ABSTRACT

In a global and national economic climate of uncertainty, gold has once again assumed a crucial role as a safe haven.

Inflation, exchange rate fluctuations, and geopolitical instability have driven many parties, including investors, the public, and businesses, to seek and secure gold reserves.

This situation has also increased interest in gold exploration activities, particularly in areas considered to be promising.

Gold exploration is a crucial initial stage in identifying the potential for gold mineralization in an area.

Various exploration methods can be applied, ranging from geological mapping, geochemistry, geophysics, and drilling.

One geochemical method frequently used in the early to mid-stages of exploration is the BLEG (Bulk Leach Extractable Gold) method.

The BLEG method is a geochemical analysis technique aimed at detecting very low levels of gold (trace gold) by dissolving gold from relatively large samples using a cyanide solution.

 The samples are typically river sediment or crushed rock which is then chemically processed to extract the gold.

The main advantage of this method is its ability to detect gold anomaly signals that are not always detected by conventional, small-sample analysis.

In an exploration context, BLEG is not a reserve determination method, but rather an effective screening tool for identifying prospective areas and narrowing down target zones.

BLEG analysis results are integrated with geological, structural, and other exploration methods to assess the gold potential of an area before proceeding to further exploration stages such as trenching or drilling.

Thus, the BLEG method is part of a suite of existing gold exploration methods, efficient, sensitive, and highly useful in helping determine the direction and focus of exploration activities amidst the increasing demand and search for gold in the current economic climate.

The BLEG test does not yet have a specific ASTM standard number. Regarding SNI, there is no definitive information regarding the existence of a specific SNI standard for the BLEG test.

Keywords: Exploration, Gold, BLEG, SNI.