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Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (TSXV:AVU)is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive option agreement with Western Tethyan Resources to advance the Slivova Gold Project, located in the productive Vardar Mineral Trend in the Republic of Kosovo, to a possible mining solution. WTR can earn-in to 75% of the Project by funding exploration and development for Euro 1,800,000 over three years, and then a further 10% by making certain milestone and success payments, producing an Environmental Impact Statement, delivering a Feasibility Study, and completing a Mining License application.
- The Definitive Agreement (“DA”) outlines a path towards potential gold production from the Slivova deposit;
- Western Tethyan Resources (“WTR”) completed a robust Due Diligence (“DD”) review, a Concept Study, and continues to work on a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”), including a metals resource update for the Slivova deposit;
- WTR can earn-in to 85% of the Slivova Project.
To date, WTR has spent more than Euro 275,000 for Due Diligence, development of a Concept Study, and continuing work on a PEA. WTR is a private exploration company based in London and Prishtina, Republic of Kosovo, and is 75% owned by London AIM-listed Ariana Resources (“Ariana”).
Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, commented, “Western Tethyan has already made significant progress towards defining a possible mining solution at Slivova. We are truly excited about the positive progress in the ongoing PEA and Concept Studies, as well as for getting started in a new phase of exploration and resource definition. WTR is working on a new resource update, and we expect information later this quarter.”
Mentor Demi, Managing Director of Western Tethyan Resources, added, “Alongside an aggressive exploration programme throughout the West Tethyan Belt, we are actively seeking acquisition opportunities. Acquisition of the Slivova gold deposit is a step towards building Western Tethyan Resources into a development company, as well, and the Slivova Mine as the first modern mine in Kosovo since the 1920’s.”
Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director of Ariana Resources, stated, “The completion of this agreement formalizes a process we had already embarked upon in March following the successful completion of the Project due diligence. We are already nearing completion of a revised Mineral Resource Estimate for Slivova, and we look forward to announcing this work in due course.
In addition, further work has been underway at the local community level in order to increase awareness of the project and its merits. We are investigating opportunities to deliver a low-impact mining project which aims to achieve a new standard for mining in Kosovo and potentially become a strategic hub of operations for the company in the country.”
About Slivova
The Slivova exploration license covers 30.51 km2 of prospectable land surrounding the Slivova gold deposit. The license is valid for 7 years from May 2022. Outside of the deposit itself, much of the property is under-explored. Avrupa commissioned an initial NI 43-101 resource study in 2016 and reported an indicated mineral resource of 640,000 mt @ 4.8 g/t gold and 14.68 g/t silver for a total of 98,700 ounces of gold and 302,000 ounces of silver. Slivova Maiden Resource, 2016
WTR is currently updating the Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) to JORC standards, and Avrupa will follow suit by transforming the JORC estimate to a NI 43-101 resource estimate. The companies expect to be able to report the new MRE during Q2 2023. The new evaluation will encompass results from drilling subsequent to the 2016 report, re-interpretation of previous geological information from surface and trench mapping and sampling, and thorough review of all historic core.
As noted in a previous AVU news release, AVU and WTR agree to Proceed, there are additional nearby and distal targets within the new Slivova license. There are known zones of mineralization close to the main Slivova deposit that WTR will need to drill, and we can expect upgrade work on a number of distal targets around the license in the coming field season.
Figures 1 and 2. Maps showing location of Slivova in Kosovo, along with target areas to be upgraded. New license is shown as a red polygon. The names in northwest quadrant are historic Trepça base metal mines
Terms of the Agreement
Under the terms of the Definitive Agreement, WTR will have the right to acquire, in multiple stages, up to 85% of the Slivova project, by completing a series of exploration and development milestones and making staged payments to AVU.
On Closing
- Euro 35,000 cash payment upon signing the Definitive Agreement on/about March 1, 2023. (Completed)
Earn-In Phase
Stage 1:
- Euro 30,000 cash payment on September 1, 2023;
- If WTR elects to enter the Definitive Agreement, it will invest Euro 800,000, during first two years from the effective date (minimum of Euro 150,000 must be spent by September 1, 2023, post DD Phase) for exploration, drilling, baseline environmental and social surveys, landowners, etc., for 51% of the Project. (Underway)
Stage 2:
- After completion of Stage 1, during the third year from the Effective Date, WTR will invest Euro 1,000,000 for NI 43-101 resource estimation, commencement of full Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”), etc., for 75% of the Project.
Stage 3:
- During fourth and fifth year from the Effective Date, WTR must complete the EIS, Feasibility Study (“FS”), and Mining License application, for 85% of the Project.
Stage 4:
- WTR completes success payments to previous JV partner, Byrnecut International Ltd., accordingly:
- Euro 125,000 in cash within 30 days of the first to occur of: 1) Completion of a positive FS (minimum 15% IRR) or; 2) Avrupa or related party making a decision to proceed with development of a mining operation within the license area;
- Euro 125,000 within 30 days of issuance of a mining license for the Project;
- Euro 125,000 within 30 days of commencement of mine construction within the license area;
- 100 troy ounces of gold within 30 days of commencement of commercial production (“CCP”), then increasing by 75 troy ounces per year until and including the third anniversary of commercial production when 325 troy ounces will be delivered.
- Avrupa participates in the mine build or dilutes to 1% NSR.
Western Tethyan Resources Ltd. is a UK-registered, mineral exploration and development company focused on South East Europe. The company has a strategic alliance with Newmont Corporation and Ariana Resources and is currently focused on exploration for major copper-gold deposits in the Lecce Magmatic Complex and Vardar Belt in Kosovo. The company is assessing several other exploration project opportunities across Eastern Europe, targeting major copper-gold deposits across the porphyry-epithermal transition.
Ariana Resources plc is an AIM-listed mineral exploration and development company with an exceptional track-record of creating value for its shareholders through its interests in active mining projects and investments in exploration companies. Its current interests include gold production in Turkey and copper-gold exploration and development projects in Cyprus and Kosovo.
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire MATSA in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its in-process acquisition of Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com.
On behalf of the Board,
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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Avrupa Minerals
Overview
Avrupa Minerals (TSXV:AVU) is a junior exploration and development company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company follows a unique prospect generator model focused on aggressive modern exploration for world-class mineral deposits in politically-stable jurisdictions across Europe, including Portugal, Kosovo and more recently, Finland.
Avrupa’s hybrid prospect generator model is designed to create shareholder value by building an extensive portfolio of projects suitable for exploration to be funded by joint venture or sold to larger mining companies. The company leverages new techniques and technologies to improve exploration efforts and facilitate new discoveries. In some cases, companies following the prospect generator model have become royalty companies by allowing partners to dilute them to a valuable royalty, and Avrupa has significant exposure to this route to liquidity.
Avrupa’s goal is to have one flagship, 100-percent-owned project, that it advances with its own funds instead of through partner funding. The Finland projects, some of which have historical base metal resources, are being assessed to identify flagship potential for one of the assets.
The company's projects are all located in areas with existing mines and strong geological potential for the discovery of further economic metal deposits. For example, the company’s flagship Alvalade JV project is located in the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) of southern Portugal, a hotspot for mining with over 80 historic mines in the Belt. Presently, there are seven active mining operations in the IPB of Portugal and Spain.
Company Highlights
- Operates in mining-friendly jurisdictions that are also prospective for large deposits
- Europe offers established mining districts, pro-mining policies and a variety of metals including gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc and tungsten
- Seeking partners for strategic alliances and/or project-specific JVs to fund large drill programs.
- Owns the Alvalade JV (VMS-copper-zinc), located in the Pyrite Belt of southern Portugal.
- JV earn-in agreement with Sandfire-MATSA on the Alvalade copper project
- Sandfire-MATSA currently funding drilling at the Alvalade copper-zinc project
- Slivova Gold Project in the Vardar Mineral Belt in Kosovo. Discovery made in 2012. Initial gold resource estimate completed in April 2016.
- Made two significant discoveries: the Slivova gold target and the Sesmarias VMS at Alvalade.
- Four Finland projects acquired in 2021, some with historical copper and/or zinc resources.
Key Projects
Alvalade copper project
The IPB is one of the world’s largest and most prolific copper-zinc-iron massive sulfide belts with mining history dating back more than 2,000 years. Three out of four of the last greenfield discoveries in the IPB are now large operating mines, including the giant Neves Corvo copper-zinc-tin massive sulfide mine. However, the area has not experienced any real exploration since the mid-1990s. In 2012, Avrupa Minerals' team began applying its expertise to the region resulting in a new discovery at Alvalade in 2014.
Avrupa Minerals’ Alvalade license is located along trend to the northwest of Neves Corvo, which is currently the largest operating copper-zinc mine in Europe.
The Alvalade project involves an earn-in agreement that Avrupa (the operator) does not have to fund at present. The project was previously optioned to Antofagasta Minerals, one of the world’s largest copper producers. Armed with a new geological model, Avrupa Minerals was able to successfully complete five rounds of drilling at Alvalade between April 2012 and October 2014.
The initial 2014 drill program made a significant VMS discovery in the Sesmarias West target on the Alvalade JV; the first of its kind on the Iberian Pyrite Belt in 20 years. New massive sulfide targets were also identified at Sesmarias East and at Pombal 15 kilometers south of the Sesmarias area.
Sesmarias drill results include:
- SES002 – 10.85 meters @ 1.81 percent copper, 75.27 parts per million (ppm) silver, 2.57 percent lead, 4.38 percent zinc, 0.13 percent tin
- SES010 – 57.85 meters @ 0.45 g/t gold, 25.1 g/t silver, 0.32 percent copper, 0.61 percent lead, 1.95 percent tin
Under a new partner, a drill program was initiated in Q4 2015. Four holes were drilled around the area of SES010 and results confirmed and extended the massive sulfide lens to a length of 300 meters with a 35- to 40-meter thickness.
In February 2019, Avrupa Minerals reported additional drill results from its own drilling program at the Sesmarias prospect. The company completed six holes totaling 2,498 meters including results from SES026, which extended the “10” lens by 300 meters to the north.
- SES026 – 28.95 meters @ 0.48 percent copper, 0.77 g/t gold, 15.7 ppm silver, 0.52 percent lead and 1.31 percent zinc.
In March 2019, Avrupa Minerals released assay results for drill hole SES003, which was drilled on the Alvalade project back in 2014. The results from SES003 were not initially analyzed due to its general proximity to SES002, and were similar to those high-grade assays noted above.
- SES003 – 13.65 meters @ 1.92 percent copper, 38.8 ppm silver, 1.03 percent lead, 1.91 percent zinc, 0.03 percent tin
Alvalade Joint Venture
In October 2019, Avrupa Minerals entered into a letter of intent with Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A.U. (MATSA) to form an earn-in exploration and exploitation joint venture on the Alvalade copper-zinc massive sulfide project. Under the terms of the agreement, the companies created a new joint venture company, PorMining, Lda., to direct future operations.
The first stage of the JV is designed to delineate a deposit at Sesmarias and the other mineralized targets within the boundaries of the Alvalade license, including the past-producing Lousal Mine, Monte de Bela Vista, and the past-producing Caveira Mine. Avrupa also defined a number of additional close-to-drill-ready target areas across the property.
In order to acquire a 51-percent interest in the new JV company, PorMining, Lda., MATSA must make a series of payments, including €1.2 million of exploration expenditures during the first year of the agreement and a further €1.2 million at MATSA’s discretion during the following two years. MATSA, now called Sandfire-MATSA, also has the opportunity to earn-in to 85 percent of the project by providing a bankable feasibility study while also making all required payments to the original JV partner.
To date, MATSA has paid Avrupa approximately C$580,000 and has completed the required work commitment guarantee of approximately C$348,000 upon issuance of the new Alvalade Experimental Exploitation License (EEL) to the new JV company. The payment is refundable to MATSA pending completion of the license work commitment and approval by the Portuguese Mining Bureau (DGEG).
The PorMining geological team has made significant advances in developing a new and highly successful exploration model, based on systematic re-logging of all the Avrupa core, as well as re-logging all available historic cores held by the Portuguese geological survey. The company flew an extensive helicopter-supported VTEM geophysical survey over 75 percent of the Alvalade License, soil sampled the area between the Caveira Mine and the Lousal Mine and over the northern and central sectors at Sesmarias, and then analyzed the samples utilizing an advanced ionic leach technology to support ultra-low detection levels. The JV team detail re-mapped the Monte da Bela Vista and Caveira areas and compiled and digitized all historic data from the two old mines, Lousal and Caveira. The updated model has pushed the drilling at Sesmarias, as the drilling has improved the discovery model for the deposit.
Since the inception of the JV, the company has drilled 17 core holes at Sesmarias and one south of the old Caveira Mine, totaling approximately 9,515 meters. The previously reported lenses are now recognized to be intercepts of massive sulfide mineralization on separate limbs of a district-size fold system. Recent JV drilling at Sesmarias focused on the previously named “8” Lens and has shown a strike length of over 400 meters of continuous sulfide mineralization.
Location of Sesmarias massive sulfide mineralization
Avrupa Minerals and Minas de Aguas Teñidas have resumed drilling on the Alvalade joint venture project. The new phase of drilling initially targets anomalies located between the historic Lousal and Caveira Mines, over a strike length of approximately 11 kilometers. The first drill hole targets potential mineralization located 300 to 400 meters northwest of the last reported mineralization in the Lousal Mine. The company expects to cover 10 to 12 drill holes totaling more than 6,000 meters in the current re-drilling program.
Slivova Gold-Silver Project
The Slivovo project in Kosovo’s Vardar Mineral Trend is now wholly owned by Avrupa. Previously, the project was previously operated and funded by partner Byrnecut International Ltd. of Australia. Byrnecut completed an 85 percent earn-in requirement by spending close to €7 million for exploration on the 15.2-km2 Slivovo license, outlining a maiden gold resource estimate of 98,700 ounces of gold and 302,000 ounces of silver indicated in 640,000 metric tonnes grading 4.8 grams per ton gold, from the surface. See the following AVU news releases for further information about the NI 43-101 indicated resource (NI 43-101 Report) and results from follow-up drilling that were not included in the resource calculation (Further Slivovo Drilling Results). Byrnecut is a mining contractor and had completed a study to earn up to 85 percent of the project. However, Byrnecut decided to vacate the project, and Avrupa made an agreement with Byrnecut to repay them from future production, if any, to get 100 percent of the project back.
The project has been dormant since 2018 when Byrnecut left. The original license expired in 2019, and Avrupa re-applied at the same time for a larger area covering Slivovo and the surrounding prospectable lands. The new license, renamed Slivova, was finally issued in June 2022.
In September 2022, Avrupa entered into an option agreement with Western Tethyan Resources (WTR) for the latter to earn-in up to 85 percent of the Slivova Gold Project by funding and performing certain work programs to potentially advance the Slivova Project to a mining solution. The agreement is subject to WTR completing its due diligence review of the project on or before March 1, 2023.
Project History
In 2011, wide-scale geological mapping of the Peshter gossan zone on the Slivovo property led to the discovery of the potential for the gold-bearing, massive sulfide mineralization common in the Vardar Mineral Trend.
In 2014 under the JV with Byrnecut, Avrupa Minerals stepped up the exploration activity at Slivovo with an aggressive exploration program that has included trenching, first-pass and follow-up geological mapping, sampling and drill targeting. Phase One drilling totaled 1,002 meters and was completed in Q4 2014.
Highlights of this first drill campaign include:
- 126.5 meters @ 6.2 g/t gold, 15.0 g/t silver, 0.092 percent copper, 0.16 percent lead, and 0.45 percent zinc in SLV004
- 12 meters @ 12.2 g/t gold, including 7.4 meters @ 19.3 g/t gold in SLV005
- 8 meters @ 1.25 g/t gold and 3.4 meters @ 3.12 g/t gold in SLV006
Phase Three drilling totaled 46 holes and 5,040 meters. Results released by Avrupa Minerals include:
- 57.35 meters @ 2.09 g/t gold and 15.94 g/t arsenic in SLV014
- 125 meters of 6.91 g/t gold and 19.19 g/t silver in SLV018
- SLV025 intercepts 24 meters of 11.59 g/t gold, 9.26 g/t silver
- 42 meters @ 9.20 g/t gold and 9.57 g/t silver in SLV033
- 74 meters @ 6.02 g/t gold and 20.23 g/t silver in SLV037
Byrnecut completed a large program in 2017 to follow up on a section of mineralization that hit a new extension of gold in three deeper holes that had similar grades to the average of the resource estimate at 4.8 g/t gold. This data is not currently in the resource estimate.
With issuance of the new 7-year exploration license, the Slivovo Project enters a new phase, hopefully culminating in a mining decision. The government of Kosovo has requested that the project be called “Slivova,” with respect to the main local language.
Finland Copper/Zinc and Gold Projects
In late 2021, Avrupa made an agreement with the sole owner of Akkerman Finland Oy AFOy) to acquire four projects in Finland. Highlights of the assets include:
- Three base metal property reservations cover approx. 600 km2 in the Vihanti–Pyhäsalmi VMS Belt, central Finland
- 65 km south of Pyhäsalmi base metal mine and flotation plant
- Two properties contain small historic copper/zinc resource estimates (see below)
- One under-explored gold property reservation located in the Oijärvi Greenstone Belt in north-central Finland included in property package
- Binding Letter Agreement signed with private Finnish company
- Avrupa to pay 3 million common shares, €165,000, and fund earn-in exploration expenditures of €400,000 over two years to earn 100 percent
In 2022, Avrupa Minerals submitted a third exploration license application in the Pyhäsalmi Mining District in central Finland. The Hallaperä exploration license application is located near the town of Kiuruvesi, about 20 kilometers east of the Pyhäsalmi Mine and processing plant. The application area covers known copper and zinc sulfide mineralization discovered by Outokumpu Oy in 1967 and partially outlined by drilling of 42 holes during the period 1967 to 1990. The known mineralization extends for more than 1,000 meters, and is open at depth below 150 meters.
The Kolima Property
The 187-km2 Kolima Reservation covers a target zone consisting of a thick layer of mineralized distal-type volcanics containing thin beds and layers of zinc-rich massive sulfide mineralization in some areas. The Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) discovered and explored the area in the period from 1956 to 1983. The GTK found zinc mineralization in an area two kilometers long and 200 to 400 meters wide within strongly altered metasediments and fine-grained volcanic rocks. GTK drilled 70 holes and detected widespread polymetallic sulfide mineralization occurring as fine disseminations and thin layers of semi-massive sulfides. Generally, it seems that the currently-known mineralization represents distal-style metals’ deposition within a larger VMS system that has not yet been discovered. Numerous mineralized boulders containing anomalous gold and copper are present around the site.
AFOy completed a helicopter-supported SkyTEM geophysical survey over the mineralized area of the reservation. Preliminary analysis of the data by AFOy did not suggest any obvious targeting. However, recently-completed detailed review of the data by AFOy and AVU outlined subtle anomalism over southern extension of the known volcanics-hosted mineral trend and also outlined a deeper (175 meters), strong geophysical target in a trend of the volcanic rocks parallel to those that host the known zinc mineralization. There is no reported previous exploration along this second trend, located a few kilometers west of the known zinc showings.
