Torque Metals Confirms Exceptional High-Grade Gold Intercept at Ritz Project’s HHH Deposit

Torque Metals (ASX: TOR) has returned an exceptional shallow gold intercept below the HHH deposit at its 100%-owned Ritz gold project in Western Australia, with reverse circulation drilling intersecting 11 metres at 456 grams per tonne gold from 122m.

The result included 1m at 3,625g/t gold and was accompanied by abundant visible gold in drill spoil, with a follow-up diamond hole drilled about 3m away returning 7.9m at 1.37g/t gold from 146.2m, supporting Torque’s interpretation that the mineralised structure may continue on a steep plane through the HHH system.

The results form part of an accelerated drilling campaign aimed at extending the existing mineral resource estimate at HHH and testing additional high-grade structures across the broader Ritz tenure.

Torque undertook additional quality assurance and quality control work after the initial photon assay results from the standout interval were deemed unreportable because combined uranium and thorium concentrations exceeded 80 parts per million.

A duplicate 3mm laboratory split subsequently returned 11m at 419g/t gold, including 3m at 1,212g/t, before the original sample material was milled to 75 micrometres, homogenised, and re-assayed to produce the reported 11m at 456g/t result, including 3m at 1,267g/t.

HHH Resource Growth Focus

HHH currently hosts an MRE of 1.145 million tonnes at 2.0g/t gold for 73,000 ounces, with current drilling targeting extensions to the resource and possible lodes that have not previously been modelled.

Other recent results included 8m at 3.79g/t gold from 111m near the southern edge of the inferred HHH resource, 4m at 6.90g/t from 46m in the north, and a deeper 2m at 8.06g/t from 282m outside the current MRE.

The deeper intercept aligns with the main west-plunging HHH structure and previously modelled down-hole electromagnetic plates, while RC and diamond drilling are continuing to test mineralisation along dip and strike.

At the nearby Observation deposit, drilling below the existing MRE also returned 1m at 10.64g/t gold, with additional RC assays pending and further results to follow once analysis is complete.

Visible Gold Nuggets

“It was incredible to see these visible gold nuggets coming out of the RC drill spoil as you sieved the chips,” general manager of exploration Monty Graham said.

“I’ve seen the odd ‘VG’ in RC drill chips before, but that […] is the most visible gold I’ve ever seen from a drill sample.”

“It’s always exciting to see visible gold in panned drill samples, particularly when they are validated by spectacular assayed intercepts of this magnitude,” managing director Craig Jones added.

“The abundant visible gold in this shallow interval reflects the incredible endowment of the system and reinforces the high-grade growth potential we see across the Ritz project.”

Broader Ritz Campaign

Torque has renamed the broader Paris gold project as the Ritz gold project to distinguish the district-scale tenure package from the individual Paris deposit, which retains its original name alongside HHH and Observation.

The Ritz MRE totals 3.473Mt at 3.1g/t gold for 351,000oz across the three deposits, while drilling is continuing at Paris around potential repeat and offset structures including the interpreted PL3 position.

Two rigs are operating across Ritz as Torque advances its Rapid Path to one Million (RPM) strategy, with heritage surveys underway across previously unexplored areas.

Drilling along Maynard’s Corridor is scheduled to begin this quarter, while further assays are pending from Paris and Observation as Torque continues resource growth and regional exploration across the project.