Sunshine Metals has launched an advanced scoping study looking at the extraction of up to 95,000oz of high-grade gold and 652,000oz of silver at its Liontown project.

The company said the resources covered comprised about 12 per cent of the total Liontown gold-copper-zinc-silver-lead resource tonnes and accounted for about 35 per cent of the contained gold at the North Queensland site.

Liontown was first mined as the Carrington gold mine, from which 28Koz gold was extracted. Carrington and its strike extensions, including the Au Panel, will be considered in the expanded study announced today.

Related: Sunshine moves to next phase after Liontown drilling success

The company in March outlined a strategy to accelerate mining studies and drilling at key shallow oxide gold targets. Its aim is to move quickly during record gold prices, with the potential to process ore at nearby toll treating mills.

“We are thrilled to expand the scope of the gold study to incorporate additional high-grade gold sources at Liontown,” Sunshine managing director Damien Keys said.

“The extra mineralisation comes from both the Carrington Fresh and the Au Panel that generated some stellar gold intersections.

“Importantly both fresh sources are close to the shallow mineralisation which formed the basis for the gold commercialisation strategy.

“Metallurgical samples have been sent, resource work is well underway, mine design and approvals will commence shortly and we are pushing for a commercial outcome as fast as possible.”

The study takes in the following resources:

• Shallow Au (inferred); 16.4Koz gold (expected to be upgraded to the indicated category following results of metallurgical test work in August);
• Carrington Fresh (indicated): 22.1Koz gold beneath Shallow Au;
• Au-Panel (indicated): 37.8Koz gold; and
• Au-Panel (inferred); 18.7koz gold (which will be the subject of future drilling).

The Liontown Resource (including Liontown East) currently stands at 5.9Mt at 3.7g/t AuEq It is part of Sunshine’s Ravenswood Consolidated Project.