AFOy submitted a mineral exploration license application in January 2022 for the Kolima Exploration License. Given standard timing of fulfillment of all regulations by the Finnish mining authority, Tukes, we expect issuance of the new exploration license to come 12-14 months after submission of the application. In the meantime, there are a number of non-invasive activities to complete that will greatly assist in drill targeting, in anticipation of receiving the license in early 2023. The following figure shows the area of license application covering two SkyTEM anomalies, but also keeping out of the most environmentally and socially sensitive areas.
Historic geophysical map with geology, drill hole locations, main SkyTEM conductors, location of the Kärnä Anticline (in blue), and overall permissive target area (yellow bands). Base map from GTK work from late-1950’s through mid-1980’s. The work completed, to date, including re-logging of representative core, widespread core sampling, and various levels of geophysics, strongly suggests that the known mineralization on the Kolima property is actually distal mineralization in a large VMS system. Drilling targets lie along the 5-kilometer strike length of the Kärnä Anticline, highlighted in blue, and aim to discover the whereabouts of the proximal and central portions of the VMS system, and presumably extensive zinc- and copper-bearing massive sulfides.
In 2022, the company contracted with the Finland Geological Survey (GTK) to re-log and sample four representative, historic drill holes from the Kolima exploration projects carried out from the mid-1950's to the early-1980's by GTK. GTK completed re-logging of the four drillholes, totaling 743.55 meters and situated along a 2-kilometer strike length.
The Kangasjärvi Property
The 203-km2 reservation covers the Kangasjärvi deposit, a satellite deposit of the Pyhäsalmi mine, located about 25 kilometers to the north of the site. The massive sulfide was exposed at the surface, and Outokumpu mined 1 to 9 percent zinc material from the Kangasjärvi open pit in 1984 to 1985 down to less than 100 meters from the surface. Exploration drilling by Outokumpu intersected massive sulfides down to 250 meters depth beneath the pit but did not attempt deeper drilling, leaving the deposit open at depth, as well as along strike.
In 1983, GTK estimated a small historic, non-NI 43-101 compliant resource in two separate lenses: 1) 393,000 tonnes of 5.3 percent zinc, and 2) 159,960 tonnes of 6.0 percent zinc. Later Outokumpu reported an estimated mineral resource of approximately 300,000 tonnes of 5.4 percent zinc. Records in 1987 indicate that Outokumpu mined about 86,000 tonnes of 5.12 percent zinc. There is also reported anomalous copper, silver, and gold in the deposits.
Note again that both resource estimates are historic in nature, pre-dating NI 43-101, and the company is not treating them as current resources. A qualified person, as such term is defined in NI 43-101, has not completed sufficient work to confirm the estimates as current mineral resources under NI 43-101, and therefore they cannot be considered reliable and are presented here merely to show the potential of the projects. Further efforts to confirm the presence of potential mineral resources are planned for the initial exploration period and will commence once the definitive agreement is completed.
In addition to the Kangasjärvi deposit, there are at least three other mineral occurrences within the reservation area. Little work of any sort has been completed anywhere on the reservation for at least 20 years, even though there are historic drill holes throughout the district.
Figure 5. Location of known mineral targets and deposits within the Kangasjärvi reservation area.
AFOy also completed helicopter-supported SkyTEM geophysical work over known significant areas within the Pielavesi and Kangasjärvi reservations. AFOy and AVU continue to review the results from these surveys. Further information will be disseminated as we obtain a better understanding of the initial targeting data.
AFOy purchased an extensive drillhole database covering the Kangasjärvi and satellite deposits, and is now in the process of properly compiling and reviewing the data. The company recently completed a drone-based magnetics survey in the deposit area, but results have not yet been fully-reviewed. Avrupa completed and submitted an application for a new exploration permit to cover Kangasjärvi zinc mine, potential extensions, and new targets along strike of the favorable mineral-hosting horizon. The application spans approximately 18.4 square kilometers of favorable terrane for copper- and zinc-bearing volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits
The Yli-li Gold Property
The 332 km2 Yli-li gold reservation covers 30 kilometers strike length of the southern extension of the Oijärvi greenstone belt and major shear zone. Currently, Gold Line Resources Ltd. operates the Oijärvi gold project where they plan to drill over 4,000 meters in a step-out drilling program to expand the known zones of gold mineralization and delineate new targets in the vicinity of the mineralization. In 2013, Agnico Eagle reported an inferred mineral resource estimate at Kylmäkangas of 1.9 MT at 4 g/t Au and 31 g/t Ag, containing approximately 250,000 ounces of gold and 1.9 million ounces of silver.
Note again that this resource estimate is historic in nature and was reported by a third party. The Company is not treating the estimate as a current resource. A qualified person, as such term is defined in NI 43-101 and related to Avrupa Minerals Ltd., has not completed sufficient work to confirm the estimates as current mineral resources under NI 43-101, and therefore they cannot be considered reliable from the company standpoint. The company cannot confirm the estimates under any circumstances and merely uses the information to suggest potential exploration possibilities on the Yli-li property.
Figure 6. Location of Yli-li reservation. Note proximity to Kylmäkangas gold deposit.
GTK first explored the southern extension of the Oijärvi shear zone, covered by the reservation, from 2001 to 2014. Initial studies turned up gold-in-till anomalies over intensely sheared and altered rocks. Limited drilling resulted in one intercept of 3 g/t gold over two meters at the Kupsusselkä prospect. Given these promising early-stage results, there is clearly a need for a wider-scale systematic exploration program to determine the best targets within the area.
The Pielavesi Reservation
Historic exploration within the Pielavesi Reservation area by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) and Outokumpu shows that the Paloniemi-Säviä-Leväniemi Belt offers promising exploration potential. The Pielavesi reservation covers approximately 213 km2 and has widespread hydrothermal alteration of felsic volcanics which can be traced over 10 kilometers.
Previous operators identified the presence of at least four individual centers of mineralization, including one with clear evidence of a stockwork feeder zone accompanied by massive sulfide deposition containing copper, zinc, and gold. Despite many years of previous exploration and a large number of holes drilled, known centers of mineralization have not been drilled off and remain open at depth and along strike in both directions. No systematic exploration of the area has been completed in over 30 years.
Figure 3. Geology and known mineralization in Pielavesi Reservation
Previous operators completed two historic, non-NI 43-101 compliant, resource estimates at the Säviä prospect within the limits of the Pielavesi Property. The initial review, reported in 1968, and based on 62 drill holes at 50-meter spacings, estimated a copper-rich deposit of 4 million tonnes grading 1.1 percent copper and a zinc-rich deposit of 1 million tonnes grading 2 percent zinc. And, in fact, a number of nearby mineralized holes were not included in the resource estimate, one of which assayed 0.98 percent copper over 70.5 meters.
In 1986, Outokumpu estimated a resource at Säviä of 1.8 tonnes grading 1.52 percent copper.
Note that both resource estimates are historic in nature, pre-dating NI 43-101, and the company is not treating them as current resources. A qualified person, as such term is defined in NI 43-101, has not completed sufficient work to confirm the estimates as current mineral resources under NI 43-101, and therefore they cannot be considered reliable and are presented here merely to show the potential of the projects. Further efforts to confirm the presence of potential mineral resources are planned for the initial exploration period and will commence once the Definitive Agreement is completed.
Management Team
Paul Kuhn - CEO and Director
Paul Kuhn joined Avrupa Minerals in July 2010 after working with Metallica Mining in Oslo, Norway in August 2008. He has more than 40 years of experience in the minerals exploration business in North America, Central Asia and Europe. He earned an AB degree from Dartmouth College, US, in 1978, and an M.S. degree from the University of Montana, US, in 1983. Kuhn has worked in a variety of geological terrains, exploring for gold, silver, base metals, uranium, and phosphate deposits, and has spent time as a production geologist in the deep underground mines of the Coeur d'Alene Mining District, historically one of the world’s most important silver districts. Kuhn has managed successful exploration programs in the US, Turkey, and Western Europe. He was involved in a number of base and precious metal discoveries in Turkey, including the Taç and Çorak polymetallic deposits, the Cerattepe Cu-Au volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit, the Altıntepe epithermal Au deposit (being mined by Bahar Madencilik), the Diyadın/Mollakarra Carlin-style Au deposit (operated by Koza Altın), and the Karakartal porphyry Cu-Au deposit (being developed by SSR Mining). Kuhn was also involved with the original mapping, description, and drill targeting of the Çöpler porphyry Au deposit (presently being mined by SSR Mining).
Mark T. Brown - Director
Mark Brown is the president of Pacific Opportunity Capital Ltd., headquartered in Vancouver BC. Pacific Opportunity is a financial consulting and merchant banking firm active in venture capital markets in North America. Brown has assisted in the successful establishment of several private and public companies. In the mining and mineral exploration sector, Brown has played key roles in the success of Rare Element Resources Ltd., Pitchstone Exploration Ltd., Animas Resources Ltd., and other exploration companies. His corporate activities include merger and acquisition transactions, financing, strategic corporate planning, and corporate development. Prior to joining Pacific Opportunity, Brown managed the financial departments of two TSE 300 companies, Miramar Mining Corp. and Eldorado Gold Ltd. Brown has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of British Columbia and qualified as a Chartered Professional Accountant in 1993, while working with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Vancouver.
Paul Dircksen - Director
Paul Dircksen has more than 35 years of experience in the mining and exploration industry, serving in executive, managerial, and technical roles at several companies. He has a strong technical background, serving as a team member on ten gold discoveries, seven of which later became operating mines. Dircksen has held senior management positions with a number of resource groups including Orvana Minerals, Lacana Gold, The Cordex Group, Brett Resources, and the Bravo Venture Group. He holds an MS in geology from the Mackay School of Mines at the University of Nevada.
Dircksen is currently the president and CEO of Timberline Resources Corporation which is listed on the NYSE Market Exchange under the symbol “TLR” and on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “TBR”. Timberline holds a 50-percent carried interest ownership stake in the Butte Highlands Joint Venture in Montana, USA. Timberline Resources focuses on exploration and development of precious metal deposits in the western United States.
Frank Högel - Director
Frank Högel currently serves as the CEO of Peter Beck Performance Funds GbR and sits on the advisory board of Concept Capital Management. Concept Capital is an asset management company focused on evaluating and investing in Canadian resource companies through equity investments, convertible bonds and gold, silver and copper off-take agreements. Mr. Högel has an MBA with a focus on financial management, banking, and international business and management from the University of Nürtingen, Germany. He also sits on the board of several other public companies listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.
Paul Nelles - Director
Paul Nelles graduated from TU Berlin in 1972 with a degree in mining engineering and obtained a PhD in mineral processing in 1975. He worked internationally in base metal mining for Metallgesellschaft between 1975 and 1991, at which stage he held the position of general manager project development. In 1991 he was employed as technical director and appointed to the executive board of DESTAG, a leading dimension stone producer and worldwide trader. He was subsequently appointed CEO of the company. Dr. Nelles joined Normandy LaSource in France, as executive director for gold production and industrial minerals in 1997. In 2002 he was appointed as the “Trepca Manager” by the United Nations Mission in Kosovo and was promoted to deputy managing director of the Kosovo Trust Agency in 2004, in charge of all major publicly owned enterprises. Since 2006 he has worked as an independent mining industry advisor and has been instrumental in the formation of Innomatik Exploration Kosovo LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avrupa Minerals.
Winnie Wong - CFO
Winnie Wong received a bachelor of commerce degree (honours) from Queen’s University in 1996 and is a chartered professional accountant. She is currently vice-resident of Pacific Opportunity Capital Ltd. Prior to joining Pacific Opportunity Capital Ltd., Wong was the controller of Pivotal Corporation, a company providing software, services, and support to a variety of businesses. Between 1996 and 1999, Wong worked with Deloitte & Touche, Chartered Accountants.
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. 2023 Progress and 2024 Plans
Vancouver, BC TheNewswire February 21, 2024 - Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (AVU:TSXV) is pleased to report on its progress during 2023 on programs in Portugal, Kosovo, and Finland, as well as comment on expected programs for 2024. The Company's projects in Kosovo and Portugal are fully-funded by Joint Venture partners. The Company is seeking a potential joint venture entity for its program(s) in the Vihanti-Pyhäsalmi VMS District, Central Finland.
Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals ("AVU" or "Company"), noted, "Strong progress in deposit definition work at the Sesmarias copper-zinc-lead Project in Portugal during 2023 will be the underpinning for an aggressive drilling program in the SES Central Zone starting in Q2 2024.
After a successful PEA and Mineral Resource Estimate upgrade at the Slivova Project in Kosovo during 2023, we are looking forward to further upgrade of the precious metal inventory in and around the deposit, itself, as well as continued progress in the ESG aspects of the Project.
In Finland, we acquired new massive sulfide licenses in a well-endowed mining district, defined new drilling targets at one former producer, discussed the potential of acquiring several other VMS base metal targets, and commenced search for viable joint venture partners to advance the program there."
Portugal
Drilling continued throughout the year around the Alvalade pre-exploitation license in several target areas, including Caveira South, Casas Novas, Lousal Northwest, Brejo, and Sesmarias. The Company drilled 14 holes totaling 6,530 meters in 2023: two at Caveira South, one at Casas Novas, four in the Lousal Northwest area, one at Brejo, and six in the Sesmarias massive sulfide VMS deposit area.
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Figures 1, 1a. 2023 drilling along trend of Pyrite Belt mineralization within the Alvalade JV license, with Sesmarias enlargement. Background data from 2020-21 helicopter-supported VTEM project. Intense electromagnetic response to railroad tracks and power lines in linear purple colors.
The highlight of the 2023 drilling program was the re-discovery of the high-grade copper-zinc-lead-silver mineralization at Sesmarias in SES23-047 (see AVU news release June 12, 2023 ). Follow-up drilling at Sesmarias confirmed potential for more high-grade massive sulfide and stockwork mineralization in the Central Zone at Sesmarias (see AVU news release November 28, 2023 ). The success of the Sesmarias drilling underlies potential for the next phase of drilling there, tentatively commencing in Q2 of 2024. This phase will be aimed at defining the high-grade mineralization located in/around the hinge of the Sesmarias Syncline, particularly along strike between the 250 South and 800 South section lines, noted in the figures below. Plans for the next phase are underway.
To enhance targeting at Sesmarias, The Company performed an IP-Resistivity survey at the end of 2023 covering Sesmarias Central and Northern Zones and the Brejo target area just north of Sesmarias. Results are presently under evaluation, particularly for the North area and for the Brejo area where we have less historic drilling information. The level of success in the coming phase of drilling will determine how best to move towards a mining license application which will be necessary in the first half of 2025.
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Figure 2. Sesmarias section lines, AVU generated. Drillholes in red were completed during 2023 drilling program. Coordinate system, UTM Zone 29 (ED50).
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Figure 3. Known massive sulfide mineralization at Sesmarias, open both north and south. Drilling in the upcoming phase will target potential high-grade mineralization in the Central Zone between 250 South and 800 South sections. Modeling and interpretation of accumulated data suggests that strong, polymetallic VMS mineralization is hosted in and close to the hinge of the Sesmarias Syncline. UTM Zone 29 (ED50).
Drilling in the northern target areas of the Alvalade license was less successful than at Sesmarias. Drilling intersected narrow lenses of polymetallic sulfide mineralization in both Caveira South drill holes and wispy, distal facies, replacement sulfide mineralization in the Casas Novas drill hole. We hope to do follow-up drilling in both areas at some point in the future, but there are no plans for this in the up-coming drilling phase. Drilling at Lousal Northwest intercepted the mineral horizon black shales, but no significant sulfide mineralization.
The Alvalade project is a joint venture between Avrupa Minerals and Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. ("Sandfire MATSA" or "MATSA"). Avrupa continues to operate the project through the JV entity PorMining Lda., and MATSA continues to fund the exploration work.
Kosovo
Work continued at the Slivova gold-silver project in Kosovo during 2023, undertaken by partner Western Tethyan Resources, and supported by 70%-owner Ariana Resources. Highlights of the work included the completion of a NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) study that included a significant mineral resources' upgrade (see AVU news releases July 17, 2023 and September 6, 2023 for further, detailed information and notes concerning QP sign-off).
Global in situ gold resource increases by 78% over original MRE
Global in situ silver resource increases by 113% over original MRE
New MRE figures:
Measured Resources: 835,000 mt @ 4.3 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag
Indicated Resources: 296,000 mt @ 3.6 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag
Inferred Resources: 250,000 mt @ 3.7 g/t Au and 13 g/t Ag
4,500-meter drilling program planned for the next phase of field work, which will include resource infill drilling and exploration drilling around the license
Western Tethyan also commenced environmental and social baseline studies in the project area, committing to a strong and positive social relationship with the communities around the project area, and performed exploration rock and soil sampling around the license to help identify satellite deposits. The government issued trenching and drilling permits for this year, and Western Tethyan is in the midst of planning and budgeting for the 2024 program. Work planned, in addition to continued environmental and social licensing, includes trenching over several untested targets and exploration drilling outside of the main deposit in efforts to increase the mineral resources. Eventually, there may be some infill drilling completed in 2024, as well. We anticipate that Western Tethyan will perform the necessary work to reach the 51% ownership level of the license during 2024, as required by the JV agreement (see news release of May 9, 2023 ).
Finland
During 2023, Avrupa's 49%-held Akkerman Finland Oy (AFOy) continued to advance the exploration program in the Vihanti-Pyhäsalmi VMS District of central Finland. The joint venture now holds two exploration permits covering known massive sulfide deposits (Kangasjärvi and Hallaperä), an application over a massive sulfide deposit (Rauhala), and an exploration permit covering a massive sulfide target (Kolima) that has been approved by the mining bureau, but not yet issued due to appeals court handling of the process.
Basic exploration work, continued review of historic core and geophysical data, and modeling of SkyTEM data from the Kangasjärvi license suggest an outstanding un-drilled target close to the old Kangasjärvi Mine. The joint venture is making plans for drilling at the target in 2024. There are further SkyTEM anomalies that may rate drilling after planned exploration work during the up-coming field season.
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Figure 4. Map of Vihanti-Pyhäsalmi VMS District with AFOy-AVU holdings and location of the two major mines, Pyhäsalmi and Vihanti.
Figure 5. Plan view of the Kangasjärvi SkyTEM drill target, showing a strong conductor northwest and across a major area fault from the historic Kangasjärvi Mine. Most of the conductor has never been drilled.
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Figure 6. Kangasjärvi SkyTEM drill target, section view. The joint venture plans three diamond drill holes totaling 1000 meters later this year. There are other SkyTEM anomalies around the license that may become drill-ready later this year.
AFOy officially acquired the Hallaperä exploration license in the past year. The license covers a known massive sulfide deposit discovered by Outokumpu in 1967. The deposit is 1,500 meters long and ranges from two to 18 meters thick. It remains open at depth below 200 meters from the surface. The most recent drilling, in 1990, cut 1.85 meters @ 1.72% Cu, 1.7 g/t Au, and 44 g/t Ag, with no further work completed since that time.
Figure 7. Copy of the original geological map of the Hallaperä VMD deposit.
The Finnish mining bureau recently awarded an exploration permit to AFOy for another license covering a massive sulfide deposit near the historic Vihanti Mine. The Rauhala deposit was discovered in 1985 by the Finnish Geological Survey (GTK), and later worked by Outokumpu Oy. It measures nearly 600 meters long and 350 meters wide and averages about 2 meters thick, as presently known. Virtually no work on the deposit has been completed in the past 20-25 years.
