BADJA PROJECT

Project Highlights

The Badja Project, previously known as The Gnows Nest Project is located 32km southeast of the township of Yalgoo and covers a total area of ~870 ha. The Project tenement holding comprises a central granted Mining Lease (M59/739) of 7.3 ha, a surrounding Mining Lease application (M59/763) of 279.3 ha and granted Exploration Licence (E59/1735) of 590.3 ha (Figure 1).  Additional prospector licenses were acquired by EMU in 2021 extending the lease boundaries along strike to the northwest.

EMU has drilled in excess of 28kms of reverse circulation and aircore drilling since September 2020.  A comprehensive soil survey has been conducted along with a gradient array geophysics survey.  Drilling has returned significant high grade gold quartz vein hosted intercepts with the historic Gnows Nest, Monte Cristo, Water tank Hill and flying Emu prospects all remaining open to depth and along strike.  High grade tungsten has reported from the Monte Cristo prospect which EMU is following up with multi element assay analysis.  Only 3 holes have so far been tested which have reported significant economic high grades however, the presence of broad scheelite zones extending all the way along strike to Flying Emu (indicating strong fluorescence under black light (UV) testing) suggests the tungsten halo could be significant.  EMU will report to the market during 2023.

The Project tenements overlay a complex structural flexure within the Archean Yalgoo-Singleton greenstone belt, which is bound by the Badja and Walgardy intrusive granitoid batholiths of the Youanmi Terrane (Figure 3). The greenstone stratigraphy in the Gnows Nest area comprise mafic and ultramafic intrusive volcanics with intercalations of banded iron formations, banded cherts and an argillaceous sedimentary sequence. The greenstones have a general NNW trend but are flexed northward in the Gnows Nest mine. The rock sequences generally dip steeply to the west. 

At Gnows Nest, historical gold workings occur over a 380m strike length, hosted within a 345^o trending shear zone, dipping 57^o west and averaging ~10m in width, characterised by talc-chlorite schists hosting individual mineralised quartz veins varying between 0.5m to greater than 5m, but typically ranging to 2m. The shear zone is interpreted as a dextral strike-slip fault separating gabbro to the west from metasediments, Banded Iron Formations and cherts to the east. 

Historical gold production from Gnows Nest was mostly via the main shaft system (Figure 3), however significant production shafts were sunk 100m (Shaft B) and 120m (Shaft A) to the north and 150m (Shaft C) and 210m (Shaft D) to the south.

Underground mining extended to 5 levels (~135m deep) exploiting a central, steep-plunging ore shoot over a strike length of 80m in the main shaft area. More recent surface alluvial/colluvial mining was carried out in the northern and southern areas of M59/739.

Mines Department (DMIRS) records indicate that between 1923-1941, 39,746t of ore was treated with 868.566 kg (~27,925oz) gold produced at a recovered grade of 21.85g/t Au.

Historic RAB, AC, RC and DD drilling totals over 11,000m mainly within M59/739. Recent, (2018-2019) close-spaced resource definition RC drilling by Coruscant at the Gnows Nest mine returned the following significant intercepts:

• 18GNRC001: 5m @ 5.04g/t Au from 29m incl 2m @ 9.94g/t Au
• 18GNRC002: 6m @ 9.52g/t Au from 40m incl 4m @ 13.2g/t Au
• 18GNRC048: 13m @ 13.73g/t Au from 39m incl 2m @ 76.24g/t Au
• 18GNRC049: 12m @ 6.24g/t Au from 23m incl 4m @ 17.40g/t Au
• 18GNRC035: 5m @ 4.06g/t Au from 23m incl 1m @ 10.67 g/t Au 
• 18GNRC026: 4m @ 5.51g/t Au from 44m
• 19GNRC091: 4m @ 4.01g/t Au from 2m incl 2m @7.80g/t Au
• 19GNRC120: 8m @ 7.01g/t Au from 42m incl 4m @ 13.62g/t Au
• 19GNRC071: 5m @9.69g/t Au from 48m incl 1m @ 34.29g/t Au

Further drilling completed by EMU at Gnows Nest, Monte Cristo, Watertank Hill and Flying Emu prospects has returned the following gold assay results:

