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Strickland Metals managing director Paul L’Herpiniere said: “Gradina is continuing to shape up as a key driver of the next phase of resource growth at Rogozna, consistently delivering impressive zones of high-grade gold mineralisation.”
L’Herpiniere said that because of its gold-dominant nature and the mineralisation remaining open up-dip towards surface, Gradina is a strategically important part of the company’s development planning at Rogozna, with the potential to feature early in the mining schedule.
The mineralisation, hosted in silicified garnet skarn with pyrrhotite alteration, is controlled by the bedding of the carbonate sequence, which dips moderately southwest.
Four of the eight diamond drilling rigs operating at Rogozna are focused full-time on Gradina, targeting up-dip extensions and infill drilling to help Strickland to deliver a maiden mineral resource estimate by the end of the year.
Assays from additional holes are pending, with results expected in the coming weeks.
Strickland has recently resumed exploration diamond drilling at its nearby Jezerska Reka copper-gold porphyry target, also within the Rogozna project and about 6km southwest of Gradina, to follow up two previous holes that encountered extensive porphyry-related veining and alteration.
A maiden 2023 drill hole intersected 92m at 0.4g/t gold from 484m, while a second 2024 hole hit 493m at 0.14g/t gold from 223.6m, extending the porphyry system eastward.
Global porphyry expert Professor David Cooke recently confirmed that alteration and associated pathfinder geochemistry show that the second hole was drilled on the fringe of the porphyry-alteration system.
A new hole is being drilled to target the core of the system, which is highlighted by a resistivity low anomaly, supported by an overlying high chargeability anomaly.
The work is supported by a 50m x 50m ground gravity survey and an upcoming magneto-telluric (MT) survey to map out additional targets within the central porphyry target area, where volcanic cover overlies prospective geology.
Strickland remains well-funded, with $34.8 million in cash and liquid assets at the end of March, bolstered by a $5 million investment from Chinese mining giant Zijin Mining.
The company is actively drilling at multiple prospects to expand the project’s potential, including at Shanac, Kotlovi and Obradov Potok.
The high-grade gold results at Gradina, coupled with its open mineralisation and strong supportive surface geochemistry, elevate Gradina’s status as another potential cornerstone of the Rogozna project.
With robust grades at depth in ongoing drilling, Gradina looks well-positioned to deliver a significant maiden mineral resource estimate later in the year, which would be another milestone for Strickland in Serbia’s gold mining sector.
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