Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN) eyes Laverton halo with fresh drilling push

Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN) is sharpening its focus on Western Australia’s Laverton district, with a new round of drilling to test whether broad zones of near-surface mineralisation are the outer expression of a larger gold system.

The reverse circulation program will commence in early September and is aimed at both consolidating the existing gold halo and stepping out into untested extensions.

Earlier exploration confirmed broad mineralised zones within the halo, hosted in quartz feldspar volcanics and associated with hydrothermal alteration.

Notable results included 28 metres at 1.09 grams per tonne gold from 57 metres, with a high-grade metre at 9.69 g/t, and 18 metres at 1.16 g/t from 126 metres, including five metres at 2.3 g/t.

Mineralisation remains open in several directions, an encouraging sign for a project strategically located among some of Australia’s largest producers — Sunrise Dam, Wallaby and Granny Smith.

Catalina Resources Executive director Ross Cotton said the latest campaign was designed to push the geological model further while testing the system’s true scale.

“This next phase of drilling will include both infill holes within the defined halo and step-out holes designed to test extensions along strike and down dip of the interpreted Barnicoat Shear Zone. By combining these approaches, we are advancing the geological model while defining the scale potential of the system,” he said.

The Barnicoat Shear Zone has already proven fertile ground for discoveries across the region, and Catalina’s tenement sits squarely within this corridor.

Success here would provide the company with a stronger foothold in one of the country’s most competitive gold addresses, where nearby processing infrastructure and established operations offer a clear path to potential development.

For Catalina, which also holds interests in base metals, lithium and iron ore, Laverton is increasingly emerging as the flagship.

The September drill program will determine whether the halo is simply a surface expression or the early stages of something much more substantial.