Questcorp Mining (CSE:QQQ) has contracted Tripoint Geological to undertake a notice of work permit for 10-15km of induced polarisation surveying on its North Island Copper Project to update the 35-year-old survey utilising modern equipment and data processing.
The company has prepared a survey proposal, which is being forwarded for IP contractors for quotes.
While Questcorp’s North Island Copper project hosts eight targets across the property, the main target is the historical Marisa Zone, a porphyry copper target last explored in the 1990s.
Surface sampling and a preliminary 12.3-line km IP survey identified an interesting chargeability anomaly that was followed up by a five-hole, 376.43m diamond drilling program.
Two of the five holes hit interesting copper values including down hole intervals of 0.078% copper over 56.39m in DDH92-01 and 0.041% copper over 70.71m in DDH92-03 in an altered quartz diorite. The company plans to follow up these historical results.
Questcorp CEO Saf Dhillon says copper grades were increasing with depth in DDH92-03.
“Our neighbour NorthIsle Copper and Gold continues to produce excellent exploration results 15km to the west, in the same belt of rocks that also hosts the past producing Island Copper Mine 7.5km to the southeast attesting to the tremendous exploration potential of the area,” Dhillon says.
“The Marisa Zone displays a strong historic IP signature and anomaly carrying encouraging copper numbers from very limited drilling, begging for a second pass with modern geophysical equipment and processing.”
Questcorp cautions that a qualified person has not verified the historical exploration data and further cautions, the presence of copper mineralisation on the NorthIsle Copper and Gold (TSXV:NCX) and BHP (ASX:BHP) properties is not necessarily indicative of similar mineralisation on the North Island Copper property.
Meanwhile, the company remains optimistic of the year ahead for the junior exploration space in North America.
As reported in part one of Mining.com.au’s United State of Mining: A North American outlook series, while the CEO notes it’s hard for micro-caps to raise funds, there is scope to access capital if juniors tighten capital structures, bolster cash on hand, and obtain well-positioned projects, with an experienced management team.
Last week, Questcorp closed a private placement to raise C$2.7 million ($2.97 million), which will be used to complete the acquisition of the La Union Project in Mexico, as reported.
In September 2024, the company entered into a letter of intent with Riverside Resources (TSX-V:RRI) to acquire the La Union Project. Alongside the La Union Project acquisition, Questcorp says the funds will be used to continue exploration at the North Island Copper Property in Vancouver Island, Canada.
The North Island Copper Project contains two targets — auriferous base metal skarns associated with quatsino limestones in the east and porphyry copper mineralisation associated with the island intrusions in the west.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Questcorp
