Data release - as updated [made at SA Director of Mines' discretion] : Eurelia Diamond Project. Joint annual reports for the period 1/1/2014 to 17/11/2018.
Published: 31 Dec 1918 Created: 12 Nov 2024 Revised: 12 Nov 2024

Since taking over ownership of five licences that previously formed parts of Flinders Mines' Springfield Project, by a purchase agreement that took force in June 2014, Diamond Resources has been working to define, identify and prioritise advanced...

Since taking over ownership of five licences that previously formed parts of Flinders Mines' Springfield Project, by a purchase agreement that took force in June 2014, Diamond Resources has been working to define, identify and prioritise advanced exploration targets within the Eurelia Kimberlite Province that are suitable to testing for potential economic sized diamonds. Diamond Resources owns a small DMS (dense media separation) plant capable of recovering all commercially recognised diamonds >0.5 mm in size, and so plans to test new kimberlite targets by bulk sampling after confirmation of previous results. This initial diamond recovery exercise will provide a grade (carats/100 t) for individual size fractions, and thus it will provide a first pass estimate of the grade and tonnages for the selected Eurelia kimberlite dykes. During 2014, the first year of the project, activity was restricted to the collation and assessment of the considerable amount data that had been generated by past diamond exploration in the Eurelia region. Diamond occurrence and crystal count data were discussed, and appropriate size screening methods selected for separating those sizes of naturally occurring diamonds that can be sorted into different price point categories for sale. During the second year of the project, no field work was done. The planned conduct of ground magnetic surveys and costeaning on delineated diamondiferous kimberlite bodies was postponed, and activity was restricted to the continued collation and assessment of the considerable amount of existing diamond exploration data, seeking to pinpoint the exact primary source sites and the particular host rock geochemical characteristics pertaining to diamonds extracted in the past within the project area. Diamond Resources also undertook mineral chemistry major element microprobe analyses of 24 x large, +1 mm pyrope grains originating from the Eurelia K01 kimberlite body. These grains were taken from a sample collected by Orogenic Exploration Pty Ltd in 2004 as part of a regional kimberlite study (Cooper & Morris, 2012). The Eurelia K01 kimberlite dyke was the first reported and confirmed diamondiferous intrusion in South Australia, with De Beers recovering three diamonds from it in October 1978 (bulk sample L9922), and 31 years later, Flinders Mines Ltd recovered five microdiamonds in October 2009 (trench samples 100167 & 168). The microprobe data showed for the first time that there is a good proportion of high Cr lherzolite, and even some marginal Ca-harzburgite composition layers, in the larger pyrope garnet grains. It is known that large pyrope grains coming from the barren Calcuteroo and El Alamein West kimberlites show more restricted, chromium poorer and calcium richer mineral chemistry fields than do those from Eurelia. Similar large pyrope grains to those at Eurelia K01 are known from detrital sediments previously sampled on Flinders Island, located off the west coast of Eyre Peninsula. Prior to the expiry of EL 5373 Carrieton on 17/11/2015, an application for the grant of a succeeding licence over a 26% reduced area was approved by DSD, and EL 6374 Eurelia covering 214 square km was granted to Diamond Resources on 18/11/2015. During the third year of the project, no diamond exploration field work was done. But ongoing review of past diamond exploration data, seeking to define a reliable method of determining kimberlite body average endowment in diamonds, expressed as individual crystal count per 100 kg of rock, revealed that some kimberlites at Eurelia having high such diamond counts for rock grainsize fractions above 0.1 mm had not been bulk sampled previously across the entire grain population present in those bodies. Plans were instigated to do this bulk sampling, to find out what the +0.85mm recovered diamond grade might be (because the use of a 0.85 mm (or DTC #1 sieve) grain size separation threshold corresponds to the lower size limit for naturally occurring diamonds that can be sorted into different price point categories for sale). It was hoped that larger size stones might be encountered within the Eurelia dyke bulk samples. On 7/4/2016, a joint full surrender of four of the five project licences was made, leaving only EL 5373 still active. This licence then reverted to single tenement reporting status. No work was done by Diamond Resources on ELs 4374, 4404, 3919/5121 and 4184/5374 during their last five years of tenure. On 31/10/2016, the licensee changed its corporate name from Diamond Resources Pty Ltd to Copper Claim Pty Ltd. Prior to this, in March 2016, the nascent Copper Claim company performed some exploratory drilling at the historic Copper Claim South prospect located within Exploration Licence 5373, when 49 vertical slimline RC/aircore holes were completed on a regular 40 m x 40 m grid for a total penetration of 1490.3 m. The objective of drilling these closely spaced holes was to define a shallow copper resource that could possibly support an envisaged heap leach operation, and to confirm that ore grades and widths at depth are consistent with surface mineralisation shows and limited historical drilling data. An unpublished, JORC 2012 - compliant Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource of 1.65 Mt @ 0.23% Cu, for 3710 t of contained copper, was estimated using a 0.1% Cu cutoff grade. The resource model is comprised of three broadly flat lying, stacked mineralised layers, subdivided into six spatially separate domains. The highest grade mineralisation is concentrated in one large domain that extends from surface to a maximum depth of ~30 m. The orebody remains open to both the south and north. It was recommended that infill appraisal drilling at 20 m hole spacing, and some diamond coring, should be done to provide more detailed ore grade information, and to inform the ore density assumptions. Preliminary open pit mine designs were undertaken in order to determine the potential mined grades and strip ratios that could be expected. They were not based on any financial, metallurgical and geotechnical data. The two ‘best’ designs, using cutoffs of 0.2% Cu and 0.25% Cu, both incorporated only ore from the one uppermost, highest grade domain. They showed that at a 1:1 waste:ore ratio, approximately 400,000 to 500,000 tonnes of ore at a grade of about 0.35% Cu could be exploited. During the 2017 reporting period two rock samples of Eurelia 02 kimberlite float was assayed for gold and other elements. Background activity has been the constant evaluation of previous diamond exploration results to best prioritise advanced targets within the Eurelia Kimberlite Province that are suitable for bulk sampling to confirm possible economic sized diamonds exist. During the current period the final metallurgy report from the previous reporting period, on the bottle roll copper tests was received from Bureau Veritas Pty Ltd confirming low recovery of the copper. The major diamond activity has been the negotiation of the sale of EL5373 and the diamond rights to the private company Aus Diamond Mining Group Pty Ltd. The sale documents were signed in late 2017 and this will enable significant funding to be available to accelerate the diamond exploration in 2018. During the 2018 reporting year no field work was completed during the year except for a number of trips to visit and meet the property owners that will be affected by the planned kimberlite evaluations. Agreements have been reached and approvals granted for excavation of main target kimberlite. An agreement have also been negotiated for the establishment of a DMS Plant site near Carrieton. Other major activity has been the negotiation and final transfer of EL5373 and all diamond rights from Copper Claim Pty Ltd to the private company Aus Diamond Mining Group Pty Ltd.

