True North Copper (ASX:TNC) has identified multiple open zones of ‘high-grade’ copper and gold mineralisation at the Wallace North area of its Cloncurry Project in Queensland.
The $87.71 million market capitalisation company says recent drilling and induced polarisation (IP) survey results highlight the ‘significant’ growth potential of Wallace North. The exploration work has defined the down-plunge continuity of a 100m wide, 250m deep ‘high-grade’ shoot open at depth.
True North adds that the drilling work intersected the top of an untested shoot, potentially 200m wide and open to depth.
Some of the resource extension drilling results include hole WNR0001 with 10m @ 2.22% Cu and 1.41g/t Au from 146m; hole WNR0006 with 6m @ 0.43% Cu and 12.99g/t Au from 151m; and hole WNR002 with 7m @ 2.14% Cu and 1.13g/t Au from 110m.
Commenting on the drilling and survey results, True North Copper Managing Director Marty Costello says: “Thanks to this completed resource expansion drilling and IP surveying, along with our recently concluded advanced grade control drilling program, which included 150 drillholes and more than 9,400m of drilling, we can now finalise an updated resource for Wallace North.
“This drilling program confirms there are several high-grade copper and gold zones within the Wallace North-approved mining footprint”
This drilling program confirms there are several high-grade copper and gold zones within the Wallace North-approved mining footprint, open at depth and warranting further exploration. More drilling will be undertaken across these zones and the anomalies we identified as part of the recent IP survey.
We are conducting revised metallurgical tests in conjunction with the upcoming technical tasks related to the development of the initial Wallace North reserve statement. This testing aims to validate effective extraction and processing methods.
The prevalent copper mineralisation in the resource, as observed from our drilling, is chalcopyrite, which typically responds well to standard flotation. Given the gold is intertwined with the copper mineralisation, there is a strong possibility of extracting gold in a concentrated form during ore processing.”
The company’s next steps will be to conduct downhole electromagnetic (EM) surveys to help target deeper at Wallace North. True North will also extend historical ground-based EM surveys to build a series of prioritised EM plate targets for drill testing and design drillholes for the untested IP/EM targets in the area.
Further development of Wallace North will also include the remodelling of the resource domains and recalculation of the resource through exploration drilling and results received from the advanced grade control drillholes.
This reinstated resource could be used for pit design, mining, and financial analysis for future reserve statements expected in Q1 2024.
The Cloncurry Project lies in Queensland and is prospective for copper, gold, and cobalt.
True North Copper is an ASX-listed gold, copper, and cobalt explorer with assets in Cloncurry and Mt Oxide. As of 30 June 2023, the company had $3.492 million cash and cash equivalents at hand, according to its latest quarterly report. On July 31, True North secured a short-term working capital loan from Tembo Capital Mining Fund for $4 million.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: True North Copper
