Christmas Gift Project

The Christmas Gift Project (E6010) 100% CRC is located in the Cullinga Goldfield in central NSW 180km NW of Canberra and 15km east of Cootamundra. The prospect contains metamorphosed Cambrian and Silurian tuffaceous sediments intruded by Silurian granodiorites. A steep easterly dipping thrust sequence parallel to strike structurally controls the known gold mineralisation over a 200m wide NNE corridor. Past production from old workings includes the Christmas Gift (37,000oz), the Democrat (2,036oz) and Cullinga Extended (460oz).

Within the Christmas Gift project nine old workings cover a historic continuous 6km line of lode. The tenement area occupies the northern 3km portion of the known lode system and beyond. Cullinga Extended, positioned in the centre of the tenement, represents the last working on the structure with the remaining 3km, to the north, virtually unexplored, although it’s noted that previous geological interpretations suggest the lode may be transposed by NNW faulting.

At Cullinga Extended previous near surface RAB drilling intersected 6m @ 22.9g/t Au from 14m adjacent to an old stope. The high grade intersection has not been followed up. The intercept highlights the near mine exploration potential to find additional ore shoots adjacent to and down plunge from the existing old mine workings. Previous drilling, on lode but away from the workings, also reveals gold mineralisation. One hundred metres south of the Venables mine PDH047 intersected 2m @ 19.3g/t Au from 22m, representing a significant drill result has not been adequately followed up and highlighting the untested lode potential away from the known workings at Christmas Gift. A new area, 250m west of the main line of workings termed the Western Zone returned narrow mineable grade intersections of 2m @ 5gt/t Au and 2m @ 3.6g/t Au. These anomalous intercepts again highlight mineralisation potential away from the traditional line of workings.

The Christmas Gift project displays high grade gold mineralisation from several past producers and a line of lode that apart from shallow drilling in the immediate areas surrounding the old workings remains effectively untested.

The main underground working, Christmas Gift, extends over a length of 225m and a depth of 110m. Production records indicate 49,000t of ore was mined between 1892 and 1931 with an average grade of 23.5g/t Au. Previous drilling has identified dilatational jog structures and high grade gold mineralisation associated with carbonate and quartz veining of varying intensity together with shearing and brecciation.

The immediate mine area has been RC and Diamond drilled on a 25x20m pattern, intersections >20gram metres in the immediate area surrounding the Christmas Gift are tabulated below:

Sample intervals of 1m, 1.3m (PDH022 only) or 2m in RC holes – analysis technique 50gm Fire assays RAB hole 84030 1.5m & 3m composite sample intervals – analysis technique 50gm Fire assay

Previous exploration including shallow RAB and RC drilling, limited diamond drilling, geological mapping, soil geochemistry and geophysical programmes, have focused on the known line of old workings targeting shallow depth and strike repetitions of high grade dilatational jogs adjacent to and bordering the old workings. The down plunge extensions of old stopes and mined ore zones remain untested as does the majority of the lode system away from the known workings.

In recent times exploration drilling has been confined to the main lode zone, only 4 RC holes were drilled in 2005 followed up with 2 Diamond holes the following year.

Sample intervals of 1m or 2m in RC holes – analysis technique ME ICP42 (ALS Laboratories)

Additional drill orientated exploration is required away from the known mineralised zones. In particular the newly discovered Western Zone target as well as existing mines such as Venables, located south of Christmas Gift as well as Cullinga Extended, positioned north of Christmas Gift. The area between these old workings has been subject to very limited exploration activity and the lode extensions have the potential to host additional gold mineralisation.