(Sharecast News) - Ireland and Finland-focussed explorer and developer Conroy Gold announced the start of a 3,000 metre drilling programme on its Clontibret gold target in Ireland on Wednesday, with its joint venture partner Demir Export.
The AIM-traded firm said drilling started at the end of April, in line with its plan.
It said the programme was part of the €4.5m (£3.78m) earn-in work programme of the first phase of the joint venture with Demir Export.
The objective of the venture is to further explore and develop the new district-scale gold trend, which Conroy Gold discovered along the Longford-Down Massif in Ireland.
Conroy said the initial 3,000 metre programme, consisting of eight holes, would be focussed on the Clontibret gold target.
The programme was aiming to extend the eastern gold lodes and the stockwork gold mineralisation, both of which were open in all directions and to depth.
Seven of the holes are step-out, and one hole is targeting an up-dip gold mineralisation zone.
All of the drill holes were planned to intersect the stockwork, with the drilling projected to increase the stockwork mineralisation to the northeast, and also extend the depth of the stockwork.
Three of the drill holes would be focussed primarily on the eastern lodes of the Clontibret gold resource, with a view to extending those lodes to the north.
The board said it believed those drill holes also had potential for the discovery of new lodes.
Conroy said the drilling would step-out from the known gold mineralisation, in both the stockwork and eastern lodes in the deposit, which would further enhance the company's technical understanding of the Clontibret gold target.
"We are very pleased that this initial 3,000 metre drill programme has commenced, in conjunction with our joint venture partner Demir Export," said chairman Richard Conroy.
"It is a further important step toward the development of a gold mine at Clontibret."
At 1128 BST, shares in Conroy Gold and Natural Resources were up 4.43% at 34.2p.
Conroy Gld&nres (CGNR)