Forrestania Resources Ltd (ASX:FRS) is preparing to launch its maiden drilling program at the Bonnie Vale Gold Project, situated in the highly prospective Eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia. The company plans to commence drilling later this year, targeting key zones of mineralization within the project area.
The proposed drilling will focus on the Ada Ann prospect within exploration licence E15/1632, which is located approximately 10 kilometers west of Evolution Mining's Mungari Gold Mine, known for its substantial gold resources. The objective is to determine the extent of the mineralization both at depth and along strike. The program will also explore the potential for an additional zone of gold mineralization around an area where historical drilling returned notable results, including assays of up to 49 grams per tonne of gold.
This new drilling initiative follows a thorough review of historical exploration data, which revealed significant shallow gram-per-meter intersections at Ada Ann. The mineralization remains open in all directions, highlighting the prospect's potential for further discovery. Additionally, Forrestania Resources plans to conduct further geochemical surveys to complement and refine existing anomalous data, with the aim of defining new regional exploration targets for future drilling.
Commenting on the region's potential, Forrestania Resources chair John Hannaford stated, "The Eastern Goldfields district is known for its prolific gold discoveries. The Bonnie Vale Project is strategically positioned along a highly prospective mineralized belt, with Evolution Mining's Mungari and Cutter’s Ridge gold mines to the east and north, respectively. Despite this, the area remains significantly under-explored."
Hannaford emphasized the exploration opportunities at Ada Ann, describing it as a high-priority target. The company’s fieldwork has identified several mineralized historical drill spoils, with results reaching up to 49 grams per tonne of gold in a new area immediately east of previous drilling at Ada Ann. The upcoming drill campaign will test both the established target at Ada Ann and this newly identified high-grade zone.
Forrestania has completed a comprehensive technical review of the Ada Ann prospect, updating its database with historical data collected from WAMEX reports and field reconnaissance. This represents the first time the data related to Ada Ann has been systematically compiled and analyzed, providing a solid foundation for the planned drilling activities.
In addition to its efforts at Ada Ann, Forrestania has conducted multiple field visits to the Bonnie Vale North prospect, located within tenement E15/1534. This area lies within the greenstones of the Eastern Goldfields Super Terrane, intersected by the Kunanalling Shear Zone, which presents substantial regional exploration potential for gold mineralization.
The Kunanalling Shear Zone is known to host numerous gold occurrences, historical operations, resources, and current deposits, including Evolution Mining's Castle Hill operation. Historical geochemical data from Bonnie Vale North revealed several samples with values exceeding 20 parts per billion (ppb) gold, with a peak value of 74 ppb. These results prompted Forrestania to undertake a targeted geochemical sampling program, which returned significant gold anomalies aligned with the shear zone.
The Bonnie Vale Gold Project's strategic location, coupled with promising historical and recent exploration results, positions Forrestania Resources to advance its exploration efforts in one of Australia's most productive gold regions.