The Mojave project, managed by Locksley Resources (ASX: LKY), is gaining attention due to significant geological discoveries. Recent underground mapping has revealed a substantial new target that could greatly expand the company’s critical minerals resource base. The identification of the Beefeater Shear, a corridor measuring between 10 and 15 meters wide, is set to redefine the company’s strategy regarding antimony, a vital metalloid.
Located in California, a region rich in minerals, the Mojave project’s findings stem from an extensive Stage III technical review. This assessment has improved the understanding of the structural controls influencing high-grade antimony mineralization.
Significance of the Beefeater Shear
The discovery of the Beefeater Shear represents a crucial development for Locksley Resources. This structural feature runs in a north-south orientation and is strategically positioned between the established high-grade deposit at the Desert Antimony Mine (DAM) and the Hendricks prospect. The implications of this discovery suggest that the mineralized system may extend beyond previously defined limits, indicating a greater resource potential than initially expected.
Characteristics of the Beefeater Shear
The Beefeater Shear presents several notable features critical for exploration:
- Width: It spans a corridor of 10 to 15 meters.
- Structure: The shear zone encompasses a broader area of moderate shearing, interspersed with narrower, more intense shear zones.
- Alteration: An intense goethite alteration has been observed, indicating the presence of antimony-rich sulfide mineralization.
- Geological signature: Its characteristics align with the structural timing and history of the high-grade DAM system.
This extensive alteration suggests that antimony resources within the Mojave area may not be limited to isolated veins; instead, they could be distributed across multiple structural corridors, significantly enhancing the resource potential across the tenement package.
Enhancing exploration strategies
Locksley Resources has conducted detailed structural mapping of the historic underground workings at DAM, leading to insights that will improve drilling effectiveness and resource definition. This mapping has uncovered a series of younger east-west striking shears that intersect and offset the primary north-south veins. Understanding these structural dynamics is crucial for targeted exploration activities.
Implications of structural discoveries
Each structural discovery carries its own implications:
- East-west fault displacement: The high-grade zones are offset rather than terminated, allowing for systematic targeting of these faulted extensions.
- Dip-slip and dextral movement: Identifying precise displacement vectors enhances the accuracy of drill hole placements.
- Complex vein orientations: Although the geological structure is intricate, it remains predictable, indicating strong potential for resource growth.
This structural understanding clarifies earlier observations where high-grade zones seemed to terminate abruptly. In reality, they were displaced by subsequent faulting events. By accurately determining these displacement patterns, Locksley can effectively target the extensions of proven high-grade lodes.
Expanding the mineralized footprint
Beyond the immediate boundaries of DAM, the geological campaign has successfully extended known mineralized trends. Further mapping south of the Hendricks prospect has uncovered previously unnoticed shear zones exhibiting geological characteristics similar to those at DAM. These include quartz-calcite-barite vein systems that run parallel to primary mineralized trends and intense goethite alteration indicative of weathered primary sulfide mineralization.
The discoveries suggest that the mineral system in the Northern Block may exceed current resource estimates, with multiple structural pathways potentially hosting high-grade antimony mineralization.
Antimony’s strategic relevance
Located in California, a region rich in minerals, the Mojave project’s findings stem from an extensive Stage III technical review. This assessment has improved the understanding of the structural controls influencing high-grade antimony mineralization.0
Located in California, a region rich in minerals, the Mojave project’s findings stem from an extensive Stage III technical review. This assessment has improved the understanding of the structural controls influencing high-grade antimony mineralization.1
Future directions and investment opportunities
Located in California, a region rich in minerals, the Mojave project’s findings stem from an extensive Stage III technical review. This assessment has improved the understanding of the structural controls influencing high-grade antimony mineralization.2
- Optimizing drill planning based on newly mapped fault systems and structural controls.
- Obtaining assay results from surface and underground sampling across multiple targets.
- Conducting systematic sampling along the Beefeater Shear corridor.
- Evaluating diamond drilling for precise structural targeting.
Located in California, a region rich in minerals, the Mojave project’s findings stem from an extensive Stage III technical review. This assessment has improved the understanding of the structural controls influencing high-grade antimony mineralization.3