Iltani Resources has kicked off diamond drilling at its flagship Orient project in northern Queensland.
This is a key milestone for the company’s exploration of Australia’s largest known silver-indium deposit.
The program began on April 17, with a diamond drill rig completing two drill holes for 455m at Orient West and two drill holes for 450m at Orient East.
“It is good to get the diamond drilling program at Orient underway,” Iltani managing director Donald Garner said.
“To date, we have only completed one diamond hole at Orient, a Queensland government-funded deep diamond hole in mid-2024.
“This hole was collared outside of the high-grade zone at Orient West, so we didn’t get to see the high-grade mineralisation in core – this new program will target the high-grade mineralisation at Orient West and East.”
Mining One has been engaged as the independent consultant for the modelling process, building a 3D model of Orient to better understand the scale and size of mineralised vein systems.
“The drill core will also provide important data on the alteration, mineralogy and timing of the mineralisation at Orient west and east, enabling us to better target our exploration activities at Orient going forward,” Garner said.
“The drilling is expected to take around four weeks to complete, and we will keep the market updated as to progress.”
Currently about 210m of the first diamond hole has been completed, with Iltani also progressing a reverse circulation (RC) infill program, with nine RC holes already drilled at Orient West as part of its strategy to convert the project’s high-grade exploration targets into JORC-compliant resources.
The Orient project covers a significant silver-indium system within Iltani’s wholly owned tenement, located approximately 20km west of Herberton and 9km north of Irvinebank in northern Queensland.
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