Alice Queen well-funded for exploration at Horn Island and Northern Molong projects

Alice Queen Ltd (ASX:AQX) is fully-funded for active exploration programs at the Horn Island and Northern Molong projects during the current financial year following a recent strongly supported $7 million placement. At the Horn Island joint venture with St Barbara Ltd (ASX:SBM) in Far North Queensland a maiden diamond core drill program of up to 14 holes for 4,500 metres is expected to begin in October. The company is also continuing to progress the development of its 500,000-ounce Horn Island gold resource, which is excluded from the St Barbara JV, through further drilling and test-work. Strategy to update inferred resource It is the company’s strategy to progress the current inferred resource to indicated status and then potentially further through to feasibility studies with the aim of increasing the underlying value of this asset. A recently expanded diamond core drill program of six holes for 1,440 metres to test potential extensions to the Horn Island resource will be completed by the end of September 2020. First assay results for this diamond core resource extension drill program are expected in late October. Phase one of the resource reverse circulation (RC) infill drill program of 33 holes for 4,100 metres is planned to begin next months with equipment being mobilised to the site. This is the first program planned in a phased infill drill strategy to seek to progress the existing inferred resource towards indicated status. Ore sorting tests Earlier in the year, a targeted PQ diamond core drill program of three holes for 540 metres was completed to provide a larger sample size from within the existing resource to further advance planning for future mineral resource drilling. The larger diameter diamond core program was utilised to provide sufficient material for bulk ore sorting test work with Tomra. Gold within the Horn Island inferred resource is predominantly contained within the quartz veins and not contained within the host rock. Tomra ore sorting technologies offer the potential to reduce the mass of material prior to milling by separating the veins from the host rock. If successful, it may significantly reduce the scale and cost of the processing plant that may be required as well as providing potential operating cost savings. Boda East work At Boda East within the Northern Molong project in Central West NSW, a maiden drill program of up to 14 holes to test a 13-kilometre north-south trend continues. The first three holes have been completed with the fourth hole underway. Assay and petrological results from the first hole are expected in the week starting October 5. This project is adjacent to the Boda discovery of Alkane Resources Limited (ASX:ALK). Mendooran project The company’s nearby Mendooran project is drill ready and plans are in place for the start of a maiden drill program in November 2020 to test eight high-priority copper-gold porphyry targets. Alice Queen intends to utilise the $200,000 NSW New Frontiers Cooperative Drilling Grant to offset the cost of this program. Following the placement, the company has sufficient funds to pursue exploration programs at multiple project locations and is actively doing so in order to seek to continue to add value for shareholders in the medium term. The company is also well-positioned to exploit any new opportunity that the board considers advantageous in adding shareholder value.