Figure 8. Plan view of the Rauha Deposit (blue/black/yellow lenticular outline). The deposit was discovered via a zinc anomaly in till material, and is covered by 2-20 meters of till at its closest point to the surface.
Figure 9. Section view of the sediment-hosted Rauhala Deposit, sub-cropping under 2 to 20 meters of till.
Upcoming Events
Avrupa will attend PDAC and participate in the Western Tethyan and Europe Session, organized by Mundoro Capital on Sunday morning, March 3 rd , at 8-12 am in Room 206D. We have accepted an invitation to present updated information about the Company's Sesmarias Joint Venture Project. Later, Avrupa will display Sesmarias core at Booth # 2614B, Tuesday and Wednesday, March 5 th and 6 th in the main investor's hall at the Conference.
Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. (Sandfire MATSA) is a modern mining company which owns and operates the MATSA Mining Operations in the Huelva province of Spain. With a processing plant located to the north of the Iberian Pyrite Belt that sources ore from three underground mines, Aguas Teñidas and Magdalena Mines in Almonaster la Real and the Sotiel Mine in Calañas, Sandfire MATSA produces copper, zinc and lead mineral concentrates that are sold from the port of Huelva. Sandfire MATSA also holds an extensive portfolio of exploration tenements in both Portugal and Spain. Sandfire MATSA is a wholly owned company of Sandfire Resources Ltd, a mining and exploration company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: SFR).
Western Tethyan Resources (WTR) is a UK-registered, mineral exploration and development company focused on South East Europe. The company has a strategic alliance with Newmont Corporation and Ariana Resources and is currently focused on exploration for major copper-gold deposits in the Lecce Magmatic Complex and Vardar Belt. The company is assessing several other exploration project opportunities across Eastern Europe, targeting copper-gold deposits across the porphyry-epithermal transition.
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one 100%-owned license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire MATSA in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one 100%-owned exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its joint venture in Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com .
On behalf of the Board,
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia
Avrupa Minerals Updates Drilling Results at the Sesmarias VMS target, Alvalade JV, Portugal
(TheNewswire)
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Company completes drilling at Sesmarias for 2023
Five holes drilled in the Sesmarias Central area targeting potentially high-grade hinge zone of Sesmarias synform-shaped VMS target;
One hole drilled to test potential west limb mineralization in the Sesmarias South area.
Company completes IP-Res geophysical survey over Sesmarias Central and North areas: results pending.
Partners Avrupa Minerals and Sandfire Minerals making plans for continued work at Sesmarias in 2024.
Vancouver, BC - TheNewswire - November 28, 2023 - Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (AVU:TSXV) (OTC:AVPMF) (FRANKFURT:8AM) is pleased to update the investor community concerning progress at the Sesmarias copper-zinc massive sulfide prospect, located within the Alvalade Joint Venture Project in the Iberian Pyrite Belt of Portugal. The program is a joint venture between Avrupa Minerals ("AVU" or "Company") and Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. ("Sandfire MATSA" or "MATSA") through their local subsidiaries. Avrupa continues to operate the project through the JV entity PorMining Lda., and MATSA continues to fund the exploration work. Previously, through the JV, during 2020-2021, the Company drilled 17 diamond drill holes at Sesmarias, totaling 8,900 meters, on six different fences along a strike length of 400 meters in the Sesmarias North Zone.
The JV returned to drilling at Sesmarias in mid-April 2023, targeting the Central Zone, where Avrupa drilled the high-grade discovery hole, SES002, in 2014 (see February 27, 2014 News Release ). Follow-up drilling in the immediate discovery area at that time unsuccessfully targeted shallow extensions of the mineralization seen in SES002 at a depth of about 150 meters. Armed with a significantly upgraded targeting model, constructed from 46 holes, totaling nearly 20,000 meters at Sesmarias since 2014, the JV geological team aimed deeper to 400 meters depth to attempt to locate further high-grade mineralization.
As reported in June (see June 12, 2023 News Release ), the JV intersected strong copper-zinc massive sulfide mineralization in SES23-047. Since completion of that hole, the JV drilled a further five holes, totaling 2,766 meters, in the Sesmarias Central and South Zones. Total drilling at Sesmarias is now at 22,612 meters in 52 diamond drill holes, over a mineralized strike length of 1,700 meters.
The following general schematic section demonstrates how the target is perceived after 52 drillholes, geological and structural interpretation, surface geochemistry, and a variety of geophysical surveys since the original discovery in 2014.
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Figure 1. Schematic cross section of the Sesmarias massive sulfide target. Note that the field of view is 500 meters SW to NE and encompasses 1,400 meters of strike length of mineralization from SE to NW. Most of the drilling in the just-completed phase targeted the hinge zone of the Sesmarias synform in the Central area. Due to small, but important, post-mineral structural complications and drilling difficulties, three of five holes intersected the hinge zone massive mineralization and/or stockwork, feeder-style mineralization, while one hole intersected the synform above targeted mineralization, and one hole missed below the hinge zone. The sixth hole targeted massive sulfide mineralization on west limb of the synform in the Sesmarias South area. The schematic section suggests that there is significant, un-explored target area in the hinge zone along strike and in both limbs of the synform, as well, along strike.
Encouraging results continued in the 6-hole phase of drilling in the Central and South areas on five separate fences over 600 meters of mineralized strike length. The following diagram shows the extent of drilling in the Sesmarias North and Central Zones from SES019 northwest to SES21-036 as shown in the general schematic section. The six recently-completed drill holes are highlighted in red.
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Figure 2. Drill hole locations and sections for Sesmarias North and Central (2014-2023).
The following tables summarize the most important results from the most recent drilling in the Sesmarias massive sulfide target area:
SES23-047
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-047 | 26.95 | 393.80 | 420.75 | 2.18 | 2.58 | 5.60 | 88.2 | 0.33 | |
w/i | 43.40 | 392.80 | 436.20 | 1.51 | 2.15 | 4.78 | 64.1 | 0.26 |
Table 1. Previously-reported high-grade results from SES23-047. The hole intersected massive sulfides near the presumed bottom of the hinge zone on Section 650 South.
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Figure 3. Section 650 South showing SES002, SES003, SES23-041, and SES23-047.Note that SES23-041 crossed the Sesmarias synform above the hinge zone, and missed mineralization. It appears that the high grade SES002/003 mineralization may have been displaced from the larger hinge zone target intersected by SES23-047.
SES23-048
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-048 | 9.20 | 419.10 | 428.30 | 1.20 | 1.46 | 3.05 | 30.1 | 0.43 | |
and | 8.30 | 428.30 | 436.60 | 0.31 | anom. | 0.33 | anom. | 0.43 | |
total | 17.50 | 419.10 | 436.60 | 0.78 | --- | --- | --- | 0.43 | |
also | 0.25 | 348.40 | 348.65 | 1.01 | 0.74 | 1.32 | 39.2 | 0.14 |
Table 2. New results for SES23-048. The hole intersected 9.2 meters of massive sulfide mineralization, followed by 8.3 meters of stockwork sulfide mineralization near the presumed top of the hinge zone, or possibly on the western, upright limb of the Sesmarias synform on Section 800 South.
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Figure 4. Section 800 South showing SES23-048.
SES23-049
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-049 | no significant results | ||||||||
0.70 | 332.55 | 333.25 | 0.29 | 0.19 | 0.32 | anom. | anom. | ||
Table 3. SES23-049 did not cut significant mineralization, as the hole crossed too high in the Sesmarias synform, much like SES23-041, drilled in 2021. Fragments of massive sulfide mineralization are present in the major thrust fault that bounds and cuts the eastern, overturned limb of the Sesmarias synform.
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Figure 5. Section 500 South showing SES23-049 and SES23-051. SES23-049 crossed the synform above the hinge zone, while SES23-051 crossed zinc-rich stockwork sulfide mineralization below the hinge zone. Significant results for SES23-051 are found below in Table 5.
SES23-050
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-050 | samples in lab -- no significant results expected, though crossed faulted east limb at 397.50 to 398.70 meters, below hinge zone | ||||||||
Table 4. SES23-050 did not intersect any significant visible mineralization, as the hole crossed beneath the Sesmarias synform. It did cross the eastern limb fault containing abundant disseminated and fragmented pyrite.
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Figure 6. Section 950 South showing SES23-050 crossing below the hinge zone. Folding of the hinge zone is possible, as shown in the section, but not yet confirmed.
SES23-051
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-051 | 9.00 | 456.80 | 465.80 | anom. | 0.99 | 2.35 | 11.7 | anom. | |
and | 8.00 | 467.80 | 475.80 | anom. | 3.04 | 3.47 | 50.7 | wk anom. | |
strong stkwk | 19.00 | 456.80 | 475.80 | --- | 1.77 | 2.61 | 27.3 | --- | |
total stkwk | 30.70 | 456.80 | 487.50 | --- | 1.18 | 1.88 | 17.8 | --- | |
remainder of samples in lab -- no significant results expected, below hinge zone | |||||||||
Table 5. SES23-051 crossed 30.7 meters of zinc-rich stockwork sulfide mineralization beneath the hinge zone. This included an intercept of 9 meters of semi-massive to massive sulfide mineralization and a further zone of 8 meters of semi-massive sulfides, followed by another 11.7 meters of stockwork sulfide mineralization. The cross section for SES23-051 is shown above in Figure 4.
SES23-052
Drillhole | Interval | From | To | Cu (%) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) | Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | |
SES23-052 | 5.60 | 358.60 | 364.20 | 0.45 | --- | --- | --- | 0.33 | |
and | 7.00 | 366.20 | 373.20 | anom. | 0.84 | 2.72 | 24.8 | wk anom. | |
incl. | 4.00 | 368.20 | 372.20 | anom. | 3.40 | wk anom. | |||
3.00 | 370.20 | 373.20 | anom. | 1.33 | wk anom. | ||||
2.00 | 370.20 | 372.20 | anom. | 45.1 | wk anom. | ||||
w/i | 28.40 | 358.60 | 387.00 | total zone of sulfides, including insipient stkwk to massive mineralization | |||||
now cutting remainder of samples -- no significant intervals of high-grade results expected, though several zones of stkwk exist | |||||||||
Table 6. SES23-52 crossed the western, upright limb of the Sesmarias synform in the Sesmarias South area. This is the first deeper intersection of the western limb in the Central and South zones at Sesmarias. The intersect included 28.4 meters of variable sulfide mineralization from stockwork to massive mineralization.
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Figure 7. Section 1100 South showing SES022 and SES23-052 cutting the western limb of the Sesmarias synform.
Paul Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, commented, "Geochemical and geological results from drilling in the Sesmarias Central and South Zones this year are a really positive revelation after nine years of working at Sesmarias. The Team has put together a great, drillable massive sulfide target, and the results are confirming the robustness of that target. It is clearly zoned along strike and proximity to the hinge zone in the central area, yet still has close to 2000 meters of mineralized strike length potential. We are looking forward to continuing upgrade of the mineralization in the coming months."
The Joint Venture just completed a 6-line, 2100-meter-long IP-Resistivity survey covering the North and Central Zones. The hope is that the survey can assist in identification of stockwork sulfide mineralization in proximity to massive sulfides. We expect final results before the end of the month and these will be reported in due time.
Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. ("Sandfire MATSA" or "MATSA") is a mining company which owns and operates the MATSA Mining Operations in the Huelva province of Spain. With a processing plant located to the north of the Iberian Pyrite Belt that sources ore from three underground mines, Aguas Teñidas and Magdalena Mines in Almonaster la Real and the Sotiel Mine in Calañas, Sandfire MATSA produces copper, zinc and lead mineral concentrates that are sold from the port of Huelva. Sandfire MATSA also holds an extensive portfolio of exploration tenements in both Portugal and Spain. Sandfire MATSA is a wholly-owned company of Sandfire Resources Limited, one of the largest copper-focused companies on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: SFR).
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one 49%-owned license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire MATSA in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one 100%-owned exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its in-process acquisition of Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com .
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia
Positive Preliminary Economic Assessment Completed for the Slivova Gold Project, Kosovo
(TheNewswire)
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Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (AVU:TSXV) (OTC:AVPMF) (TSX-V:AVU) (FRANKFURT:8AM) is pleased to announce that its partner at the Slivova Gold Project in the Republic of Kosovo, Western Tethyan Resources ("WTR"), has provided a positive, independent Preliminary Economic Assessment(" PEA") study based on the NI 43-101 Mineral Resources Estimate ("MRE") previously reported by Avrupa on July 17, 2023 (see news release Slivova Mineral Resource Estimate ). Bara Consulting completed the PEA in accordance with CIM standards, and Avrupa has publicly disclosed the document under NI 43-101 reporting requirements
The Slivova Project is located in the prolific Vardar Mineral Trend, about 30 km SE of Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. WTR can earn-in to 75% of the Project by funding exploration and development for Euro 1,800,000 over three years, and then a further 10% by making certain milestone and success payments, producing an Environmental Impact Statement, delivering a Feasibility Study, and completing a Mining License application. WTR is 75%-owned by AIM-listed Ariana Resources.
Highlights from the PEA include:
Slivova provides a conceptual pre-tax Net Present Value (NPV 8%) of US$27 million, and an internal rate of return ("IRR") of 29% at a gold price of US$1,835/oz.
Capital expenditure is estimated at $33.4 million and sustaining capital requirements of $9.4 million are envisaged in the study.
Average production of 13,000 ounces of gold per annum projected over a seven-year mine life from a combined open-pit and underground mining operation is estimated from the study.
Gold recovery by the Carbon-in-Leach ("CIL") method, with recovery of gold at 92-94.5% Au (based on current testwork) and a processing rate of 142,000 tpa is estimated from the study.
The full PEA document, which includes the NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate, may be accessed on SEDAR+ or via the Avrupa Minerals website: Slivova PEA
The independent Qualified Person for Mineral Resources as defined by NI 43-101 is Mr. Richard Siddle, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd. Mr. Siddle has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical content of this news release. The Qualified Person completed a site visit to the project on 13 June 2023, and has inspected the property, drillhole locations and has reviewed selected intervals of the drill core used in the Mineral Resource Estimate. No concerns were identified during the visit.
The independent Qualified Person for the disclosure of the Preliminary Economic Assessment, as defined by NI 43-101, is Dr. Andrew Bamber, BSc, MASc, PhD, P.Eng. of Bara Consulting Limited. Dr. Bamber has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical content of this news release, in the form and context in which it appears. Dr. Bamber completed a site visit to the project on 15 February 2023 and inspected the property, core samples, and visited locations relevant to the project including the gossan outcrop and potential access road, process plant, and tailings sites within the license area.
Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, commented , "We are delighted about the progress made at the Slivova Gold Project by Western Tethyan Resources and associated company Ariana Resources. In the past two months the Mineral Resource Estimate has been updated, and a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment has been completed by our partners. We look forward to seeing more positive results from the upcoming Q4 2023/Q1 2024 work field work program, including trenching and drilling, the Q4 2023 initiation of an Environmental Baseline Study, and continued, strong and proactive ESG work in the project area."
Mentor Demi, Managing Director of Western Tethyan Resources, added , "The PEA prepared by Bara Consulting provides strong evidence that the Slivova Gold Project has the potential to develop into a profitable gold mine of modest size, even if no additional resources are identified. By showcasing a compelling economic viability, it also provides the basis for commencing the next phase of detailed exploration and techno-economic studies. In conjunction with the pre-established infill resources drill program, WTR is commencing a trenching program to enhance exploration in the areas bordering the primary resource zone, specifically targeting Dzemailj and Valijevishte. Throughout Q4, the company intends to initiate the Environmental Base Line Study, the Social Impact Assessment, and complete the planning for a drilling program, with the actual drilling activities scheduled to commence in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024."
Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director of Ariana Resources , added, "This is an excellent positive outcome for the Slivova Gold Project, demonstrating its potential economics and highlighting opportunities to enhance the project in the longer term. The broader exploration potential of the Slivova project area, in particular the opportunity to define further mineralisation down-plunge of the existing orebody, bodes well for further economic upside. We are now looking to complete further work to demonstrate this upside, via a phased exploration programme, which will target the definition of additional resources and further investigate various aspects of the proposed mine design and processing route, among other technical matters."
Following is a summary discussion of important points from the PEA (from Western Tethyan Resources):
Introduction
The Slivova Gold-Silver Project ("the Project") is located some 30 km southeast of Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. The Project was acquired by AVU Kosova, a wholly owned subsidiary of Avrupa Minerals ("Avrupa"), which was granted a seven-year exploration licence for the Project in 2022. In May 2023, Western Tethyan Resources Ltd ("Western Tethyan", "WTR" or "the Company") executed an earn-in agreement with Avrupa, in which WTR can earn-in up to 85% of the project.
Bara Consulting Limited ("Bara") was engaged by WTR to prepare a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") for Slivova. The study comprises the updated Mineral Resource Estimate (announced separately on July 17, 2023) and mining and tailings management assessments, which were used as inputs into a concept level techno-economic evaluation prepared in accordance with CIM guidelines and disclosed in accordance with NI 43-101 reporting requirements.
Project Location
The Slivova Project exploration license is located along the Vardar Mineral Trend, approximately 30 km (30 minutes by car) southeast of Pristina, the capital city of Kosovo. Access to the Project is via the Pristina-to-Gjilan, two-lane highway and then an unsealed road beyond the village of Peshter.
There are four main exploration targets within the Slivova licence: Peshter, Dzemail, Valjeviste, and Brus. The Peshter prospect is further subdivided into three portions: the Main Gossan, Gossan Extension, and the Sandstone Gossan. The Peshter prospect is the main subject of the PEA, for which there is material disclosure (Figure 1).
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Figure 1: The Slivova deposit (Peshter Target), and its associated license boundary.
Project Geology
Within the Slivova license, two units are identified: the calcareous unit and the non-calcareous greywacke unit. They are moderately- to steeply-dipping, northwest striking, and beyond the mineralized prospects, tend to be unaltered and weakly to moderately oxidized.
Two types of intrusive dykes and sills were identified in the mapping and drilling: hornblende-biotite porphyry dykes and stock, and a feldspar porphyry dyke. The dykes represent less than 3% of the total rock volume within the Main Gossan, with the hornblende-biotite porphyry representing 99.5% of the intrusive rocks. Within the Gossan Extension, the hornblende-biotite porphyry is represented by a greater volume of rock and may be a series of northeast-trending dykes, or a larger stock.
Economic mineralization in the Main Gossan and Gossan Extension is concentrated in the calcareous pebble conglomerate and calcareous sandstones. Mineralization at Slivova is classified as a distal, intrusive-related, stratiform, massive to disseminated gold-silver-lead-zinc deposit. The principal minerals of economic interest are gold with minor amounts of galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, and silver. The gangue mineral assemblage consists of ilvaite(?), trace magnetite, arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite, marcasite, pyrite, quartz, and various carbonates. Trace elements include arsenic, bismuth, chromium, manganese, nickel, and vanadium.
Mineral Resources
The Mineral Resource Estimate, as previously announced, has an effective date of 22 June 2023. The Mineral Resource Estimate for Slivova, completed on July 14, 2023, is reported in Table 1 and is based on the block model shown in Figure 2. No estimates of Mineral Reserves have been prepared. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. The estimate of Mineral Resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing, or other relevant issues. The Qualified Person is not aware of any such issues at the time of writing.