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About this record

Record No mesac29358
Topic Geoscientific Information
Type of Resource Document
Category Type
Document Type Mineral Company Report - Mineral Exploration
Contributor Diamond Resources Pty Ltd
Sponsor
Tenement
Tenement Holder Flinders Mines Limited;Diamond Resources Pty Ltd;Copper Claim Pty Ltd;Aus Diamond Mining Group Pty Ltd
Operator Flinders Mines Limited;Diamond Resources Pty Ltd;Copper Claim Pty Ltd;Aus Diamond Mining Group Pty Ltd
Geological Province
Mine Name Eurelia K01 kimberlite intrusion;Copper Claim copper workings
Stratigraphy
Commodity
Notes
Notes: This release to the public of the subject mineral exploration data, namely, company data which was acquired more than 5 years ago, is being done by DSD in accord with the provisions of Section 77D of the Mining Act 1971 and Regulation 88 of...

Notes: This release to the public of the subject mineral exploration data, namely, company data which was acquired more than 5 years ago, is being done by DSD in accord with the provisions of Section 77D of the Mining Act 1971 and Regulation 88 of the Mining Regulations 2011. Includes: - Bureau Veritas Pty Ltd. July 2017. Project No. N7194 - Copper Claim Heap Leach Amenability Test Program. Appx. 4 to annual report to 17th November 2017. Pg. 521- 619 - Bureau Veritas Pty Ltd. 16/12/2016. Mineralogy report: Showcase 26 - Mineralogical analysis of four samples. Appx. 5 to annual report to 17th November 2017. Pg. 621-637. Geographic Locality: South-eastern Flinders Ranges;Amyton;Walloway;Kanyaka;Boolcunda;Eurelia;Carrieton;Gordon;Cradock;Glen Oak Homestead;Carrieton Anticline Doc No: Env 12800 Drillhole: CUC16-01 - CUC16-49

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Language English
Metadata Standard ISO 19115-3

Citations

Use constraints License
License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
Persistent identifier https://pid.sarig.sa.gov.au/document/mesac29358
Citation Cooper, S.A. 1918. Data release - as updated [made at SA Director of Mines' discretion] : Eurelia Diamond Project. Joint annual reports for the period 1/1/2014 to 17/11/2018. Mineral Company Report - Mineral Exploration
https://pid.sarig.sa.gov.au/document/mesac29358

Technical information

Status
Maintenance and Update Frequency
Geographic Reference GDA2020 (EPSG:7844)
Geo bounding box {"type":"Polygon","coordinates":[[[138,-33],[139,-33],[139,-32],[138,-32],[138,-33]]]}
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