Rimfire Pacific Mining NL (ASX:RIM) has secured approvals to begin drilling programs this month on the Northern Gold, Northern Area and Southern Area prospects of the Fifield project in central NSW.
Approvals have been received from the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment Resources Regulator for the aircore and slimline reverse circulation (RC) drilling program.
The company has signed a drilling contract with McLeod Drilling, which expects to begin drilling later this month once Rimfire finalises scheduling with landowners to minimise impact on farming and cropping activities.
Rimfire managing director Craig Riley said: “Rimfire is excited to commence the next phase of its discovery program with the drill testing at the Northern Prospect, Northern Area and Southern Area.
“The initial results of these drill programs are expected to start being released after assaying and QAQC checks are complete towards the end of October 2019.”
Preparatory work
Rimfire began the latest phase of discovery activity at the prospects last month and this work includes fieldwork and compliance approvals.
This preparatory work is being done prior to the drilling and includes reconnaissance mapping throughout the Northern Area to prioritise selection of drill hole locations.
The government drilling approval and landowner access for initial RC drilling at Northern Gold is complete.
Mapping fieldwork for the Southern Area along with government approvals are complete with landowner access negotiations continuing for some property owners or leaseholders.
Extensive local experience
McLeod Drilling has extensive experience in the local area and has previously been contracted for drilling by Rimfire on the exploration licences in the Fifield area.
The contractor has completed these previous activities with no safety, environmental or community incidents and to a high technical standard.
Focus in Lachlan Traverse Zone
Rimfire Pacific is a resources exploration company with its major focus at Fifield in central NSW, within the Lachlan Transverse Zone (LTZ).
In 2011 the company made a greenfields discovery, named Sorpresa, announcing a JORC inferred and indicated maiden resource in 2014.
Rimfire is exploring for a major copper/gold or gold mineralised system such as at Northparkes or Cowal on 915 square kilometres of exploration licences 100 kilometres west of Parkes in central NSW.
Multiple prospects with potential for further gold discoveries exist in the area around Sorpresa which are part of Rimfire’s 681 square kilometre contiguous tenements.
Rimfire also holds two exploration licences covering 234 square kilometres around 40 to 60 kilometres south of the Fifield project in a prospective area now part of a moratorium associated with the MinEx Cooperative Research Centre program.