Alma Metals (ASX:ALM) has begun a ‘major’ drilling campaign at its Briggs Copper Project in Central Queensland to expand and upgrade the resource estimate ahead of a Prefeasibility Study.
The company will include 1,250m of exploration drilling across four holes to test surface geochemical copper anomalism outside of the resource estimate, and 12,500m of infill drilling across 41 holes to convert the estimate from inferred to indicated, both to be completed by the end of 2026.
The overall drilling campaign is expected to be completed in the next 12–15 months.
The primary objectives of drilling include resource conversion, to test depth extensions of known mineralisation, and drilling at ‘high-priority’ extensional targets to grow total contained copper beyond 2 million tonnes at a 0.15% copper cut-off.
Briggs also hosts a current resource of 73 million pounds of molybdenum and 16.5 million ounces of silver in indicated and inferred categories.
Managing Director Frazer Tabeart says the beginning of drilling is “one of the most significant milestones” for the project’s history.
“With 2 million tonnes of contained copper already defined at a 0.15% cut-off, a near-surface indicated resource supporting early mine planning, and a system that remains open to the west and at depth with excellent grades in our deepest holes — the resource upside here is genuinely compelling,” Tabeart says.
“This program is about systematically realising that potential, building the geological confidence needed for prefeasibility studies, and transitioning from explorer to developer.”
Alma Metals is an Australian copper explorer focused on its projects in Queensland and the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: Alma Metals
