Rocky Reward)
- Plans underway for follow-up drilling and refined exploration targeting
Exploration Breakthrough at Mt Turner
Lightning Minerals Ltd has announced compelling final assay results from its inaugural drilling campaign at the Mt Turner Gold Project in Queensland. The results confirm a substantial and continuous gold mineralised system extending over 12 kilometres along the Drummer Fault, a major structural feature within the project tenure. Eight of the nine diamond drill holes intersected gold mineralisation, underscoring the prospectivity of this largely underexplored region.
Notably, the drilling at Pit 6, also known as Rocky Reward, revealed wide and shallow gold intersections, including a 34-metre zone averaging 0.4 grams per tonne gold, demonstrating strong continuity along strike. These findings complement earlier significant gold intercepts at Pit 3 (Drummer West) and Pit 5 (Drummer Girl), collectively highlighting the potential scale of the mineralised system.
Expanding the Mineralised Footprint
Beyond drilling, extensive soil and rock-chip sampling has extended known gold mineralisation by approximately 2.7 kilometres west of Rocky Reward. Remarkably, rock-chip samples returned high-grade gold values up to 21.9 grams per tonne, alongside elevated silver and base metals, suggesting a previously unrecognised mineralised corridor. Additional sampling northeast and southeast of Pit 5 indicates mineralisation may extend beyond the Drummer Fault, broadening the exploration target corridor.
These geochemical anomalies, combined with geological observations of orogenic and epithermal style gold sulphide-bearing quartz veins and breccias, support a refined exploration model. The presence of quartz-feldspar porphyry intrusions identified in drilling may indicate deeper mineralising fluid sources, enhancing the prospectivity of the system.
Strategic Next Steps and Market Positioning
Managing Director Alex Biggs expressed enthusiasm about the results, emphasizing the rapid progress and the high success rate of mineralised intersections. The company plans to employ vectoring strategies and multi-element geochemical modelling to prioritise targets for a follow-up drilling program aimed at delineating mineralisation continuity both along strike and at depth.
With the Mt Turner Project situated near historical shallow oxide pits and supported by a robust geological framework, Lightning Minerals is well positioned to capitalise on buoyant precious and base metal markets. The project’s secure tenure and the extensive strike length of the Drummer Fault provide a strong foundation for ongoing exploration and potential resource development.
Overall, the results mark a significant milestone for Lightning Minerals, validating the project's potential and setting the stage for further discoveries in 2026 and beyond.
Bottom Line?
Mt Turner’s expanding gold system positions Lightning Minerals for a promising exploration phase ahead.
Questions in the middle?
- How will follow-up drilling refine the understanding of grade continuity at depth?
- What is the potential economic scale of the combined orogenic and epithermal mineralisation?
- Could the newly identified mineralised corridor west of Rocky Reward lead to a major discovery?