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Figure 2: Oblique view of the block model showing the estimated gold grades. WGS84 Z34N.
Category | Tonnes | Bulk Density | AuEq (g/t) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Au (oz) | Ag (oz) |
Total Mineral Resources (Gross to the Project) | |||||||
Measured | 835,000 | 2.9 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 15 | 113,000 | 402,000 |
Indicated | 296,000 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 15 | 33,200 | 144,000 |
Meas + Ind | 1,130,000 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 15 | 146,000 | 546,000 |
Inferred | 250,000 | 2.8 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 13 | 30,000 | 100,000 |
Open Pit Resources Above 0.5g/t AuEq | |||||||
Measured | 110,000 | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 14 | 11,200 | 48,300 |
Indicated | 39,300 | 2.6 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 13 | 3,390 | 16,500 |
Meas + Ind | 150,000 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 13 | 14,600 | 64,800 |
Inferred | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil |
Underground Resources Above 1.5g/t AuEq | |||||||
Measured | 725,000 | 2.9 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 15 | 102,000 | 354,000 |
Indicated | 257,000 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 15 | 29,800 | 127,000 |
Meas + Ind | 982,000 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 15 | 131,000 | 481,000 |
Inferred | 250,000 | 2.8 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 13 | 30,000 | 100,000 |
Table 1: Estimated Mineral Resources for Slivova. Numbers are rounded to an appropriate number of significant figures, and as such, discrepancies may exist between individual values, products, and totals.
Notes to the Mineral Resource Estimate (1-9):
The independent Qualified Person responsible for Mineral Resource disclosure, as defined by NI 43-101, is Mr. Richard Siddle, MSc, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd. The effective date of the Mineral Resource Estimate is 22 June 2023.
Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that all or any part of the Mineral Resource will be converted to Mineral Reserves.
A gold equivalent (AuEq) grade was calculated for each block using the formula AuEq = (Ag g/t x 0.05) + Au g/t. It is the opinion of the Qualified Person that all elements included in the Au Equivalent calculation have a reasonable prospect of being recovered and sold, the calculation of the Au equivalent value considers the relative recovery and payability of each element (recovery by cyanide leaching of 93.4% for gold and 50% for silver and 95% and 85% payability, respectively, as informed by metallurgical test work completed to date) as well as the assumed commodity prices.
Reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction are satisfied by the estimation of break-even cut-off grades for each anticipated mining scenario (0.5g/t AuEq for open pit and 1.5g/t AuEq for underground mining). These cut-off grades were used to report the Mineral Resource. The cut-off grades were estimated on the basis of the following assumptions: a gold price of US$1850/oz (selected following consideration of (1, 2 and 3 year trailing average LMBA gold price and LMBA 2023 average forecast gold price, a silver price of US$20/oz, underground mining costs of US$43.7/t, processing costs (including tailings disposal) of US$29.5/t and GA costs of US$3/ROMt.
Estimates in the above table have been rounded to three significant figures for Measured and Indicated Resources and two significant figures for Inferred Mineral Resources.
CIM Definition Standards for Mineral Resources have been followed.
The independent Qualified Person for Resources is not aware of any additional known environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing, or other relevant issues that could materially affect the Mineral Resource Estimate.
The Mineral Resource figures set out above are quoted gross with respect to the Project. WTR of which Ariana owns 75%, has yet to establish a net attributable interest under the Earn-in and accordingly, no separate net attributable figures are reported.
Mine Design
A revised approach to the mining of Slivova involves a small starter pit to access the outcropping mineralized gossan area, followed by underground extraction of the gold resource below the open pit at an appropriate extraction rate to suit the size and grade of the deposit. Mine design involved a more detailed analysis of the potential mining method and a mineable stope optimization exercise to fully assess and define the underground stoping extents.
A geotechnical review was undertaken to validate extraction methods. Ore zones and host rocks are either non-calcareous or calcareous sequences of altered sedimentary rocks with ore zone strengths varying between 45 MPa and 50 Mpa. Mine design was adapted to be flexible to varying competencies of host rock, particularly in the contact areas.
The starter pit has been designed to be mined from the top bench downwards with ore being accessible and extracted immediately, i.e., there is no requirement or need for any pre-stripping. It has been assumed that this small open pit can be mined by local contractors who have quarries within the vicinity of the proposed mine at Slivova. The revised starter pit design is also situated such that there is now no requirement for stream re-alignment where the pit can be accessed for initial extraction via existing tracks on the north side of the stream. Pit extents minimize the impact on the surrounding countryside and local communities.
Due to the requirement for a 25 m crown pillar, the bottom bench was modified to a base of 865 mRL. Bench access was linked into the existing tracks and roads on the site. This allows for easy access to each bench for overburden and ore removal without the need for any ramps. Access to the bottom bench is directly in from topography. Pit operations cease after Year 1.
Underground access is envisaged as a portal developed directly into the south valley wall, supporting mining typically by sublevel open stoping, unless ore zone geometry dictates a step down to cut-and-fill methods. Main sublevels are 20 m, with stoping separated 25 m from the open pit bottom by a crown pillar which will be mined by sublevel caving methods at the end of mine life.
Mining is suggested to be via small teams of approximately 16 people per shift, using small diesel fleet appropriate for production at between 300 t/day and 400 t/day. Mined material to be trammed directly from underground operations through the portal to the primary crusher tip located at the plant site on the saddle of the southern ridge 500 m to the east.
Recovery Methods
Results of extensive characterisation and testing of the Slivova ore by a range of methods suggest that treatment would be via carbon-in-leach ("CIL") methods, delivering gold recovery of 92-94.5% and silver recovery of 19.8-22.5%. Some gold may be extracted via gravity recovery methods. Nominal plant throughput will be 142,000 tpa, with primary, secondary, and tertiary crushing of the ore, followed by ball milling to 106 m and leaching of the ore by CIL methods. Loaded carbon is stripped, with electrowinning and final EAF smelting of the doré to bullion on site.
Environmental
The environmental and social work completed to date is in line with that required for the PEA based on the revised mining plan. No environmental or social fatal flaws have been identified, and Bara is not aware of any environmental or social issue that would prevent the project from proceeding to the PFS phase, during which time various potential environmental risks would need to be evaluated further.
Economic Analysis
The economic analysis presented here is preliminary in nature and is based in part on Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorised as Mineral Reserves. There is therefore no certainty that the PEA presented here will be realised.
PEA level economic analysis is based on the production schedule presented with capital and operating cost estimates for the Slivova Project and other information as of July 2023. The discounted cashflow analysis ("DCF") is presented in United States Dollars (US$) in real money terms, free of escalation or inflation. Revenue has been determined through application of the recovered troy ounces produced by Slivova to the gold and silver prices as stated, less payability.
Depreciation has been calculated on the assumption that 100% of capital expenditure may be deducted from profits in the year that they are incurred (Deductibility Rate). It is assumed that all capital expenditure is eligible for deduction. A discount rate of 8% has been used for the evaluation, and no tax treatment has been applied.
The conceptual DCF analysis shows the Project is economic with a pre-tax net present value ("NPV"), at 8% discount rate, of US$27 million, and an internal rate of return ("IRR") of 29% with upfront capital requirements of $33.4 million, and sustaining capital requirements of $9.4 million.
Western Tethyan Minerals (WTR) is a UK-registered, mineral exploration and development company focused on South East Europe. The company has a strategic alliance with Newmont Corporation and Ariana Resources and is currently focused on exploration for major copper-gold deposits in the Lecce Magmatic Complex and Vardar Belt. The company is assessing several other exploration project opportunities across Eastern Europe, targeting copper-gold deposits across the porphyry-epithermal transition.
Ariana Resources is an AIM-listed mineral exploration and development company with an exceptional track-record of creating value for its shareholders through its interests in active mining projects and investments in exploration companies. Its current interests include gold production in Turkey and copper-gold exploration and development projects in Cyprus and Kosovo.
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one 100%-owned license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire Mineira Portugal in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one 100%-owned exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its in-process acquisition of Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com .
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia
Avrupa Minerals Announces Updated Slivova Mineral Resource Estimate
(TheNewswire)
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Global in situ gold resource increases by 78% over original MRE
Global in situ silver resource increases by 113% over original MRE
New MRE figures:
Measured Resources: 835,000 mt @ 4.3 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag
Indicated Resources: 296,000 mt @ 3.6 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag
Inferred Resources: 250,000 mt @ 3.7 g/t Au and 13 g/t Ag
4,500-meter drilling program planned for the next phase of field work, which will include resource infill drilling and exploration drilling around the license
Vancouver, BC - TheNewswire - July 17, 2023 - Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (TSXV:AVU ) is pleased to announce that its partner at the Slivova Gold Project in Kosovo, Western Tethyan Resources (WTR), has provided a new Mineral Resource Estimate and general near-term work plan for the gold-silver deposit. Slivova is located in the prolific Vardar Mineral Trend, about 30 km SE of the capital, Pristina. WTR can earn-in to 75% of the Project by funding exploration and development for Euro 1,800,000 over three years, and then a further 10% by making certain milestone and success payments, producing an Environmental Impact Statement, delivering a Feasibility Study, and completing a Mining License application.
Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, commented:
"We are truly excited about this new development in the progress of the Slivova Project, and look forward to continued success in the program. WTR and its associated company, Ariana Resources, are working hard to advance the Project to the next level. We expect further information concerning progress, as the two companies work to complete a Preliminary Economic Assessment for Slivova in the coming months and begin a 4,500-meter drilling program to further define the Slivova deposit and test other attractive, previously-identified possibilities around the license."
Dr. Kerim Şener, Managing Director of Ariana Resources, provided further information:
"We are very pleased to provide a substantial resource update on the Slivova Gold Project in Kosovo. With a Measured and Indicated Resource of 146,000 oz of gold and 546,000 oz of silver, and an Inferred Resource of another 30,000 oz of gold and 100,000 oz Ag in global resources now defined, Slivova is now well on track to be developed conceptually as a high-grade, open-pit and underground mining operation.
We are increasingly confident that further resource expansion will occur as exploration proceeds at the site in the upcoming years. Several exploration targets in the immediate vicinity require follow-up and drill-testing, and the broader project area contains significant exploration potential for similar mineralisation based on the latest regional BLEG stream-sediment results.
We are firmly in the planning stage for a new drilling programme at Slivova, which will be focused in part on resource infill and extensional drilling. We are targeting a minimum resource of 200,000 oz of gold prior to the initiation of more advanced project development work, which would include more advanced studies."
Mentor Demi, Managing Director of Western Tethyan Resources added:
"Western Tethyan Resources is very excited to announce a significant resource increase for the Slivova gold deposit. The resource growth came mostly from the incorporation of the new historical drilling data and the revision of the geology and resource interpretation and model.
Based on the current resources' size, Slivova represents a very prospective, undeveloped gold project, in Kosovo.
Slivova is well on its way to becoming an advanced project, yet with a lot of exploration upside, down dip from the current resource, as well as from the surrounding satellite prospects. WTR is looking forward to starting in Q3 with the exploration program, Environmental Impact Assessment, and Social Engagement Plan following recommendations from the Preliminary Economic Assessment."
The following information is a Summary of the Mineral Resource Estimate, provided by Mr. Richard Siddle, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd., an Independent Qualified Person, as defined by Canadian NI 43-101 regulations. With the publication of this document, the full MRE must be publicly filed within 45 days.
Introduction
Between October 2022 and June 2023, the Western Tethyan and Ariana teams completed detailed field, drill core and digital data reviews of all information attributed to the Slivova Project and its Mineral Resources. Mineral Resources have been estimated by Mr. Richard Siddle, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd., an Independent Qualified Person as defined by Canadian NI 43-101.
The Slivova gold and silver deposit, consists of intrusive-related, stratiform massive to disseminated gold-bearing and base metal mineralogy hosted in Cretaceous-aged calcareous sediments. The mineralisation occurs as disseminated to massive replacement of calcareous sandstone to pebble conglomerate and minor replacement of limestone, associated with pyrite, pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite, and base-metal sulphides. Lithological control and structural features appear to have played a major role in focusing the alteration and mineralisation, both as fluid pathways and fluid retardants.
The Slivova Project exploration license is located along the Vardar Trend, approximately 30km SE of Pristina, the capital city of Kosovo (Figure 1).
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Figure 1: The Slivova deposit (Peshter Target), and its associated license boundary.
Slivova Mineral Resource Estimate
Mineral Resources have been estimated for the Slivova deposit (Peshter Target) only. No Mineral Resources have as yet been declared for other targets within the Slivova Project, such as Dzemajl, Valiaviste and Brus.
The estimated Mineral Resource for Slivova is reported in accordance with CIM Definition Standards, comprising of an anticipated open-pittable portion and an anticipated underground extraction portion reported above appropriate cut-off grades reflecting each anticipated mining type. Identification of material which has a reasonable prospect of eventual economic extraction is supported by existing metallurgical test work and an ongoing Preliminary Economic Analysis by Bara Consulting Ltd of the UK.
Mineralisation and block models for the Mineral Resource Estimate were informed by data from 62 surface drillholes over a total of 6,640m performed between 2014 and 2018 by the previous explorer, Innomatik Exploration Kosova (IEK). The hole spacing for the deposit is approximately 15m north by 15m east in the core of the deposit, extending to 30m north x 30m east towards the edges (Figure 2). Sample spacing and distribution are considered sufficient to establish the geological and grade continuity required for modelling and resource estimation. Gold and silver have been estimated as mining products, with no by-products or deleterious elements modelled.
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Figure 2: Summary map of the various phases of drilling completed within the Slivova Project area. Some drill collars in the core of the deposit are not visible at this scale. WGS84 Z34N.
The drill database was validated prior to resource estimation and quality control (QC) checks were made using industry-standard control charts for blanks, core duplicates and commercially certified reference material inserted into assay batches. The Qualified Person has reviewed the QC data and has found it suitable for use in Mineral Resource Estimation. Additionally, the assay database was reconstructed from the original assay certificates to increase confidence in the final assay database used in the resource estimation.
Geological Modelling
The mineralisation is understood to be typically defined as a single identifiable unit, and geologically constrained (e.g., higher grades are noted in some cases to be associated with coarser grained ‘pebble conglomerates'). The steeply-dipping, intercalated pebble and cobble conglomerates, sandstone and minor siltstone beds are thought to control the mineralisation through their different porosity and permeability characteristics. The geological model as applied to the Mineral Resource Estimate comprises a single domain plunging to the east-southeast, the strike of which is controlled by the host rocks (Figure 3).
The Slivova geological modelling used a combination of surface mapping data, structural measurements, geophysics, geological interpretations, and multi-element geochemical analysis in conjunction with date derived from diamond drill holes across the deposit area. Interpretations of geological surfaces are derived from 3D implicit modelling of drill hole data in Leapfrog GEO and EDGE v. 2023.1.0 using the software's ‘intrusion' function to generate an encapsulating volume over economically defined drill composites (Figure 3). All wireframes have been clipped to the topography.
A mineralised wireframe at a cut-off of approximately 0.2g/t Au was used to distinguish mineralised and unmineralised material. Grade continuity within the interpreted mineralised zones is generally robust. Where continuity was not established between sections, the strike extrapolation was limited both manually (wireframes) and statistically (interpolations). While higher-grade sub-populations of 3-10 g/t Au and above 10g/t Au are inferred from the data distribution inspection, the drill core indicated that this could not reliably be modelled, and as such an indicator kriging approach was adapted during block model estimation.
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Figure 3: 3D view of the modelled mineralised volume looking north. WGS84 Z34N.
The mineralisation broadly follows a northwest-southeast trend, as supported by structural measurements both in outcrop and on oriented core. The mineralisation outcrops at surface with visible sulphides in the exposure. The mineralised zone is approximately 260m along strike and 70m wide and covers an area of approximately 1.7 hectares. The Mineral Resources extend from surface to a depth of approximately 200 metres, plunging for approximately 300 metres to the east-southeast with a vertical extent of 100-150 metres and is typically 50 to 100 metres wide. Mineralisation is closed by drilling to the north, south and east, however, remains open down plunge to the east-southeast. The northern contact of the mineralisation is interpreted to be controlled by a bounding fault.
Estimation Methodology
The block model was prepared using Micromine Origin and Beyond version 2023, Services Pack 4 (Figure 4). A 5m x 5m x 5m block model was created with sub-blocks of minimum size 1m x 1m x 1m on domain boundaries. Grade estimation from 2m composites was carried out using median indicator kriging (mIK) for gold and using ordinary kriging for silver. The model was validated by comparison of input and output statistics, de-clustering, kriging neighbourhood analysis and by inspection of the assay data and block model in cross-section.
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Figure 4: Oblique view of the block model showing the estimated gold grades. WGS84 Z34N.
The density database contains 2,472 bulk density determinations of which 1,222 fall within the mineralised domain. Values within the domain were interpolated into each block using inverse distance weighting to a power of 2 with a lower limit of 1.5t/m 3 and capped at 3.8t/m 3 .
Slivova Mineral Resource Classification
Mineral Resources were classified according to the Qualified Persons' view of the accuracy of the estimates and the quality and confidence of data underpinning them. Mineral Resource classification considered the data quality, spacing and kriging standard error statistic (SE). Measured Mineral Resources are supported in the part of the deposit with the closest spaced drilling where the SE is 0.4 and the average data spacing was typically less than 25m. The remaining blocks were classified as Inferred Mineral Resources including the down plunge portion of the deposit which is largely informed by two drill holes and is extrapolated by approximately 55m.
The Mineral Resource Estimate has an effective date of 22 June 2023, superseding the previous Mineral Resource Estimate which had an effective date of 31 May 2016. The Mineral Resource Estimate for Slivova is reported in Table 1, which was completed 14 July 2023.
No estimates of Mineral Reserves have been prepared. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. The estimate of Mineral Resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing, or other relevant issues. The Qualified Person is not aware of any such issues at the time of writing.
Table 1: Estimated Mineral Resources for Slivova. Numbers are rounded to an appropriate number of significant figures and as such discrepancies may exist between individual values, products and totals.
Category | Tonnes | Bulk Density | AuEq (g/t) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Au (oz) | Ag (oz) |
Total Mineral Resources (Gross to the Project) | |||||||
Measured | 835,000 | 2.9 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 15 | 113,000 | 402,000 |
Indicated | 296,000 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 15 | 33,200 | 144,000 |
Meas + Ind | 1,130,000 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 15 | 146,000 | 546,000 |
Inferred | 250,000 | 2.8 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 13 | 30,000 | 100,000 |
Open Pit Resources Above 0.5g/t AuEq | |||||||
Measured | 110,000 | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 14 | 11,200 | 48,300 |
Indicated | 39,300 | 2.6 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 13 | 3,390 | 16,500 |
Meas + Ind | 150,000 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 13 | 14,600 | 64,800 |
Inferred | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil | nil |
Underground Resources Above 1.5g/t AuEq | |||||||
Measured | 725,000 | 2.9 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 15 | 102,000 | 354,000 |
Indicated | 257,000 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 15 | 29,800 | 127,000 |
Meas + Ind | 982,000 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 15 | 131,000 | 481,000 |
Inferred | 250,000 | 2.8 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 13 | 30,000 | 100,000 |
Notes to the Mineral Resource Estimate (1-9):
The independent Qualified Person responsible for Mineral Resource disclosure, as defined by NI 43-101, is Mr. Richard Siddle, MSc, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd. The effective date of the Mineral Resource Estimate is 22 June 2023.
Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that all or any part of the Mineral Resource will be converted to Mineral Reserves.
A gold equivalent (AuEq) grade was calculated for each block using the formula AuEq = (Ag g/t x 0.05) + Au g/t. It is the opinion of the Qualified Person that all elements included in the Au Equivalent calculation have a reasonable prospect of being recovered and sold, the calculation of the Au equivalent value considers the relative recovery and payability of each element (recovery by cyanide leaching of 93.4% for gold and 50% for silver and 95% and 85% payability, respectively, as informed by metallurgical test work completed to date) as well as the assumed commodity prices.
Reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction are satisfied by the estimation of break-even cut-off grades for each anticipated mining scenario (0.5g/t AuEq for open pit and 1.5g/t AuEq for underground mining). These cut-off grades were used to report the Mineral Resource. The cut-off grades were estimated on the basis of the following assumptions: a gold price of US$1850/oz (selected following consideration of (1, 2 and 3 year trailing average LMBA gold price and LMBA 2023 average forecast gold price, a silver price of US$20/oz, underground mining costs of US$43.7/t, processing costs (including tailings disposal) of US$29.5/t and GA costs of US$3/ROMt.
Estimates in the above table have been rounded to three significant figures for Measured and Indicated Resources and two significant figures for Inferred Mineral Resources.
CIM Definition Standards for Mineral Resources have been followed.
The independent Qualified Person for Resources is not aware of any additional known environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing, or other relevant issues that could materially affect the Mineral Resource Estimate.
The Mineral Resource figures set out above are quoted gross with respect to the Project. WTR of which Ariana owns 75%, has yet to establish a net attributable interest under the Earn-in and accordingly, no separate net attributable figures are reported.
Western Tethyan Resources is the operator of Slivova
Additional drilling is required to increase the confidence in the Mineral Resources in the Indicated and particularly Inferred parts of the resource estimate. Increased levels of information brought about by further drilling may serve to either increase or decrease the estimate of Mineral Resources. It is reasonably expected that the majority of Inferred Mineral Resources could be upgraded to Indicated Mineral Resources with continued exploration. A 4,500-metre drilling programme has been planned for the next phase of resource infill and exploration work at Slivova.
Comparison to Previous Mineral Resources
A resource estimate was completed by Mining Plus for Slivova as part of the 2016 NI43-101 Study on the project (Table 2). The most significant change is the upgrade of Mineral Resources from the Indicated category to the Measured category.
115% increase in total tonnes
17% decrease in gold grade but a 78% increase in total gold ounces
1% decrease in silver grade but a 113% increase in total silver ounces
There was a slight decline in the gold grade due to extending the model in areas showing grade continuity, but at a lower grade. This increased the number of ounces and tonnage as the result of extrapolating the resource with the additional drilling. The 2016 estimate did not include any of the 2016 drill program data and, as such, a detailed comparison is less meaningful. Changes in the estimate, including classification, grade and contained metal can largely be attributed to the inclusion of additional data and increased confidence in the model due to better understanding of the geology and the outcomes of the in-depth QC review and reviewing laboratory assay certificates in detail.
Table 2: Mineral Resources reported in the 2016 NI43-101 study. The Mineral Resources were reported at a cut-off grade of 1.0g/t Au and had an effective date of 31 May 2016.
2016 MRE | Mass | Average Value | Material Content | ||
Au | Ag | Au | Ag | ||
t | g/t | g/t | oz | oz | |
Measured | - | - | - | - | - |
Indicated | 640,000 | 4.80 | 14.68 | 98,700 | 302,000 |
Inferred | 2,000 | 2.00 | 16.12 | 130 | 1,000 |
Total | 642,000 | 4.79 | 14.68 | 98,830 | 303,000 |
Other Considerations
To the best of the Qualified Person's knowledge, at the time of estimation there are no known environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, marketing, political or other relevant issues that could materially impact the eventual extraction of the Mineral Resource.
The most likely extraction scenario is anticipated to be by means of a small 100m wide open pit to a depth of approximately 30m, followed by underground stoping. While a larger open pit would likely be economically viable based on pit optimisation tests, the size of the pit may encroach on local waterways and bring nearby farm buildings within the safe blast radius of the pit. As such, the above scenario is considered more likely.
Studies have been previously completed as part of the 2017 PFS (internal, unpublished) on the natural environment and potential impacts on the local community.
GR Engineering Services Ltd (GRES) completed a metallurgical and processing report for the project as part of the 2017 PFS (internal, unpublished). The metallurgical work was conducted at ALS Metallurgical Laboratories in Balcatta, Western Australia with initial tests confirming the gold is not refractory. In summary, good gold recovery was demonstrated in cyanide leaching (96%) and flotation (88%), whereas the gravity method gave only 36% recovery.
Detailed studies were previously completed as part of the 2017 PFS (internal, unpublished) on mining, hydrology, geomechanics, waste geochemistry, mine waste and tailings, power supply, surface infrastructure and CAPEX & OPEX.
Sampling and Assaying Procedures
All of the drill holes used to define the Slivova Project have been drilled using diamond core drilling techniques in HQ, NTW and NQ diameter core sizes. All diamond drill core is processed in the Company's core shed, near the Slivova Project. Initially, all sample preparation occurred at the ALS Group sample preparation facility at Rosia Montana, Romania and then at ALS in Bor, Serbia. Drill-core samples from the drilling programmes at Slivova were cut in half by a diamond saw and sent for analysis in batches in line with the Company's quality control procedures.
The review of the QA/QC results from the 2014-2016 drill programme, the holes which were used in the resource estimate, indicated no issues. Standards, blanks and duplicates all showed good performance. The insertion rate of QA/QC samples for these phases of the drill programme was 12% (4,930 samples incl. 582 QA/QC samples), with a similar proportion of blanks, standards, field duplicates, analytical duplicates and pulp duplicates inserted.
Diamond drill core recoveries were monitored and recorded in the sampling database. Overall core recovery for the diamond drilling is 92%, with core recovery for only the holes used in the resource estimate being 90%. There is no bias between sample recovery and grade. Samples with less than 80% recovery were noted to be in zones of fault gouge, highly broken core or drill-spun core.
All samples have been submitted for gold and silver analysis, with some batches being submitted for a full multi-element suite of analysis. Not all batches had multi-element analysis due to budget constraints. All analysis has been undertaken by ALS Group at their fully accredited laboratories, as detailed below.
Gold analysis was undertaken at the ALS laboratory in Rosia Montana, Romania using Fire Assay with an Atomic Absorption Spectrometry Finish on a 30g charge. The upper detection limit for this method (Au-AA23) is set at 10g/t gold, with any over-detection values re-analysed via Fire Assay with a Gravimetric Finish (Au-GRA21).
Silver analysis was undertaken at the ALS laboratory in Loughrea, Ireland using a multi-acid digest and a hydrochloric acid leach with an AAS read. An upper detection limit of 100g/t silver is set for this analytical technique – no samples returned grades at this upper detection limit.
Multi-element analysis was undertaken at the ALS facility in Ireland, using a multi-acid digest with the analysis completed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICPMS).
Review of the assay results determined that all Quality Control and Quality Assurance samples (blanks, standards, and duplicates) passed the required quality control checks established by the Company, with duplicate samples showing excellent correlation. Laboratory sample preparation, assaying procedures and chain of custody were appropriately controlled. The Company maintains an archive of half-core samples and a photographic record of all cores for future reference.
The independent Qualified Person for Mineral Resources as defined by NI 43-101 is Mr. Richard Siddle, MAIG, of Addison Mining Services Ltd. Mr. Siddle has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical content of this news release. The Qualified Person completed a site visit to the project on 13 June 2023, and has inspected the property, drillhole locations and has reviewed selected intervals of the drill core used in the Mineral Resource Estimate. No concerns were identified during the visit.
Ariana Resources is an AIM-listed mineral exploration and development company with an exceptional track-record of creating value for its shareholders through its interests in active mining projects and investments in exploration companies. Its current interests include gold production in Turkey and copper-gold exploration and development projects in Cyprus and Kosovo.
Western Tethyan Minerals is a UK-registered, mineral exploration and development company focused on South East Europe. The company has a strategic alliance with Newmont Corporation and Ariana Resources and is currently focused on exploration for major copper-gold deposits in the Lecce Magmatic Complex and Vardar Belt. The company is assessing several other exploration project opportunities across Eastern Europe, targeting copper-gold deposits across the porphyry-epithermal transition.
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one 100%-owned license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire MATSA in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one 100%-owned exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its in-process acquisition of Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com .
On behalf of the Board,
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia
Avrupa Minerals Provides Alvalade JV Update, Portugal
(TheNewswire)
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Four holes, totaling 2,693 meters, completed in current phase of exploration drilling;
Geochemical results from the first three holes contain anomalous pathfinder metals, including Au, As, Cu, Mo, Pb, Sb, Sn, Zn, in target black shale horizon, suggesting potential proximity to massive sulfide targets;
Sample results from fourth hole pending;
Airborne gravity survey completed, final results pending;
New ground EM geophysical survey underway between Azinheira and Caveira target areas;
Plans for further exploration holes in present phase of drilling at Caveira, Lousal NW, Monte da Bela Vista, Brejo, and Sesmarias target areas underway; expected 4,000 to 6,000 meters.
Vancouver, B.C. – TheNewswire - March 3, 2023 – Avrupa Minerals Ltd. (TSXV:AVU) is pleased to provide an update on progress at the Alvalade JV in the Portuguese Pyrite Belt. The program is a joint venture between Avrupa Minerals ("AVU" or "Company") and Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. ("Sandfire MATSA" or "MATSA"). Avrupa continues to operate the project through the JV entity PorMining Lda. Previously, through the JV, at Sesmarias North, the Company drilled 17 diamond drill holes, totaling 8,900 meters, on six different fences along a strike length of 400 meters, as well as one further drill hole in the Caveira District, totaling 614 meters (see news release of April 4, 2022 ).
The Company has now completed four exploration holes, totaling 2,693 meters, in the current phase of drilling, and started a fifth hole. The first two holes tested possible NW strike extension of the Lousal massive sulfide deposit (LNW22-001) and electromagnetic anomalism on a parallel trend to Lousal mineralization (LNW22-002). The third hole targeted a strong geophysical anomaly in mineral-host black shales, located about 4 kilometers further north of the Lousal NW holes (RAI22-001). The fourth hole tested another geophysical anomaly in the Casas Novas target sector, two kilometers south of the Caveira Mine area (INC22-001). All four holes cut through weakly mineralized, strongly folded and faulted, target black shales. Geochemical results from sampling of the first three holes suggest proximity to potential massive sulfide systems, particularly in the two Lousal NW drill holes. Results from INC22-001 are pending.
Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals commented, "Considering that these holes are exploration holes, we are pleased that all four of the completed drill holes intersected sulfides in the targeted mineral horizon black shales, of the volcano-sedimentary rock package. Initial geological observations, interpretations, and trace element geochemistry (in particular, anomalous gold, arsenic, antimony, copper, molybdenum, lead, tin, and zinc) suggest that there is potential for nearby massive sulfide mineralization in the Lousal NW and Casas Novas sectors. A follow-up, ground electromagnetic survey around the Lousal NW holes indicates the presence of a conductive body located to the west of LNW22-001. We have just started the fifth hole of this campaign to test that target, and we have a follow-up electromagnetic survey underway in the Casas Novas sector."
Click Image To View Full Size
Figure 1. Location map for Phase 9 drilling locations, as well as drill hole locations for two historic drill holes included in following interpretative geological and targeting cross section.
Click Image To View Full Size
Figure 2. Schematic cross section showing Lousal NW drilling results, along with historic drilling at Monte da Bela Vista. There is no previous drilling in the western portion of the section, thus the geological interpretation is only predictive.
Subsequent to completing the two LNW holes, the Company performed a stationary-loop SQUID TEM electromagnetic survey to further attempt to identify potential massive sulfide mineralization in this sector. The survey identified an electrical conductor located west of the drilling in favorable geological target area, supported by anomalous base metal results from previous soil sampling work. Further electromagnetic studies, using a moving electrical loop for more detail, supported the presence of a strong conductor. The schematic location of the conductor is shown in red cross-hatch in the Lousal NW cross section, which will be tested by a new drill hole, LNW23-003. Furthermore, geochemical results from sampling of the first two LNW holes suggest the possibility of nearby sulfide mineralization. The Joint Venture continues detailed geochemical studies and interpretation covering the use of low-level results from elements including gold, silver, arsenic, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, thallium, tin, copper, lead, and zinc, to determine potential proximity to massive sulfide mineralization. In this case, while drilling did not intercept massive sulfide mineralization, the results from sampling of the weakly mineralized black shales, typically the host rock material for mineral deposits in this portion of the Iberian Pyrite Belt ("IPB"), suggest the presence of the kind of hydrothermal system that forms massive sulfide deposits in the IPB.
The Company continues planning for further drill holes in the target areas between Caveira and Lousal, and will soon return to the Sesmarias area to start drilling for extensions of the known mineralization, southwards, and at the Brejo target north of the Sesmarias North sector. The Company also expects to receive detailed airborne gravity information, which will enhance the targeting in the main sectors of interest.
Minas de Aguas Teñidas, S.A. (Sandfire MATSA) is a modern mining company which owns and operates the MATSA Mining Operations in the Huelva province of Spain. With a processing plant located to the north of the Iberian Pyrite Belt that sources ore from three underground mines, Aguas Teñidas and Magdalena Mines in Almonaster la Real and the Sotiel Mine in Calañas, Sandfire MATSA produces copper, zinc and lead mineral concentrates that are sold from the port of Huelva. Sandfire MATSA also holds 1,312 km 2 of exploration permits in the south of Spain and 1,106 km 2 in Portugal. Sandfire MATSA is a wholly owned company of Sandfire Resources Ltd, a mining and exploration company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: SFR).
Avrupa Minerals Ltd. is a growth-oriented junior exploration and development company directed to discovery of mineral deposits, using a hybrid prospect generator business model. The Company holds one 100%-owned license in Portugal, the Alvalade VMS Project, presently optioned to Sandfire MATSA in an earn-in joint venture agreement. The Company now holds one 100%-owned exploration license covering the Slivova gold prospect in Kosovo, and is actively advancing four prospects in central Finland through its in-process acquisition of Akkerman Finland Oy. Avrupa focuses its project generation work in politically stable and prospective regions of Europe, presently including Portugal, Finland, and Kosovo. The Company continues to seek and develop other opportunities around Europe.
For additional information, contact Avrupa Minerals Ltd. at 1-604-687-3520 or visit our website at www.avrupaminerals.com .
Paul W. Kuhn, President & Director
This news release was prepared by Company management, who take full responsibility for its content. Paul W. Kuhn, President and CEO of Avrupa Minerals, a Licensed Professional Geologist and a Registered Member of the Society of Mining Engineers, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has reviewed the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Kuhn, the QP, has not only reviewed, but prepared and supervised the preparation or approval of the scientific and technical content in the news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia
High Priority Bedrock Gold Target Identified - Amended
- Reprocessing of geophysical data increases potential for northern extension to NST’s 313koz “8 Mile Dam” Deposit at Miramar’s 8-Mile target
Miramar’s 8-Mile target is located at the southern boundary of the Gidji JV Project and abuts Northern Star Resources Limited’s 313koz “8 Mile Dam” gold deposit (Figure 1).
The reprocessed data shows a well-defined gravity and Induced Polarisation (IP) anomaly north of the 313koz “8 Mile Dam” Resource, which appears to have been offset by a SW-NE trending fault and underlies numerous significant aircore end of hole (EOH) results.
Miramar’s Executive Chairman, Mr Allan Kelly, said the combination of the multiple coincident datasets increased the potential for an extension to the 8 Mile Dam deposit within the Company’s Gidji JV Project.
“We have multiple high-grade end of hole aircore gold results overlying an IP and gravity anomaly which looks very similar to the 8 Mile Dam gold deposit immediately south of our tenement boundary,” he said.
“The geophysical data suggests that the deposit may extend into our ground but has been offset approximately 400 metres to the northeast by a fault,” he added.
“The 8-Mile offset target is within reach of RC drilling and, unlike the targets further north, there is no paleochannel covering the basement geology,” he said.
Figure 1. Google Earth image showing the 8 Mile Dam Deposit in relation to the Gidji JV Project.
According to publicly available information, the 8 Mile Dam Project contains 7Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 313,977 contained ounces1 with primary mineralisation hosted in a steep southwest-dipping mafic unit within volcanoclastic sediments of the Black Flag Beds. Figure 2 shows a cross section through the deposit approximately 40m south of the Gidji JV tenement boundary.
In March-April 2021, Miramar completed the second phase of aircore drilling across the Gidji JV Project, including several holes at the 8-Mile target. Significant results along strike from 8 Mile Dam included 1m @ 1.17g/t (GJAC092), 3m @ 1.22g/t Au (GJAC097) and 1m @ 1.78g/t Au (GJAC099). Other holes also intersected anomalous gold including at the end of hole (ASX Release 12 April 2021 and 29 June 2021).
In May 2021, Miramar completed three diamond drill holes targeting a strike extension to the 8 Mile Dam deposit. All three diamond holes intersected the same geological package as 8 Mile Dam but intersected only minor gold mineralisation within the mafic unit (ASX Release 11 May 2021).
At the same time, Miramar completed an orientation IP survey comprising one line of Dipole-Dipole IP just north of the tenement boundary. The survey highlighted a chargeability anomaly close to the projected position of the 8 Mile Dam deposit but underneath and south of Miramar’s diamond holes (Figure 3).
Given the interpreted depth of the IP anomaly, the limited potential strike length north of the tenement boundary and the disappointing diamond drilling results, the target was downgraded with the Company focussing on the Marylebone target where numerous high-grade aircore gold results were being received.
The Company subsequently received assay results from EOH samples from the second phase of aircore drilling. Several holes at 8-Mile returned significant fire assay gold results (see Table 1). The best EOH results were offset to the northeast of both the diamond drilling and the IP anomaly and did not correlate well with the original aqua-regia assay results.
In early 2022, following the takeover of KCGM, Northern Star Resources Limited commenced diamond drilling at the 8 Mile Dam deposit, immediately south of the tenement boundary. Miramar staff observed that the new drilling was oriented towards the southwest, in the opposite direction to most of the drilling conducted by KCGM, implying that Northern Star were targeting a different geological model.
To date, Northern Star have not announced any results from that drilling.
In May 2022, Miramar completed a follow-up IP survey comprising a central transmitter line and two receiver lines spaced approximately 350m apart and extending for 1600m.
This Pole-Dipole IP survey highlighted a NW-trending chargeability anomaly offset approximately 400m to the northeast of the diamond holes and the orientation IP anomaly and located underneath the significant EOH aircore results (Figure 4). The new IP anomaly has a strike length of at least 250m, is approximately 400m below surface and remains open to the northwest.
