Strickland Metals is focusing on near-surface mineralization at its Gradina prospect in Serbia, aiming to enhance its existing 5.4 million-ounce gold equivalent Rogozna project and elevate its gold and base metal resources.
The company has announced the launch of a new 10,000-meter diamond drilling program at the Gradina site. Previously, Strickland discovered high-grade gold at depth and is now seeking shallow mineralization that lies above earlier recorded hits.
Management reports that the delineated high-grade gold occurs over a 1-kilometer strike at depths ranging from 200 to 1,000 meters and is projected to begin near the surface based on prior geophysical and geochemical surveys. They believe Gradina holds the potential for a significant maiden resource estimate soon, making it a high-priority target. Previous drilling efforts totaled 21,000 meters and revealed impressive high-grade hits, including 27.5 meters at 5.1 grams per tonne gold from 439.8 meters and 32 meters at 6.8 g/t gold from 595 meters.
The new shallow drilling is facilitated by a recently completed access track, allowing for near-surface exploration for the first time. Management considers this area to represent the shallowest deposit at Rogozna, alongside the outcropping Copper Canyon deposit.
Strickland Metals managing director Paul L’Herpiniere stated, “All available datasets indicate that the steeply-dipping mineralized lodes encountered in previous drilling extend updip towards surface. If we are successful in drilling similar widths and tenor of mineralization near-surface, we expect that this high-priority target will rapidly take shape and significantly contribute to the growth of the Rogozna Resource inventory over the next 12 months.”
Gradina is one of four gold and base metal deposits within the Rogozna project, characterized by multiple steeply-dipping, north/north-west-trending zones of gold and minor copper-zinc mineralization. The mineralization remains open at depth, along strike, and up-dip towards the surface.
Additionally, management notes pathfinder geochemical anomalies in soils and various geophysical anomalies—including gravity, induced polarization (IP), and remnant magnetic anomalies—along the strike. Notably, the absence of volcanic cover at the southern end of the prospect indicates potential for near-surface mineralization.
Interestingly, the Gradina area is the most gold-dominant of the four identified deposits, with gold comprising about 90 percent of the contained metal intersected. The substantial downhole hits typically range between 100 and 200 meters, featuring high-grade zones of 5 to 20 meters, separated by quartz latite dykes and lower-grade zones with less than 0.5 g/t gold.
Strickland is deploying four rigs across three deposits at Rogozna, including two exploration holes recently drilled into its Kotlovi prospect.
The company recently reported additional success at its Medenovac deposit, with a significant 50-meter intercept grading 5.6 g/t gold equivalent, part of a remarkable 365.8-meter hit at 2 g/t gold equivalent. This substantial hit confirms a 60-meter extension to the southeast, increasing high-grade mineralization to 150 meters at the southern end of the deposit and totaling 600 meters.
While Strickland has yet to report a maiden resource for Medenovac, it is scheduled for early next year, suggesting another significant deposit within the overall Rogozna portfolio. As Strickland continues to discover new deposits at the 184-square-kilometer Serbian site, the question remains: just how expansive will this project become?