 Gnows Nest Mine Area

• 4m at 20.40g/t gold from 51m including;
  • 1m at 57.41g/t gold from 52m and
  • 1m at 16.86g/t gold from 54m
• 4m at 18.32g/t gold from 95m including;
  • 1m at 17.53g/t gold from 95m; and
  • 1m at 51.66g/t gold from 96m
• 3m at 42.18g/t gold from 77m including;
  • 1m at 89.57g/t gold from 78m; and
  • 1m at 32.64g/t gold from 79m
• 2m at 26.88g/t gold from 60m including:
  • 1m at 53.05g/t gold from 60m
• 6m at 6.42g/t gold from 116m including;
  • 1m at 30.19g/t gold from 118m; and
• 1m at 47.12g/t gold from 63m
• 7m at 10.12g/t gold from 131m including**;
  • 1m at 40.38g/t gold from 131m and
• 2m at 12.62g/t gold from 121m including;
  • 1m at 18.57g/t gold from 121m and
• 2m at 11.43g/t gold from 208m including;
  • 1m at 17.53g/t gold from 208m; and
• 1m at 6.83g/t gold from 144m; and
• 1m at 5.11g/t gold from 53m

Monte Cristo Prospect 

• 4m at 9.74g/t gold from 32m (composite sample);
• 4m at 3.02g/t gold from 100m (composite sample);
• 7m at 2.18g/t gold from 173m including;
  • 1m at 4.09g/t gold from 173m, and
  • 1m at 2.30g/t gold from 175m
• 3m at 2.73g/t gold from 124m including;
  • 1m at 3.86g/t gold from 124m, and
  • 1m at 4.09g/t gold from 125m;
• 3m at 2.51g/t gold from 126m including;
  • 1m at 4.28g/t gold from 126m.
• 3m at 13.35g/t gold from 67m including;
  • 1m at 19.90g/t gold from 68m
• 6m at 6.51g/t gold from 120m including;
  • 1m at 22.77g/t gold from 121m
• 4m at 3.29g/t gold from 120m including;
  • 1m at 5.97g/t gold from 121m

 Water Tank Hill Prospect

2m at 9.94g/t gold from 51m including;

• 1m at 19.35g/t gold from 51m
• 2m at 3.77g/t gold from 51m including;
  • 1m at 6.01g/t gold from 52m
• 6m at 1.12/t gold from 29m including;
  • 1m at 2.30g/t gold from 32m.

The maiden drill programme at Flying Emu Prospect returned the following gold intercepts**

• 9m at 3.44g/t gold from 39m including;
  • 2m at 10.14g/t gold from 39m

 TUNGSTEN

 Significant high grade tungsten values which are associated with gold mineralisation at the Monte Cristo prospect include;***

• 12m at 0.12% WO₃from 58m (21MC001) including;
  • 1m at 0.64% WO₃from 59m
• 6m at 0.18% WO₃from 58m (21MC002) including;
  • 1m at 0.44% WO₃from 59m
• 4m at 0.14% WO₃from 28m (21MC003): composite sample

Exploration Strategy

EMU’s priorities Iinclude the advancement  of the Gnows Nest Mineral Resource as a near-term production opportunity via a simple shallow open cut gold operation for possible toll treatment.

The Project, which encapsulates a historic gold mining field, will also be the subject of ongoing exploration to grow the resource base. The potential for further high-grade gold discoveries associated with other dilational zones within tenement package is considered high and this has been demonstrated with EMU’s discoveries at Monte Cristo, Water tank Hill and Flying Emu.

Drilling has highlighted the strike and depth potential of the Gnows Nest shear zone outside of the historically mined area with numerous high-grade intercepts reported within the 400m long resource envelope.

The Gnows Nest shear zone has been traced further south into Mining Lease application M59/763 with only wide-spaced drilling completed.

The geological setting of the Project is also considered favourable for VMS base metal mineralisation, being located along the same greenstone belt that hosts the world-class Golden Grove copper-zinc mine and near several VMS discoveries announced by Venture Minerals Limited (ASX: VMS).

EMU’s initial exploration program completed  IP and gradient array geophysical surveys centred on Gnows Nest to trace the mineralised shear along strike and explore for structural repeats. EMU has also completed more than 28,000m of RC and AC drilling at Gnows Nest, Monte Cristo, Water tank Hill and Flying Emu. 

High grade tungsten has been recorded from the only 3 holes tested for tungsten at Monte Cristo.  Abundant fluorescence from UV light testing indicates the tungsten halo maybe far more significant and EMU is awaiting assays to confirm this development.