Six exploration projects have been defined in the area to the north of Potchefstroom town, based mainly on a combination of historical gold data as well as the depth of prospective reefs below surface.
A review of the geology of the Potchefstroom Goldfield is currently in progress, with most attention being devoted to those areas that could host substantial resources accessible from a single drop shaft. These conditions apply mainly to the northern periphery of the Goldfield as well as the western margin where high grade Carbon Leader and Vaal Reef are known to exist at depths in excess of 3000 metres below surface.
Boskop Project
Comprises a 7km north-south block where the Main Conglomerate Formation occurs at depths of 1,000 to 1,500 metres. Only limited drilling has been completed in the north of this area. Results from the Carbon Leader show that gold grades increase towards the south. The economic importance of this reef in the adjacent Carletonville Goldfield combined with its shallow disposition makes this project a priority exploration area.
Kleinfontein Project
Drilling of the first borehole has commenced in the northern sector of the Potchefstroom Goldfield. This area is contiguous with the Carletonville Goldfield where Carbon Leader Reef is the primary orebody. In the Kleinfontein area similar Carbon Leader is being prospected at depths of 1500 - 2500 metres below surface.
Two boreholes have been completed in the northern sector of the Kleinfontein area with mixed success. The previous operator in the region was of the opinion that the Carbon Leader, the mainstay of the adjacent Carletonville Goldfield was largely absent due to the presence of the low angled Master Bedding Plane Fault. However, the recent drilling has refuted this geological model but intersected only poorly developed Carbon Leader. Of a more positive nature has been the development of thick Middelvlei Reef at depths of 1500-2000 metres below surface, similar to that present on the adjacent Blyvooruitzicht Mine.
Consistent with the old order mineral title, Wits Gold was originally granted New Order Rights for precious metals in this area. During the past year an application to include uranium was approved from the Department of Minerals and Energy. In accordance, a revised mineral resource to include uranium will be estimated by Snowden Mining Industry Consultants. This NI43-101 technical report is due for completion during the third quarter of 2009.
Kleinfontein Deeps Project
Situated to the immediate south of the Kleinfontein Project, where historical drilling results indicate that higher gold values occur mainly in the Carbon Leader Reef, at a depth range 2,750 to 4,000 metres. Other prospective reefs include the Middelvlei and North Leader.
Potch Deeps Project
This area contains the largest and also the deepest gold resources. It covers some 160km2 with a strike length of some 16 km and a west-east dimension of up to 10km in contrast to the 25km2 of a typical Wits mine lease. The prospective reefs in this area include the Carbon Leader, the Vaal Reef and the Cobble Reefs, all of which occur at depths of the order of 3,000 to 5,000 metres. An investigation into the distribution of gold grades in these reefs indicates that the best mineralisation consistently occurs towards the base of both the Vaal and Cobble Reef zones.
Deelkraal South Project
The VCR in this area occurs at a depth of 3,000 to 4,000 metres. As an integral part of the future plan for the Deelkraal Mine, the No 3 Shaft was sunk by Gold Fields Ltd some 1,300 metres to the south of the mine lease boundary and now within the project area. The physical conditions of the shaft are unknown, but it is likely that it could be rehabilitated to allow sinking to be resumed.
Livingstone Reef Project
A cluster of five boreholes in the northwestern sector of the Potchefstroom Goldfield intersected elevated values in the Livingstone Reefs. In view of peak gold values in excess of 1,000cm.g/t and their shallow nature (1,000 to 1,400 metres below surface) further exploration is required to evaluate their full potential.
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