TSX-V-listed Aton Resources has recorded “solid” final results of the Phase 2 diamond drilling programme at its advanced Rodruin gold exploration project, located in the company’s 100%-owned Abu Marawat Concession, in the Eastern Desert of Egypt, interim CEO Tonno Vahk says.

The final results have been forwarded on to its mineral resource estimate (MRE) consultants Cube Consulting, which can now get “properly started” on block modelling the Rodruin deposit, he adds.

Diamond drilling was completed at Rodruin on December 10, 2022, with a total of 9 073 m drilled from 85 holes. The results are now available for the final 16 holes, ROD-118 to ROD-133.

Eight drill holes were completed in the Aladdin’s Hill and Aladdin’s Hill NE areas, with results including 4.39 g/t gold and 4.5 g/t silver over an interval of 11.85 m from 29.45 m downhole depth (ROD-120) and 3.72 g/t gold and 5.8 g/t silver over 5.5 m from 26.3 m (ROD-122), both associated with oxidised phyllic alteration zones.

Mineralisation associated with gossanous carbonates at Aladdin’s Hill returned intervals of 63.2 m grading 0.69 g/t gold and 6.6 g/t silver (ROD-123) and 18.7 m grading 1.27 g/t gold and 6.5 g/t silver (ROD-124), both from surface. ROD-124 also returned an intersection of 41.6 m grading 4.36% zinc and 0.29 g/t gold from 74.7 m.

A further eight holes were drilled at the Central Buttress zone, the GF zone and the South and North Ridges, which returned mineralised intersections including 3.14 g/t gold and 4.2 g/t silver over an interval of 8.6 m from surface (ROD-128) at the GF zone, and 0.77 g/t gold and 7.0 g/t silver over an interval of 27.5 m, also from surface (ROD-127), at the Central Buttress zone.

“We are very happy with the results from the Phase 2 diamond drilling programme at Rodruin, with virtually every single hole in the programme intersecting mineralisation.

“We believe that we now have a sufficient drill density to meet the primary objective of the programme which was to enable us to delineate a maiden oxide mineral resource at Rodruin, which we expect to be readily amenable to exploitation using very low strip ratio openpit mining methods, and will enable us to secure the mining licence at Abu Marawat,” Vahk says.

Further, he says the company has flagged up the future potential of the Rodruin deposit with some impressive sulphide intercepts.

The metallurgical samples collected from both Rodruin and Hamama were forwarded to Wardell Armstrong International in the UK before the New Year, and the test work programmes are proceeding well, with encouraging preliminary results, Vahk notes.

“Our immediate focus in the field is now on the short additional drilling programme which started at Hamama in mid-January with a view to adding potential incremental oxide resources at Hamama East, as we work towards maiden and revised MREs and delineating commercial discoveries at Rodruin and Hamama by mid-2023."

“We have also started further mapping and sampling programmes on some of our excellent regional targets including Abu Gaharish, Semna and Bohlog, in advance of new reverse circulation drilling programmes on these prospects, which we plan to start after Ramadaan,” Vahk notes.