Great Southern Copper PLC (LON: GSCU) has reported encouraging Phase III drilling results from its Cerro Negro prospect, further extending high-grade copper-silver mineralisation.
Hole DD036 returned an intersection of 19.2 metres grading 1.02% copper and 58.4 g/t silver, including a higher-grade 3.0-metre interval at 2.11% copper and 119.9 g/t silver. The company said the results indicate the mineralised system may be broadening at depth.
Exploration drilling at Lens 5 also delivered positive results. Hole DD034 encountered sulphide copper-silver mineralisation, intersecting 5.0 metres grading 0.48% copper and 45.22 g/t silver, supporting the potential for an expanded copper endowment across the project.
Great Southern Copper said it is preparing a Phase IV drilling programme to further define the scale and continuity of the mineralised system.
Highlights:
· Assay results for holes DD033 and DD036 confirm potential for a multiple lens system, with grades up to 3.29 % Cu and 186 g/t Ag, including significant intervals;
o DD036: 19.2m @ 1.02% Cu and 58.4 g/t Ag from 191m, including
§ 3.0m @ 2.11% Cu and 119.9 g/t Ag from 199m, within a broader interval of
§ 39.6m @ 0.57% Cu and 34.7 g/t Ag from 170.6m
· Results suggest significant potential for the mineralised system to be broadening at depth with high-grade lenses occurring within a wider lower-grade envelope of mineralisation
· Anomalous Pb-Zn mineralisation including low-grade Cu-Ag suggests potential for a zoned mineral system and could extend the potential deposit width to over 80 metres thick.
· Exploration drilling at Lens 5 (DD034) discovered sulphide Cu-Ag mineralisation at depth beneath surface leached oxide mineralisation consistent with both Lens 2 type high-grade Cu-Ag and mineralisation identified in outcrop at Monolith 400m to the southeast, including
o DD034: 5.0m @ 0.48% Cu and 45.22 g/t Ag from 62m
· DD034 result significantly expands the copper endowment potential of the Cu-Ag discovery within the near-Mostaza environment
· Planning for Phase IV resource and exploration drilling is in progress
· GSC holds option to 100% of the Cerro Negro project including the Mostaza mine
· Project located at low elevation with excellent access to mining-related infrastructure
Sam Garrett, Chief Executive Officer of Great Southern Copper, said: “The confirmation of deeper high-grade mineralisation in DD033 and DD036, marks an important step forward in our understanding of the Mostaza system where we are now consistently intersecting multiple stacked high-grade copper-silver lenses developed within a broader mineralised envelope.
“Importantly, the dacite-hosted crackle-vein mineralisation intersected at depth in holes DD033 and DD036, and also now confirmed in hole DD034 at Lens 5, is consistent with the mineralisation mapped and sampled in outcrop at the Monolith Zone some 400m to the southeast – indicating potential for a broader bulk-tonnage copper-silver target that complements the expanding high-grade lens-style mineralisation in Lens 2.
“Cerro Negro is increasingly demonstrating the characteristics of a scalable copper-silver system with both discrete high-grade lenses within wider lower-grade envelopes, and we continue to refine the geological model to guide the next phase of drilling and prioritise high-impact targets along trend and at depth.
“Further Phase III drill results are awaited, including reconnaissance scout RC results, as well as results for metallurgical test work of the high-grade copper-silver ore. Planning is now at an advanced stage for Phase IV drilling at Cerro Negro which we hope will build on this momentum and further define the broader-scale potential of the system.”
