(Sharecast News) - Arkle Resources released the results of its December drilling programme at the Inishowen gold prospect on Thursday, reporting promising grades of gold, with the strike length of the structure extending further.

The AIM-traded firm said the drilling programme uncovered results including gold grades of up to 1.65 grams per tonne over 0.8 metres.

Within the span, a particularly high-grade section was discovered, measuring 0.25 metres and containing 2.94 grams of gold per tonne.

The board said the gold mineralisation was identified not only within quartz veins but also within the fault gouge and the surrounding wall rock.

It noted that core loss was encountered in one specific drill hole, 23-MR-14, potentially affecting the reported grade.

The loss was attributed to the possibility of the fault gouge having washed out during drilling.

To mitigate core loss in future drilling efforts, the company said it intended to employ triple-tube drilling techniques.

"We are encouraged by the results of our drilling programme at Inishowen," said chairman John Teeling.

"The discovery of gold mineralisation in multiple holes along strike demonstrates that the main vein continues northwards as predicted but will now require further drilling to truly evaluate its potential.

"We are not deterred by the lower grades in this recent drilling campaign as this is typical in these types of systems and we expect grades and widths to fluctuate along strike."

At 1149 GMT, shares in Arkle Resources were down 5.65% at 0.4p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.