The Company also reprocessed open file gravity data which highlights NW-trending gravity anomalies underlying both the 8 Mile Dam deposit and Miramar’s 8-Mile target where the gravity anomaly is also offset approximately 400 metres to the northeast by a SW-NE-trending fault (Figure 5).
Miramar is reviewing options for testing the offset 8-Mile target including aircore drilling and/or RC drilling. The Company has Programme of Work (POW) approval for drilling at this target.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Miramar Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Greentech And Anax to Collaborate on Copper-Focussed Pilbara Base Metal Alliance
- GreenTech Metals Ltd (GRE) and Anax Metals Ltd (ANX) sign Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to assess potential to treat Whundo base metal deposit and other suitable GRE assets at Whim Creek processing hub.
- GRE and ANX forming a Pilbara Base Metal Alliance targeting in excess of 20ktpa Cu (eq) production from the Pilbara.
- Fully-permitted Whim Creek processing assets could provide near- term processing option for GreenTech’s open pittable Whundo deposit.
- Combined assets could provide significant operational, financial and corporate benefits.
- GRE and ANX to collaborate on feasibility studies and permitting.
Anax’s Managing Director, Geoff Laing, commented: “We are extremely pleased to take these first steps towards creating an expanded Pilbara copper business with our neighbours, GreenTech. We look forward to delivering scalable assets with near term “energy metals” production.”
GreenTech’s Executive Director, Tom Reddicliffe, commented: “This is a great opportunity for GreenTech that could see a formalised Alliance with Anax taking significant steps towards establishing near term mining operations at our Whundo Project. Our project already has defined open-pittable copper and zinc resources and potential to define additional near surface resource tonnes at both Yannery and Ayshia. The alliance could be the catalyst that the West Pilbara needs to become a significant copper producer and we look forward to working closely with Anax to make this a reality.”
The proposed Whim Creek Project (80% owned by Anax and 20% owned by Develop Global Ltd) will consist of a new 400,000 tonnes per annum concentrator, and a refurbished heap leach facility capable of treating oxide, transitional and supergene ore that is supported by robust project economics. 1, 2 & 3 By fully utilising its processing capacity, the Whim Creek hub could become a substantial West-Australian copper producer with a potential production profile of 20 to 30 ktpa copper equivalent and a mine-life greater than 10 years.
Whim Creek is located 115km southwest of Port Hedland in the West Pilbara region of Western Australia, and 100km northeast of GreenTech’s Whundo deposit. Whundo is located 40 km south of Karratha (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Location of the Whim Creek and Whundo Projects
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Anax Metals Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
High Priority Bedrock Gold Target Identified at Gidji JV
- Reprocessing of geophysical data increases potential for northern extension to NST’s 313koz “8 Mile Dam” Deposit at Miramar’s 8-Mile target
Miramar’s 8-Mile target is located at the southern boundary of the Gidji JV Project and abuts Northern Star Resources Limited’s 313koz “8 Mile Dam” gold deposit (Figure 1).
The reprocessed data shows a well-defined gravity and Induced Polarisation (IP) anomaly north of the 313koz “8 Mile Dam” Resource, which appears to have been offset by a SW-NE trending fault and underlies numerous significant aircore end of hole (EOH) results.
Miramar’s Executive Chairman, Mr Allan Kelly, said the combination of the multiple coincident datasets increased the potential for an extension to the 8 Mile Dam deposit within the Company’s Gidji JV Project.
“We have multiple high-grade end of hole aircore gold results overlying an IP and gravity anomaly which looks very similar to the 8 Mile Dam gold deposit immediately south of our tenement boundary,” he said.
“The geophysical data suggests that the deposit may extend into our ground but has been offset approximately 400 metres to the northeast by a fault,” he added.
“The 8-Mile offset target is within reach of RC drilling and, unlike the targets further north, there is no paleochannel covering the basement geology,” he said.
Figure 1. Google Earth image showing the 8 Mile Dam Deposit in relation to the Gidji JV Project.
According to publicly available information, the 8 Mile Dam Project contains 7Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 313,977 contained ounces1 with primary mineralisation hosted in a steep southwest-dipping mafic unit within volcanoclastic sediments of the Black Flag Beds. Figure 2 shows a cross section through the deposit approximately 40m south of the Gidji JV tenement boundary.
In March-April 2021, Miramar completed the second phase of aircore drilling across the Gidji JV Project, including several holes at the 8-Mile target. Significant results along strike from 8 Mile Dam included 1m @ 1.17g/t (GJAC092), 3m @ 1.22g/t Au (GJAC097) and 1m @ 1.78g/t Au (GJAC099). Other holes also intersected anomalous gold including at the end of hole (ASX Release 12 April 2021 and 29 June 2021).
In May 2021, Miramar completed three diamond drill holes targeting a strike extension to the 8 Mile Dam deposit. All three diamond holes intersected the same geological package as 8 Mile Dam but intersected only minor gold mineralisation within the mafic unit (ASX Release 11 May 2021).
At the same time, Miramar completed an orientation IP survey comprising one line of Dipole-Dipole IP just north of the tenement boundary. The survey highlighted a chargeability anomaly close to the projected position of the 8 Mile Dam deposit but underneath and south of Miramar’s diamond holes (Figure 3).
Given the interpreted depth of the IP anomaly, the limited potential strike length north of the tenement boundary and the disappointing diamond drilling results, the target was downgraded with the Company focussing on the Marylebone target where numerous high-grade aircore gold results were being received.
The Company subsequently received assay results from EOH samples from the second phase of aircore drilling. Several holes at 8-Mile returned significant fire assay gold results (see Table 1). The best EOH results were offset to the northeast of both the diamond drilling and the IP anomaly and did not correlate well with the original aqua-regia assay results.
In early 2022, following the takeover of KCGM, Northern Star Resources Limited commenced diamond drilling at the 8 Mile Dam deposit, immediately south of the tenement boundary. Miramar staff observed that the new drilling was oriented towards the southwest, in the opposite direction to most of the drilling conducted by KCGM, implying that Northern Star were targeting a different geological model.
To date, Northern Star have not announced any results from that drilling.
In May 2022, Miramar completed a follow-up IP survey comprising a central transmitter line and two receiver lines spaced approximately 350m apart and extending for 1600m.
This Pole-Dipole IP survey highlighted a NW-trending chargeability anomaly offset approximately 400m to the northeast of the diamond holes and the orientation IP anomaly and located underneath the significant EOH aircore results (Figure 4). The new IP anomaly has a strike length of at least 250m, is approximately 400m below surface and remains open to the northwest.
The Company also reprocessed open file gravity data which highlights NW-trending gravity anomalies underlying both the 8 Mile Dam deposit and Miramar’s 8-Mile target where the gravity anomaly is also offset approximately 400 metres to the northeast by a SW-NE-trending fault (Figure 5).
Miramar is reviewing options for testing the offset 8-Mile target including aircore drilling and/or RC drilling. The Company has Programme of Work (POW) approval for drilling at this target.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Miramar Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Intrepid Metals Intersects Shallow Mineralization of 72.20 Meters of 1.28% Copper Within 198.00 Meters of 0.68% CuEq During Its Initial Drill Program at Its Corral Copper Property in Arizona
- 198.00 meters ("m") of 0.68% Copper Equivalent ("CuEq")1 (0.56% Copper ("Cu"), 0.12 grams per ton ("gpt") Gold ("Au") and 4.35 gpt Silver ("Ag")) from 10.00 to 208.00m in Hole CC24_016 including,
- 72.20m of 1.26% CuEq1 (1.28% Cu, 0.08 gpt Au and 3.16 gpt Ag)
- 1.60m of 5.72% CuEq1 (5.30% Cu, 1.95 gpt Au and 11.20 gpt Ag).
- 133.20m of 0.64% CuEq1 (0.42 Cu, 0.46 gpt Au, 2.22 gpt Ag) from 45.85 to 179.05m in Hole CC24_14 including
- 79.00m of 0.68% CuEq1 (0.33% Cu, 0.65 gpt Au, 2.70 gpt Ag) and
- 2.35m of 13.52% CuEq1 (4.71% Cu, 15.84 gpt Au, 39.26 gpt Ag).
- 99.45m of 0.68% CuEq1 (0.54% Cu, 0.27 gpt Au and 3.11 gpt Ag) from 60.00 to 159.45m in Hole CC24_013 including,
- 44.40m of 1.28% CuEq1 (1.08% Cu, 0.53 gpt Au and 3.57 gpt Ag) and
- 3.30m of 5.56% CuEq1 (5.08% Cu, 1.86 gpt Au and 19.75 gpt Ag).
"The Corral Copper Project has once again returned remarkable shallow copper grades and mineralized intercepts at the Ringo Zone," stated Ken Brophy, Chief Execuitve Officer. "The drilling at Ringo is illustrating the Project's gold endowment with broad intercepts of highly continuous, locally high-grade gold mineralization, including 21.3 gpt Au over 1.1m in hole CC24_15 and 15.84 gpt Au over 4.71m in hole CC24_14, which we expect will make a significant contribution to the economic potential of the project."
The Ringo Zone is located at the southern end of a 3-kilometer-long string of copper-gold-silver-zinc bearing carbonate replacement bodies (Figure 1). The Ringo Zone measures approximately 900m (northwest to southeast) by 800m (southwest to northeast) and contains favorable Abrigo Limestone (and Bolsa Formation), pre-mineral intrusions, alteration and copper-gold-silver-zinc replacement style mineralization and secondary enriched copper oxide zones that are locally high-grade. To date, Intrepid has completed 9 holes in the Ringo Zone for a total of 2105m. Highlights from holes CC24-013 through CC24-017 are included in Table 1 below and full results are within Table 2. Hole CC24_16 was prematurely shut down due to drill rods breaking down hole and ended in robust mineralization.
Table 1. Highlight composite drill intercepts for the Ringo Zone1
The Corral Copper 2024 Drill Campaign
Intrepid has completed 20 diamond drill holes (~3,900m) as part of a planned 5,000m program within its private lands at Corral Copper. Intrepid is drill testing a 3.5 by 1.5 km copper-gold-silver-zinc mineralized footprint to demonstrate its potential to host economic CRD, skarn, and related porphyry copper mineralization.
Precious and base metal mineralization at Corral Copper is concentrated in structurally controlled northeast dipping siliciclastic and carbonate sedimentary rocks including (oldest to youngest) Cambrian Bolsa Quartzite, upper-Cambrian Abrigo Limestone, Devonian Martín limestone and Mississippian Escabrosa limestone (Figure 1). The most intense mineralization occurs in the Abrigo Limestone (main host) and Bolsa Quartzite, which are intruded locally by a series of Jurassic (and possibly younger) mineralized intrusions including the Star Hill, Copper Bell and Sniveler porphyries, quartz latite sills, and cross-cutting mineralized breccia bodies.
The Corral Copper Property includes the Holliday, Earp and Ringo zones (northwest to southeast, which are related zones of discontinuously outcropping, locally high grade CRD and skarn related mineralization and associated supergene enrichment mineralization that are interpreted to have formed in the distal porphyry copper geological environment). Please refer to footnotes for details regarding assumptions for metal equivalent calculations and true widths.
Figure 1. Geological map showing diamond drill hole locations for the 2024 Drill Program2
Figure 1 includes historical data marked as such by the legend. Please refer to footnotes for additional details.
Table 2. Composite drill intercepts for Corral Copper Project Holes CC24-013 to CC24-0171
Table 3. Drill hole location information for holes CC24-013-CC24-0171
Technical Information
All scientific and technical information in this news release has been prepared by, or approved by Daniel MacNeil, P.Geo. Mr. MacNeil is a Technical Advisor to the Company and is a qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
Mr. MacNeil has verified the drilling data disclosed in this news release, including the assay and test data underlying the information or opinions contained in this news release. Mr. MacNeil verified the data disclosed (or underlying the information disclosed) in this news release by reviewing imported and sorted assay data; checking the performance of blank samples and certified reference materials; reviewing the variance in field duplicate results; and reviewing grade calculation formulas. Mr. MacNeil detected no significant QA/QC issues during review of the data and is not aware of any sampling, recovery or other factors that could materially affect the accuracy or reliability of the drilling data referred to in this news release.
However, some of the data disclosed in this news release is related to historical drilling results which have been identified as such. Intrepid Metals and Mr. MacNeil have not undertaken any independent investigation of the sampling nor have they independently analyzed the results of the historical exploration work in order to verify the results. Intrepid and Mr. MacNeil considers these historical drill results relevant as the Company is using this data as a guide to plan exploration programs. The Company's current and future exploration work includes verification of the historical data through drilling.
Quality Assurance and Quality Control
Drill core was first reviewed by a geologist, who identified and marked intervals for sampling. The marked sample intervals were then cut in half with a diamond saw; half of the core was left in the core box and the other half was removed, placed in plastic bags, sealed and labeled. Intervals and unique sample numbers are recorded on the drill logs and the samples are sequenced with standards and blanks inserted according to a predefined QA/QC procedure. The samples are maintained under security on site until they are shipped to the analytical lab.
All core samples were sent to ALS Geochemistry (ALS), a division of ALS Global, in Tucson, Arizona, for sample preparation, with pulps sent to the ALS Geochemistry laboratory in Reno, Nevada for analysis. ALS meets all requirements of International Standards ISO/IEC 17025:2017 and ISO 9001:2015 for analytical procedures and is independent of the Company. HQ size core was split and sampled over approximately two metre intervals. Samples were analyzed using: ALS's Fire Assay Fusion method (Au-AA23) with an AA finish for gold and by gravimetric finish (Au-GRA21) for samples assaying greater than 10 ppm (g/t) gold; by a 36-element four acid digest ICP-AES analysis (ME-ICP61) with additional analysis for Ore Grade Cu (Cu-OG62), Ore Grade Zn (Zn-OG62) and Ore Grade Pb (Pb-OG62); and for silver assays above 100 ppm (g/t) by Fire Assay Fusion method with gravimetric finish (Ag-GRA21). ME-ICP61 results were reported in parts per million (ppm), Ore Grade (OG62) results were reported in percent (%). In addition to ALS quality assurance- quality control (QA/QC) protocols, Intrepid implements an internal QA/QC program that includes the insertion of sample blanks, duplicates, and standards, with QA QC control samples comprising approximately 10% of the sample stream.
About Corral Copper
The Corral Copper Property is a district scale advanced exploration and development opportunity in Cochise County, Arizona. Corral Copper is located 15 miles east of the famous mining town of Tombstone and 22 miles north of the historical Bisbee mining camp which has produced more than 8 billion pounds of copper3. Production from the Bisbee mining camp, or within the district as disclosed in the next paragraph, is not necessarily indicative of the mineral potential at Corral.
The district has a mining history dating back to the late 1800s, with several small mines extracting copper from the area in the early 1900s, producing several thousand tons. Between 1950 and 2008, various companies explored parts of the district, but the effort was uncoordinated, non-synergistic and focused on discrete land positions and commodities due to the fragmented ownership. Intrepid has been able to secure data from various sources which provides a solid foundation in creating geological interpretations and identifying new target areas.
The Corral Copper Property is comprised of the Excelsior Property, the CCCI Properties, the Sara Claim Group and the MAN Property. The Company has completed the acquisition of the Excelsior Property and Sara Claim Group through purchase and sale agreements. The Company has the right to acquire the corporate group that holds the CCCI Properties through an option agreement. The Company has the right to acquire the MAN Property through an option agreement. See the "Commitments" section of the Company's most recently filed Management Discussion and Analysis for further details.
Intrepid is confident that by combining modern exploration techniques with historical data and with a clear focus on responsible development, the Corral Copper Property can quickly become an advanced exploration stage project and move towards development studies.
About Intrepid Metals Corp.
Intrepid Metals Corp. is a Canadian company focused on exploring for high-grade essential metals such as copper, silver, lead, and zinc mineral projects in proximity to established mining jurisdictions in southeastern Arizona, USA. The Company has acquired or has agreements to acquire several drill ready projects, including the Corral Copper Project (a district scale advanced exploration and development opportunity with significant shallow historical drill results), the Tombstone South Project (within the historical Tombstone mining district with geological similarities to the Taylor Deposit, which was purchased for $1.3B in 20184, though mineralization at the Taylor Deposit is not necessarily indicative of the mineral potential at the Tombstone South Project) both of which are located in Cochise County, Arizona and the Mesa Well Project (located in the Laramide Copper Porphyry Belt in Arizona). Intrepid has assembled an exceptional team with considerable experience with exploration, developing, and permitting new projects within North America. Intrepid is traded on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) under the symbol "INTR" and on the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol "IMTCF". For more information, visit www.intrepidmetals.com.
INTREPID METALS CORP.
On behalf of the Company
"Ken Brophy"
CEO
For further information regarding this news release, please contact:
Ken Brophy, CEO
604-681-8030
info@intrepidmetals.com
Notes
- Composite intervals are calculated using length weighted averages based on a combination of lithological breaks and copper, gold, silver and zinc assay values. All intervals reported are core lengths, and true thicknesses are yet to be determined. Mineral resource modeling is required before true thicknesses can be estimated. Analyzed Grade corresponds composite weighted ("composites") averages of laboratory. Metal Equivalent corresponds to undiluted metal equivalent of reported composites and Diluted Metal Equivalent takes into account dilution factors of 85% for Copper, and 80% for gold, silver and zinc for reported composites. Metal prices used for the CuEq and AuEQ calculations are in USD based on Ag $22.00/oz, Au $1900/oz, Cu $3.80/lb, Zn $1.15/lb The following equation was used to calculate copper equivalence: CuEq = Copper (%) (85% rec.) + (Gold (g/t) x 0.71)(80% rec.) + (Silver (g/t) x 0.0077)(80% rec.) + (Zinc (%) x 0.28)(80% rec.). The following equation was used to calculate gold equivalence: AuEq = Gold (g/t)(80% rec.) + (Copper (%) x 1.4085)(85% rec.) + (Silver (g/t) x 0.0108)(80% rec.) + (Zinc (%) x 0.4188)(80% rec.). Analyzed metal equivalent calculations are reported for illustrative purposes only. The metal chosen for reporting on an equivalent basis is the one that contributes the most dollar value after accounting for assumed recoveries.
- Data disclosed in this news release includes historical drilling results, Intrepid Metals has not undertaken any independent investigation of the sampling, nor has it independently analyzed the results of the historical exploration work in order to verify the results. Intrepid considers these historical data relevant as the Company is using this data as a guide to plan exploration programs. The Company's current and future exploration work includes verification of the historical data through drilling.
- Information disclosed in this news release regarding the historic Bisbee Camp can be found on the Copper Queen Mine website and on the City of Bisbee website (www.bisbeeaz.gov/2174/Bisbee-History).
- Details regarding the sale of the Taylor Deposit can be found in South32 News Release dated October 8, 2018 (South32 completes acquisition of Arizona Mining).
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements contained in this release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Such forward-looking statements relate to: economic potential of the Property; confirmation of historical results; expansion of Holliday, Earp and Ringo zones; disclosure of additional drill results; the Project's gold endowment; the significant contribution to the economic potential of the project; the potential of the Property to host an economic CRD, skarn and related porphyry copper mineralization; future exploration plans and drilling plans including the estimated number of drill holes, meterage and expected completion date; the Company's confidence in the drill program; details about potential mineralization; the exploration potential of the Corral Copper Property and the Company's other mineral projects; and potential future production.
