Buxton Resources (ASX:BUX) reports rock chip samples up to 6.21% copper (Cu) and 1,355 grams per tonne silver (Ag) from its newly acquired Arivaca Project in Arizona, US.
The company secured 14.2km2 of tenure in Arizona’s Laramide porphyry belt for approximately US$11,000 ($15,361) in pegging costs. The project sits 30km southwest of Freeport‑McMoRan’s (NYSE:FCX) Sierrita copper‑molybdenum mining complex.
Initial reconnaissance sampling returned multiple ‘high‑grade’ results, with the best copper samples including 6.21% Cu, 3.55% Cu, and 1.10% Cu from historic mine dumps. Several samples exceeded 400g/t Ag, while the best in situ rock chip returned 0.69% Cu and 84.3g/t Ag from the same sample.
“Arivaca is exactly the kind of opportunity Buxton is pursuing in Arizona — 100% owned, acquired at low cost, with high-grade surface mineralisation in an underexplored setting within the proven Laramide porphyry belt,” CEO Marty Moloney says.
The ‘highest‑grade’ samples came from dumps adjacent to historic mine workings within zones of quartz veining and brecciation.
Buxton collected 35 rock chip samples, with results also returning elevated gold up to 0.55g/t, plus lead, zinc, arsenic, and antimony. The polymetallic veining, geochemical signature, and alteration are interpreted as consistent with the upper parts of a porphyry system.
A prominent airborne magnetic low coincides with the anomalous geochemistry area, potentially indicating a deeper felsic intrusion that typically underlies porphyry mineral systems.
The project covers a window of Cretaceous volcanic rocks and surrounding Tertiary cover within the historic Las Guijas mining district. Small‑scale mining for copper, silver, lead, gold, and tungsten dates to the 19th century, with more than 100 recorded historic workings across the wider district.
Despite this mining history, no modern systematic exploration is known within the area. The company aims to test whether the historic workings reflect polymetallic veining related to a more extensive porphyry mineralised system at depth.
Buxton has submitted geological field operations plans to the Arizona State Lands Department (ASLD) for detailed mapping and surface sampling, airborne magnetics, and drill testing.
The company continues to pursue 100%‑owned opportunities acquired at low cost with ‘high‑grade’ surface mineralisation in underexplored settings.
Buxton Resources is an Australian explorer with a portfolio spanning the Madman Copper-Gold and Graphite Bull projects in Western Australia, as well as copper assets in Arizona.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Buxton Resources
