Barton Gold (ASX: BGD) (OTCQB: BGDFF) has confirmed that preliminary metallurgical testing of sample mineralisation from the Tolmer prospect has yielded a concentrate grading over 100,000 grams per tonne silver.
The sample was collected during drilling at the high-grade prospect, which sits within the company’s Tarcoola gold project in South Australia.
It was subsequently dried, washed, and panned to produce material for evaluation using scanning electron microscopy.
Testing delivered a concentrate grading more than 100,000g/t (or aproximately 10%) silver from a simple gravity process without any grinding, roasting, or use of chemical reagents.
Tolmer is one of Australia’s highest-grade silver discoveries, identified in March 2025 through a discovery hole that yielded a peak intersection of 6 metres at 4,747g/t silver including 4m at 13.2g/t gold.
High Silver Enrichment
Barton managing director Alexander Scanlon called the preliminary results “exceptional”.
“There is clearly something very different going on at Tolmer—not only in the degree of silver enrichment in the oxide and transitional zones but also regarding the dominant presence of primary silver in the veining below the western silver zone observed in recent drilling,” he said.
“This is entirely distinct from the rest of the Tarcoola goldfield, where gold is the dominant mineral, and it raises exciting possibilities.”
Barton believes the ability to produce “exceptionally high-grade concentrates without hydrometallurgical or pyrometallurgical processes” could have potential implications for low-cost, high-margin operations if this is consistent for the mineralisation.
Comprehensive Test Work
Barton has engaged a geological consultant to assist with the comprehensive quantitative metallurgical test work program required to evaluate potential commercial viability.
“Detailed metallurgical testing is now required, but the prospective ability to concentrate Tolmer’s silver from just a simple, gravity based process is also exciting,” Mr Scanlon said.
“For context, one tonne of concentrate grading over 100,000g/t silver would today contain over $300,000 worth of silver before attributing any value for contained gold by-product credits.”
He said the company would commence a 4,000m reverse circulation drilling campaign next month to further develop Tolmer’s local geological knowledge and test potential extensions indicated by soil assays around drill intercepts exceeding 2,000 gram-metres silver.