In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "occur" or "be achieved" suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the Company can raise additional financing to continue operations; the results of exploration activities, commodity prices, the timing and amount of future exploration and development expenditures, the availability of labour and materials, receipt of and compliance with necessary regulatory approvals and permits, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks inherent in the exploration and development of mineral deposits, including risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to the failure to access financing, risks relating to changes in commodity prices, risk related to unanticipated geological or structural formations and characteristics risks related to current global financial conditions, risks related to current global financial conditions and the impact of COVID-19 on the Company's business, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of exploration and development activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes and cave-ins, regulatory risks including the risk that permits may not be obtained in a timely fashion or at all, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interests, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) has reviewed or accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Hudbay Delivers Strong First Quarter 2024 Results
Hudbay Minerals Inc. ("Hudbay" or the "company") (TSX, NYSE: HBM) today released its first quarter 2024 financial results. All amounts are in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted. All production and cost amounts reflect the Copper Mountain mine on a 100% basis, with Hudbay owning a 75% interest in the mine.
"We delivered another consecutive quarter of strong operational and financial performance with steady free cash flow generation and further debt reduction," said Peter Kukielski, President and Chief Executive Officer. "These results demonstrate the strength of our diversified operating base, with continued contributions from the high-grade Pampacancha deposit in Peru, better-than-planned gold production in Manitoba and benefits starting to be realized from operational stabilization efforts at the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia. We are well on track to achieve all of our production and cost guidance metrics. Hudbay's resilient operating platform offers leading exposure to copper and unique complementary exposure to gold, which together with our quality pipeline of growth assets, provide significant upside potential for further value creation at higher copper and gold prices."
Delivered Strong First Quarter Operating and Financial Results; Production and Cost Guidance Affirmed
- Enhanced operating platform delivered consolidated copper production of 34,749 tonnes and stronger than expected gold production of 90,392 ounces in the first quarter.
- Solid operating performance was driven by continued high copper and gold grades at the Pampacancha deposit in Peru, continued high gold grades at Lalor and strong performance from the New Britannia mill in Manitoba, and the operational stabilization efforts at the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia.
- Achieved revenue of $525.0 million and operating cash flow before change in non-cash working capital of $147.5 million in the first quarter of 2024.
- Affirmed full year 2024 consolidated copper production and cash cost guidance of 137,000 to 176,000 tonnes of copper at a cash cost of $1.05 to $1.25 per pound i and sustaining cash cost of $2.00 to $2.45 per pound i .
- Consolidated cash cost i and sustaining cash cost i per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , in the first quarter of 2024, were $0.16 and $1.03, respectively, consistent with strong levels achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023.
- Peru operations benefited from continued contributions from the high-grade Pampacancha satellite pit, resulting in 24,576 tonnes of copper and 29,144 ounces of gold produced in the first quarter of 2024. Peru cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , in the first quarter improved to $0.43, a 20% decrease compared to the fourth quarter of 2023.
- Manitoba operations produced 56,831 ounces of gold in the first quarter of 2024, exceeding management's quarterly cadence expectations as New Britannia continues to operate well above nameplate capacity and budgeted throughput levels. Manitoba cash cost per ounce of gold produced, net of by-product credits i , was $736 during the first quarter of 2024 and well within guidance expectations.
- British Columbia operations produced 7,024 tonnes of copper at a cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , of $3.49 in the first quarter. Operational stabilization plans continue to be advanced at the Copper Mountain mine.
- First quarter net earnings and earnings per share were $18.5 million and $0.05, respectively. After adjusting for a non-cash gain of $5.3 million related to a quarterly revaluation of the closed site environmental reclamation provision, a $12.8 million mark-to-market adjustment loss related to share-based compensation, gold prepayment liability and strategic gold and copper hedges and a $9.0 million write-down of property, plant and equipment ("PP&E"), among other items, first quarter adjusted earnings i per share were $0.16.
- Cash and cash equivalents increased by $34.6 million to $284.4 million during the first quarter due to strong operating cash flows bolstered by higher copper and gold prices and sales volumes enabling a $43.5 million reduction in net debt i during the quarter.
Operating Performance and Financial Discipline Driving Free Cash Flow and Deleveraging
- Unique copper and gold diversification provides exposure to higher copper and gold prices and attractive free cash flow generation.
- Executed on planned higher production levels and achieved continued operating and capital cost efficiencies to generate significant free cash flow in the first quarter.
- Realized strong margins by maintaining low consolidated cash cost of $0.16 per pound of copper in the first quarter while benefiting from higher copper prices, positioning the company for continued significant cash flow generation in a period of high commodity prices.
- Achieved adjusted EBITDA i of $214.2 million in the first quarter and a trailing twelve month adjusted EBITDA i of $760.5 million.
- Reduced net debt i to $994.2 million during the first quarter, which, together with higher levels of adjusted EBITDA i , further improved the company's net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio i to 1.3x compared to 1.6x at the end of 2023.
- Continued deleveraging efforts with a $10 million repayment of the revolving credit facility balance in January 2024 and an additional $10 million repayment after quarter-end in May 2024.
- Increased cash and total liquidity by $45.2 million to $618.9 million as at March 31, 2024 compared to the end of 2023.
Continued Execution of Growth Initiatives to Further Enhance Copper and Gold Exposure
- Post-acquisition plans to stabilize the Copper Mountain operations remain in progress, with a focus on mining fleet ramp-up activities, accelerated stripping and increasing mill reliability. Achieved better than planned copper recoveries of 83% in the first quarter, and stabilization benefits continued to be realized subsequent to quarter end with 83% copper recoveries and approximately 40,000 tonnes per day average mill throughput in the month of April.
- Constancia's expected mine life extended by three years to 2041 as a result of mineral reserve conversion with the addition of a further mining phase at the Constancia pit.
- The New Britannia mill achieved record throughput levels, averaging 1,870 tonnes per day in the first quarter, exceeding its original design capacity of 1,500 tonnes per day due to the successful implementation of process improvement initiatives and effective preventative maintenance measures. Received permit to increase New Britannia throughput to 2,500 tonnes per day.
- Achieved copper recoveries of approximately 92% and gold recoveries of approximately 68% at the Stall mill in the first quarter of 2024 as the company continues to benefit from the Stall mill recovery improvement project, which was completed in 2023.
- The development of an access drift to the 1901 deposit in Snow Lake remains on track and on budget. 1901 is located within 1,000 metres of the existing underground ramp access to the Lalor mine. The drift is expected to reach mineralization in late-2024, which is intended to enable confirmation of the optimal mining method and conducting drilling to further evaluate the orebody and upgrade inferred gold resources to reserves.
- Progressing the three prerequisites plan (the "3-P plan") for sanctioning Copper World with deleveraging advancing towards targeted levels and remaining key state permits expected in 2024.
- Drill permitting for highly prospective Maria Reyna and Caballito properties near Constancia continues to advance through the regulatory process with environmental impact assessment applications submitted for both properties in recent months.
- Largest annual exploration program in Snow Lake underway consisting of geophysical surveys and drill campaigns testing the newly acquired Cook Lake claims, former Rockcliff properties and near-mine exploration at Lalor.
- Advancing Flin Flon tailings reprocessing opportunities through metallurgical test work and early economic evaluation to potentially produce critical minerals and precious metals while reducing the environmental footprint.
- Entered into an option agreement with Marubeni Corporation relating to three exploration projects located near Hudbay's existing Flin Flon processing facilities.
Summary of First Quarter Results
Consolidated copper production of 34,749 tonnes in the first quarter of 2024 declined from the strong levels achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023 but was in line with mine plan expectations. Consolidated gold production of 90,392 ounces in the first quarter exceeded expectations. First quarter production benefitted from the continued mining of high copper and gold grades at the Pampacancha deposit in Peru, continued high gold grades mined at Lalor and strong performance from the New Britannia mill in Manitoba, and the operational stabilization efforts at the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia. Full year 2024 production guidance for all metals has been affirmed.
Industry-leading consolidated cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , was $0.16 in the first quarter of 2024, consistent with the favourable levels achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023. This was primarily the result of continued high by-product credits, partially offset by higher mining costs and lower copper production. Consolidated sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , was $1.03 in the first quarter of 2024 compared to $1.09 in the fourth quarter of 2023. This improvement was primarily due to lower sustaining capital expenditures. Full year 2024 consolidated cash cost, sustaining cash cost and capitalized expenditures guidance has been affirmed.
Cash generated from operating activities in the first quarter of 2024 of $139.7 million was lower than the fourth quarter of 2023 but better than anticipated, primarily because of strong gold sales volumes and higher realized copper prices, partially offset by a $30.1 million increase in cash taxes paid mainly in Peru. Operating cash flow before change in non-cash working capital of $147.5 million also exceeded expectations due to the same reasons.
Similarly, adjusted EBITDA i of $214.2 million in the first quarter of 2024 benefited from the solid operating performance outlined above and remained comparable to the strong levels achieved in recent quarters, including $274.4 million in the fourth quarter and $190.7 million in the third quarter of 2023.
Net earnings and earnings per share in the first quarter of 2024 were $18.5 million and $0.05, respectively, compared to net earnings and earnings per share of $33.5 million and $0.10, respectively in the fourth quarter of 2023. Adjusted net earnings i and adjusted net earnings per share i in the first quarter of 2024 were $57.6 million and $0.16 per share, after adjusting for a $5.3 million non-cash gain related to the quarterly revaluation of the environmental reclamation provision at the closed sites, a $12.8 million mark-to-market revaluation loss related to share-based compensation expense, a revaluation of the gold prepayment liability and a revaluation of the company's strategic gold and copper hedges, and a $9.0 million write-down of PP&E, among other items.
As at March 31, 2024, total liquidity increased to $618.9 million, including $284.4 million in cash and cash equivalents as well as undrawn availability of $334.5 million under the company's revolving credit facilities. Net debt declined by $43.5 million during the quarter to $994.2 million as at March 31, 2024. Based on expected free cash flow generation beyond the first quarter of 2024, the company continues to make progress on the deleveraging targets as outlined in the 3-P plan for sanctioning Copper World.
| Consolidated Financial Condition ($000s) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 284,385 | 249,794 | 255,563 | |
| Total long-term debt | 1,278,587 | 1,287,536 | 1,225,023 | |
| Net debt 1 | 994,202 | 1,037,742 | 969,460 | |
| Working capital 2 | 200,850 | 135,913 | 100,987 | |
| Total assets | 5,231,283 | 5,312,634 | 4,367,982 | |
| Equity 3 | 2,107,532 | 2,096,811 | 1,574,521 | |
| Net debt to adjusted EBITDA 1,4 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 2.1 | |
| 1 Net debt and net debit to adjusted EBITDA are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release. | ||||
| 2 Working capital is determined as total current assets less total current liabilities as defined under IFRS and disclosed on the consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||
| 3 Equity attributable to owners of the company. | ||||
| 4 Net debt to adjusted EBITDA for the 12 month period. | ||||
| Consolidated Financial Performance | Three Months Ended | |||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||
| Revenue | $000s | 524,989 | 602,189 | 295,219 |
| Cost of sales | $000s | 373,035 | 405,433 | 228,706 |
| Earnings before tax | $000s | 67,750 | 80,982 | 17,430 |
| Net earnings | $000s | 18,535 | 33,528 | 5,457 |
| Basic earnings per share | $/share | 0.05 | 0.10 | 0.02 |
| Adjusted earnings per share 1 | $/share | 0.16 | 0.20 | 0.00 |
| Operating cash flow before change in non-cash working capital | $ millions | 147.5 | 246.5 | 85.6 |
| Adjusted EBITDA 1 | $ millions | 214.2 | 274.4 | 101.9 |
| 1 Adjusted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section. | ||||
| Consolidated Production and Cost Performance | Three Months Ended 1 | |||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||
| Contained metal in concentrate and doré produced 2 | ||||||
| Copper | tonnes | 34,749 | 45,450 | 22,562 | ||
| Gold | ounces | 90,392 | 112,776 | 47,240 | ||
| Silver | ounces | 947,917 | 1,197,082 | 702,809 | ||
| Zinc | tonnes | 8,798 | 5,747 | 9,846 | ||
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 397 | 397 | 289 | ||
| Payable metal sold | ||||||
| Copper | tonnes | 33,608 | 44,006 | 18,541 | ||
| Gold 3 | ounces | 108,081 | 104,840 | 49,720 | ||
| Silver 3 | ounces | 1,068,848 | 1,048,877 | 541,884 | ||
| Zinc | tonnes | 6,119 | 7,385 | 5,628 | ||
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 415 | 468 | 254 | ||
| Consolidated cash cost per pound of copper produced 4 | ||||||
| Cash cost | $/lb | 0.16 | 0.16 | 0.85 | ||
| Sustaining cash cost | $/lb | 1.03 | 1.09 | 1.83 | ||
| All-in sustaining cash cost | $/lb | 1.32 | 1.31 | 2.07 | ||
| 1 Includes 100% of Copper Mountain mine production. Hudbay owns 75% of Copper Mountain mine. As Copper Mountain was acquired on June 20, 2023, there were no comparative figures for the three months ended March 31, 2023. | ||||||
| 2 Metal reported in concentrate is prior to deductions associated with smelter contract terms. | ||||||
| 3 Includes total payable gold and silver in concentrate and in doré sold. | ||||||
| 4 Cash cost, sustaining cash cost and all-in sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits, are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release. | ||||||
Peru Operations Review
| Peru Operations | Three Months Ended | |||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||
| Constancia ore mined 1 | tonnes | 2,559,547 | 973,176 | 3,403,181 | ||
| Copper | % | 0.31 | 0.30 | 0.34 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.04 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 2.79 | 2.26 | 2.52 | ||
| Molybdenum | % | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.01 | ||
| Pampacancha ore mined | tonnes | 2,214,354 | 5,556,613 | 897,295 | ||
| Copper | % | 0.56 | 0.56 | 0.49 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 0.32 | 0.32 | 0.52 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 4.64 | 4.84 | 5.12 | ||
| Molybdenum | % | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.01 | ||
| Total ore mined | tonnes | 4,773,901 | 6,529,789 | 4,300,476 | ||
| Strip ratio 4 | 1.95 | 1.26 | 1.84 | |||
| Ore milled | tonnes | 8,077,962 | 7,939,044 | 7,663,728 | ||
| Copper | % | 0.36 | 0.48 | 0.33 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 0.15 | 0.25 | 0.08 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 3.48 | 4.20 | 3.69 | ||
| Molybdenum | % | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.01 | ||
| Copper recovery | % | 84.9 | 87.4 | 81.7 | ||
| Gold recovery | % | 73.4 | 77.6 | 56.8 | ||
| Silver recovery | % | 70.7 | 78.0 | 60.7 | ||
| Molybdenum recovery | % | 43.2 | 33.6 | 34.8 | ||
| Contained metal in concentrate | ||||||
| Copper | tonnes | 24,576 | 33,207 | 20,517 | ||
| Gold | ounces | 29,144 | 49,418 | 11,206 | ||
| Silver | ounces | 639,718 | 836,208 | 552,167 | ||
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 397 | 397 | 289 | ||
| Payable metal sold | ||||||
| Copper | tonnes | 23,754 | 31,200 | 16,316 | ||
| Gold | ounces | 42,677 | 38,114 | 11,781 | ||
| Silver | ounces | 753,707 | 703,679 | 392,207 | ||
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 415 | 468 | 254 | ||
| Combined unit operating cost 2,3 | $/tonne | 10.92 | 12.24 | 11.47 | ||
| Cash cost 3 | $/lb | 0.43 | 0.54 | 1.36 | ||
| Sustaining cash cost 3 | $/lb | 1.06 | 1.21 | 2.12 | ||
| 1 Reported tonnes and grade for ore mined are estimates based on mine plan assumptions and may not reconcile fully to ore milled. | ||||||
| 2 Reflects combined mine, mill and general and administrative ("G&A") costs per tonne of ore milled. Reflects the deduction of expected capitalized stripping costs. | ||||||
| 3 Combined unit costs, cash cost and sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits, are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release. | ||||||
| 4 Strip ratio is calculated as waste mined divided by ore mined. | ||||||
During the first quarter of 2024, the Peru operations produced 24,576 tonnes of copper, 29,144 ounces of gold, 639,718 ounces of silver and 397 tonnes of molybdenum. While high grade copper and gold ore continued to be mined from Pampacancha in the first quarter of 2024, the mill processed less Pampacancha ore than in the fourth quarter of 2023, which resulted in lower copper, gold and silver production, in line with mine plan expectations. The company is on track to achieve its 2024 production guidance for all metals in Peru.
The Constancia operations benefited from strong mill throughput, averaging 89,000 tonnes per day in the first quarter. Mill ore feed has reverted to the typical blend of approximately one-third from Pampacancha and two-thirds from Constancia, which is expected to continue throughout 2024. The operations benefited from strong cost performance, achieving lower unit operating costs, cash cost and sustaining cash cost compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. Cash cost also benefited from higher gold sales volumes in the first quarter of 2024.
Total ore mined in the first quarter of 2024 decreased by 27% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, and was in line with the mine plan, which included supplemental ore feed from stockpiles during the quarter as the company advances pit stripping activities. Ore mined from Pampacancha during the first quarter was 2.2 million tonnes at average grades of 0.56% copper and 0.32 grams per tonne gold.
Ore milled during the first quarter of 2024 was 2% higher than the fourth quarter of 2023 mainly due to the treatment of softer ore from stockpiles. Milled copper and gold grades decreased in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 as a result of a normalized blending of ore feed from Pampacancha, as described above. Recoveries of copper, gold and silver during the first quarter of 2024 were 84.9%, 73.4% and 70.7%, respectively, and were in line with metallurgical models.
Combined mine, mill and G&A unit operating costs i in the first quarter were $10.92 per tonne, 11% lower than the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily due to lower milling costs and higher ore throughput.
Cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , in the first quarter of 2024 was $0.43, a 20% improvement over the favourable levels achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily due to higher by-product credits, lower milling costs, lower treatment and refining costs and lower freight costs, partially offset by higher copper production. Cash cost for the quarter was below the low end of the 2024 guidance range primarily due to high gold by-product credits, and it is expected to increase during the remainder of 2024 with full year cash cost expected to be within the 2024 guidance range.
Sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits i , for the first quarter of 2024 was $1.06, a 12% improvement over the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily due to the same factors affecting cash cost.
The collective bargaining agreement with the labour union representing a portion of the Constancia workforce expired in November 2023, and Hudbay continues to negotiate the terms of a new agreement with the union.
In March 2024, the Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines indicated an intention to make regulatory changes to allow mining companies to increase their permitted mill throughput levels by up to 10%. The company is monitoring the status of this proposed regulation and evaluating the potential to increase future production at Constancia.
