Alma Metals (ASX:ALM) has received assay results from the first three holes of its 2026 infill drilling program at the Briggs Copper Project in Queensland.
The program aims to upgrade the mineral resource estimate (MRE) and support the Prefeasibility Study, returning results consistent with the current resource block model.
Hole 26BRD0039 returned 322.3m @ 0.17% copper (Cu) from 6.5m, including 18m @ 0.25% Cu from 156m and 86.9m @ 0.23% Cu from 207.1m. Hole 26BRD0040 returned 388.4m @ 0.15% Cu from 4.2m, and hole 26BRD0041 returned 400.5m @ 0.13% Cu from 3.5m.
Managing Director Frazer Tabeart says the results validate the current MRE block model.
“This first batch of assays from the large 2026 infill drilling program is entirely in line with our expectations based on grade predictions from the current MRE block model and the copper distribution in surface soil samples,” Tabeart explains.
“This gives us great confidence that the infill program will ultimately deliver the appropriate update to the MRE and metallurgical test work programs to support our preliminary Feasibility Study.”
The company has completed seven holes totalling approximately 2,300m to date. A further 34 infill holes for 10,000m are scheduled for 2026, with an additional 35 holes for approximately 17,500m planned for 2027.
Four exploration holes totalling 1,250m will test surface copper anomalies west of the current MRE.
The infill program aims to convert inferred resources to indicated at nominal 80m drill spacing, supporting the first half of potential mining operations.
The Briggs Copper Project contains 2 million tonnes of copper metal in indicated and inferred resources at a 0.15% copper cut-off grade.
Alma Metals is a copper-focused explorer advancing its flagship Briggs Copper Project in Queensland alongside the East Kimberley Copper Project in Western Australia.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Alma Metals