Manitoba Operations Review
| Manitoba Operations | Three Months Ended | |||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||
| Lalor | ||||||
| Ore mined | tonnes | 407,708 | 372,384 | 373,599 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 4.84 | 5.92 | 3.96 | ||
| Copper | % | 0.84 | 1.04 | 0.57 | ||
| Zinc | % | 2.92 | 2.20 | 3.32 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 23.44 | 28.92 | 18.24 | ||
| New Britannia | ||||||
| Ore milled | tonnes | 170,409 | 165,038 | 143,042 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 7.03 | 8.03 | 6.05 | ||
| Copper | % | 1.13 | 1.46 | 0.61 | ||
| Zinc | % | 0.82 | 0.85 | 0.76 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 21.6 | 27.97 | 22.39 | ||
| Gold recovery 1 | % | 88.6 | 89.0 | 87.9 | ||
| Copper recovery | % | 96.2 | 91.6 | 91.7 | ||
| Silver recovery 1 | % | 82.0 | 83.2 | 79.1 | ||
| Stall Concentrator | ||||||
| Ore milled | tonnes | 219,358 | 228,799 | 242,619 | ||
| Gold | g/tonne | 3.07 | 4.22 | 2.78 | ||
| Copper | % | 0.64 | 0.73 | 0.59 | ||
| Zinc | % | 4.54 | 3.20 | 4.81 | ||
| Silver | g/tonne | 24.46 | 28.63 | 17.14 | ||
| Gold recovery | % | 68.0 | 67.5 | 61.9 | ||
| Copper recovery | % | 91.7 | 92.0 | 87.0 | ||
| Zinc recovery | % | 88.4 | 78.5 | 84.4 | ||
| Silver recovery | % | 59.8 | 61.8 | 56.3 | ||
| Total contained metal in concentrate and doré 2 | ||||||
| Gold | ounces | 56,831 | 59,863 | 36,034 | ||
| Copper | tonnes | 3,149 | 3,735 | 2,045 | ||
| Zinc | tonnes | 8,798 | 5,747 | 9,846 | ||
| Silver | ounces | 219,823 | 255,579 | 150,642 | ||
| Total payable metal sold | ||||||
| Gold 3 | ounces | 62,003 | 63,635 | 37,939 | ||
| Copper | tonnes | 2,921 | 3,687 | 2,225 | ||
| Zinc | tonnes | 6,119 | 7,385 | 5,628 | ||
| Silver 3 | ounces | 231,841 | 246,757 | 149,677 | ||
| Combined unit operating cost 4,5 | C$/tonne | 235 | 216 | 216 | ||
| Gold cash cost 5 | $/oz | 736 | 434 | 938 | ||
| Gold sustaining cash cost 5 | $/oz | 950 | 788 | 1,336 | ||
| 1 Gold and silver recovery includes total recovery from concentrate and doré. | ||||||
| 2 Doré includes sludge, slag and carbon fines in three ended March 31, 2024, December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2023. | ||||||
| 3 Includes total payable precious metals in concentrate and in doré sold. | ||||||
| 4 Reflects combined mine, mill and G&A costs per tonne of ore milled. | ||||||
| 5 Combined unit cost, gold cash cost and sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold produced, net of by-product credits, are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release. | ||||||
The Manitoba operations produced 56,831 ounces of gold, 3,149 tonnes of copper, 8,798 tonnes of zinc and 219,823 ounces of silver during the first quarter of 2024. Production of gold in the first quarter was better than expected as a result of many operational improvement initiatives and record performance from the New Britannia mill, as described below. The company is on track to achieve its 2024 production guidance for all metals in Manitoba.
The strong production results in the first quarter of 2024 were partly attributed to the successful implementation of improvement initiatives at the Lalor mine that were completed in the second half of 2023 and in early 2024. Noteworthy improvements include high shaft availability, efficient ore hoisting, stope fragmentation reduction and mucking productivity enhancements. In 2024, the company's primary focus entails implementing stope design modifications aimed at improving mucking efficiency throughout a stope's lifecycle. The company also continues to focus on maintaining the quality of ore production with elevated metal grades through diligent efforts to minimize dilution and enhance ore recovery from stopes.
Total ore mined in Manitoba in the first quarter of 2024 was 9% higher than the fourth quarter of 2023. Grades for all metals reflect the successful execution of the company's strategic mine plan that prioritizes gold and copper production with a focus on enhanced ore recovery. This resulted in the continued mining of higher gold and copper grade zones and robust grade control practices, including assaying and sampling of blastholes, which further improved ore quality. This also resulted in reduced mining from the zinc areas, lowering the overall zinc grade at Lalor in the first quarter of 2024, in line with the mine plan.
Consistent with the company strategy of allocating more Lalor ore feed to New Britannia, the New Britannia mill throughput averaged a record 1,870 tonnes per day in the first quarter of 2024, a 4% improvement over the previous record level achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023. Recoveries of gold, copper and silver in the first quarter of 2024 were 88.6%, 96.2% and 82.0%, respectively.
The Stall mill processed 4% less ore in the first quarter of 2024 than the fourth quarter of 2023, which is aligned with the strategy of allocating more Lalor ore feed to New Britannia, as noted above. With the completion of the Stall mill recovery improvement project in 2023, recoveries of gold, copper and silver in the first quarter of 2024 were consistent with the fourth quarter, achieving targeted gold recovery levels of approximately 68%.
Combined mine, mill and G&A unit operating costs i in the first quarter of 2024 were C$235 per tonne, a small increase of 9% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 due to higher mining costs as a result of lower capitalized development costs and longer haulage distances and higher milling costs at Stall associated with lower throughput.
Cash cost per ounce of gold produced, net of by-product credits i , in the first quarter of 2024 was $736, an increase compared to the uncharacteristically low fourth quarter of 2023 which benefitted from record gold production and higher by-product credits. However, the first quarter cash cost was well positioned at the lower end of the 2024 cash cost guidance range, and the company expects full year gold cash cost to remain within the 2024 guidance range.
Sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold produced, net of by-product credits i , in the first quarter of 2024 was $950, an increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily due to the same factors affecting cash cost as well as lower sustaining capital costs during the quarter.
The New Britannia mill achieved record quarterly throughput of 1,870 tonnes per day in the first quarter due to ongoing improvement initiatives and effective preventative maintenance measures. Noteworthy enhancements in the elution circuit, which facilitates efficient carbon transfer and gold stripping, have bolstered gold recovery to doré. During the first quarter, Hudbay received a permit approval from the Manitoba Environment and Climate Change ministry ("MECC") to increase the New Britannia mill production rate above nameplate capacity to 2,500 tonnes per day. This key approval aligns with the company's long-term objectives to further increase gold production at the Snow Lake operations by directing more gold ore from Lalor to the New Britannia mill to achieve higher gold recoveries.
At the Anderson tailings facility, Hudbay successfully improved the tailings deposition process during the quarter, leveraging new equipment and procedural refinements, enabling optimized storage capacity and deferred dam construction capital to future years. To further optimize the storage capacity of the facility, a permit to conduct a subaerial tailings deposition trial study was submitted to MECC during the quarter.
British Columbia Operations Review
| British Columbia Operations | Three Months Ended 5 | |||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | |||
| Ore mined 1 | tonnes | 3,722,496 | 2,627,398 | |
| Waste mined | tonnes | 15,276,598 | 14,032,093 | |
| Strip ratio 2 | 4.10 | 5.34 | ||
| Ore milled | tonnes | 3,180,149 | 3,261,891 | |
| Copper | % | 0.27 | 0.33 | |
| Gold | g/tonne | 0.07 | 0.06 | |
| Silver | g/tonne | 1.19 | 1.36 | |
| Copper recovery | % | 83.4 | 78.8 | |
| Gold recovery | % | 61.8 | 54.1 | |
| Silver recovery | % | 72.4 | 73.8 | |
| Total contained metal in concentrate 2 | ||||
| Copper | tonnes | 7,024 | 8,508 | |
| Gold | ounces | 4,417 | 3,495 | |
| Silver | ounces | 88,376 | 105,295 | |
| Total payable metal sold | ||||
| Copper | tonnes | 6,933 | 9,119 | |
| Gold | ounces | 3,401 | 3,091 | |
| Silver | ounces | 83,300 | 98,441 | |
| Combined unit operating cost 3,4 | C$/tonne | 23.67 | 20.90 | |
| Cash cost 4 | $/lb | 3.49 | 2.67 | |
| Sustaining cash cost 4 | $/lb | 4.85 | 3.93 | |
| 1 Reported tonnes and grade for ore mined are estimates based on mine plan assumptions and may not reconcile fully to ore milled. | ||||
| 2 Strip ratio is calculated as waste mined divided by ore mined. | ||||
| 3 Reflects combined mine, mill and G&A costs per tonne of ore milled. Reflects the deduction of expected capitalized stripping costs. | ||||
| 4 Combined unit operating cost, cash cost and sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits, are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release. | ||||
| 5 Copper Mountain mine results are stated at 100%. Hudbay owns 75% of Copper Mountain mine. | ||||
During the first quarter of 2024, the British Columbia operations produced 7,024 tonnes of copper, 4,417 ounces of gold and 88,376 ounces of silver. Production of copper and silver was lower than the fourth quarter of 2024 primarily as a result of lower head grades, partially offset by higher recoveries. Production of gold was higher than the fourth quarter of 2024 as a result of higher grades and higher recoveries. The company is on track to achieve 2024 production guidance for all metals in British Columbia.
Since completing the acquisition of Copper Mountain on June 20, 2023, Hudbay has been focused on advancing operational stabilization plans, including opening up the mine by adding additional mining faces and re-mobilizing idle haul trucks, optimizing the ore feed to the plant and implementing plant improvement initiatives that mirror Hudbay's successful processes at Constancia. While the benefits of these stabilization plans are not expected to be fully realized until 2025, the company successfully increased the total tonnes moved and has seen stronger mill performance as demonstrated by higher mill availability and above-target copper recoveries of 83.4% in the first quarter of 2024, achieving the highest quarterly copper recoveries in the last decade. Stabilization benefits continued to be realized into April with 83% copper recoveries and approximately 40,000 tonnes per day average mill throughput, an increase of approximately 9% over throughput levels in the first quarter.
Hudbay has exceeded the targeted $10 million in annualized corporate synergies and is on track to realize the three-year annual operating efficiencies target.
Total ore mined at Copper Mountain in the first quarter of 2024 was 3.7 million tonnes, a 42% increase versus the fourth quarter of 2023. The mine operations team continues to implement a fleet production ramp up plan to remobilize idle capital equipment at the Copper Mountain site as part of the accelerated stripping program to access higher head grades. This plan entails remobilization of the mining truck fleet, deployment of an additional shovel, production drill and associated equipment. During the quarter, the company also advanced the delivery of five haul trucks to self-perform additional stripping activities over the next three years at a lower cost than the contractor mining approach that was contemplated in the technical report. As a result, total material moved is expected to continue to increase quarter over quarter in line with the mine plan.
The mill processed 3.2 million tonnes of ore during the first quarter of 2024, a 3% decrease versus the fourth quarter of 2023. Benefiting from stabilization and reliability initiatives within the comminution circuit, the average mill availability during the first quarter of 2024 increased by approximately 4% to 90.4%, compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, while maintaining a stable throughput rate. Mill throughput in the first quarter 2024 was impacted by reduced reliability of the crushing circuit, caused primarily by elevated levels of magnetite and scrap metal as mining progresses through areas of historical underground workings. During the quarter, a number of initiatives were advanced to address these issues and other identified constraints and improve throughput to targeted levels, with the benefits expected to be realized throughout the rest of 2024. These initiatives include reprogramming of the mill expert system, installation of advanced semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) control instrumentation, redesign of the SAG liner package and updated operational procedures intended to remove magnetite from the pebble stream.
Maintenance practices to improve mill availability continue to be a key pillar of the stabilization initiatives. The first quarter planned maintenance shutdown focused on achieving 100% compliance to planned execution. Future maintenance practice enhancements are planned for rollout over the second and third quarters of 2024, which entail the implementation of improved maintenance management processes and a change in the maintenance organizational structure. Work has begun to analyze the trade-off among the various alternatives to further enhance mill performance.
Milled copper grades during the first quarter of 2024 averaged 0.27%, lower than the fourth quarter of 2023 but higher than the reserve grade of 0.25%. Copper recoveries of 83.4% were higher than the fourth quarter of 2023 and higher than expectations for the first quarter due to relieving the regrind circuit constraint and implementing the flotation operational strategy improvements, including reagent selection and dose modification.
Work continues on the expert system that controls mill feed with implementation expected during the second quarter. Throughput in April increased to approximately 40,000 tonnes per day as the mill began realizing benefits from the recalibrated expert system, amongst other initiatives. The benefits of the operational stabilization improvements are expected to continue to be realized throughout 2024. The company is also accelerating engineering studies to debottleneck and increase the nominal plant capacity to 50,000 tonnes per day earlier than was contemplated in the technical report.
Combined mine, mill and G&A unit operating costs in the first quarter of 2024 were C$23.67 per tonne milled, 13% higher than the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily due to higher mining costs. Combined unit operating costs are expected to decrease over time as the company continues to implement its stabilization and optimization initiatives at Copper Mountain. As the hiring and training of additional haul truck drivers continues, the company expects to have a fully trained complement of truck drivers by July to support the larger mining fleet, which is expected to increase material moved and reduce unit operating costs.
Cash cost and sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits, in the first quarter of 2024 were $3.49 and $4.85, respectively. Cash cost for the quarter was above the upper end of the 2024 guidance range; however, it is expected to decline during the remainder of 2024 and the full year cash cost is expected to be within the 2024 guidance range.
Generating Free Cash Flow with Increased Production and Continued Financial Discipline
Hudbay delivered a third successive quarter of positive free cash flow during the first quarter of 2024 as the company executed its plan for higher copper and gold production from Pampacancha and higher gold production at Lalor, both driven by higher grades, throughput and recoveries. The company continues to expect to see strong production levels throughout 2024 from sustained higher grades in Peru and Manitoba, along with additional production from Copper Mountain.
During the first quarter, Hudbay completed $10 million in net repayments on its revolving credit facilities. The company also completed three additional months of deliveries under the gold forward sale and prepay agreement, further reducing the outstanding gold prepayment liability, and is scheduled to fully repay the gold prepay facility by August 2024. Despite these debt repayments and gold deliveries, the company increased its cash and cash equivalents to $284.4 million and reduced overall net debt to $994.2 million as at March 31, 2024, compared to $249.8 million and $1,037.7 million, respectively, as at December 31, 2023. The $43.5 million decline in net debt, together with higher levels of adjusted EBITDA i in the first quarter, have improved Hudbay's net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio i to 1.3x compared to 1.6x at the end of 2023. Subsequent to quarter-end, the company continued the deleveraging efforts with an additional $10 million repayment on the revolving credit facilities in May 2024.
During the first quarter, the company continued to exercise financial discipline and take steps to support free cash flow generation during the stabilization period at Copper Mountain. To this end, Hudbay entered into new forward sales contracts at Copper Mountain for a total of 3,600 tonnes of copper production over the twelve-month period from May 2024 to April 2025 at an average price of $3.97 per pound, as well as zero-cost collars for 3,000 tonnes of copper production over the twelve-month period from May 2024 to April 2025 at an average floor price of $4.00 per pound and an average cap price of $4.36 per pound. As at March 31, 2024, 15.9 million pounds of copper forwards and 19.8 million pounds of copper collars were outstanding, representing approximately 44% of 2024 production guidance levels for Copper Mountain. The company also entered into zero-cost collars for 36,000 ounces of gold production over the period from April to December 2024 at an average floor price of $2,088 per ounce and an average cap price of $2,458 per ounce.
Annual Reserve and Resource Update
Hudbay provided its annual mineral reserve and resource update on March 28, 2024. Current mineral reserve estimates at Constancia and Pampacancha total an aggregate of approximately 548 million tonnes at 0.27% copper with approximately 1.5 million tonnes of contained copper. The expected mine life of Constancia has been extended by three years to 2041 as a result of the successful conversion of mineral resources to mineral reserves with the addition of a further mining phase at the Constancia pit following positive geotechnical drilling studies in 2023. There remains potential for further reserve conversion and future mine life extensions at Constancia through an additional 172 million tonnes of measured and indicated resources at 0.22% copper and 37 million tonnes of inferred resources at 0.40% copper, in each case, exclusive of mineral reserves.
Current mineral reserve estimates in Snow Lake total 17 million tonnes with approximately 2 million ounces in contained gold, and the expected mine life of the Snow Lake operations has been maintained until 2038. The Snow Lake operations continue to achieve higher gold production levels due to the New Britannia mill operating well above design capacity, the recent completion of the Stall mill recovery improvement project in 2023 and the implementation of several optimization initiatives at the Lalor mine to improve the quality of ore production and minimize waste dilution. There remains another 1.4 million ounces of gold in inferred resources in Snow Lake that have the potential to maintain strong annual gold production levels beyond 2030 and further extend the mine life in Snow Lake. The company is advancing an access drift at the nearby 1901 deposit to enable infill drilling aimed at converting the inferred mineral resources in the gold lenses to mineral reserves.
Current mineral reserve estimates at the Copper Mountain mine total 367 million tonnes at 0.25% copper and 0.12 grams per tonne gold with approximately 900,000 tonnes of contained copper and 1.4 million ounces of contained gold. Hudbay acquired the Copper Mountain mine as part of the acquisition of Copper Mountain Mining Corporation in June 2023. The company holds a 75% interest in the Copper Mountain mine, while Mitsubishi Materials Corp. holds the remaining 25% interest. The current mineral reserve estimates support a 21-year mine life, as previously disclosed in Hudbay's first National Instrument 43-101 technical report in respect of the Copper Mountain mine filed in December 2023 (the "Copper Mountain Technical Report"). There exists significant upside potential for reserve conversion and extending mine life beyond 21 years through an additional 140 million tonnes of measured and indicated resources at 0.21% copper and 0.10 grams per tonne gold and 370 million tonnes of inferred resources at 0.25% copper and 0.13 grams per tonne gold, in each case, exclusive of mineral reserves.
Hudbay released updated three-year production guidance with its annual mineral reserve and resource update, as presented below. Consolidated copper production over the next three years is expected to average 153,000 ii tonnes, representing an increase of 16% from 2023 levels. Consolidated gold production over the next three years is expected to average 272,500 ii ounces, reflecting continued high annual gold production levels in Manitoba and a smoothing of Pampacancha high grade gold zones in Peru over the 2023 to 2025 period. Annual production at the Constancia operations is expected to average approximately 101,000 ii tonnes of copper and 62,000 ii ounces of gold over the next three years. Annual gold production from Snow Lake is expected to average approximately 185,000 ii ounces over the next three years, in line with 2023 levels. Annual copper production at the British Columbia operations is expected to average approximately 41,000 ii tonnes of copper over the next three years. British Columbia production guidance ranges in 2024 and 2025 are wider than typical ranges and coincide with the operation ramp up activities over the stabilization period. Copper production at the Copper Mountain mine is expected to increase by 32% in 2026 compared to 2024, reflecting operational improvements consistent with the Copper Mountain Technical Report.
| 3-Year Production Outlook Contained Metal in Concentrate and Doré 1 | 2024 Guidance | 2025 Guidance | 2026 Guidance | |
| Peru | ||||
| Copper | tonnes | 98,000 - 120,000 | 94,000 - 115,000 | 80,000 - 100,000 |
| Gold | ounces | 76,000 - 93,000 | 70,000 - 90,000 | 15,000 - 25,000 |
| Silver | ounces | 2,500,000 - 3,000,000 | 2,700,000 - 3,300,000 | 1,500,000 - 1,900,000 |
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 1,250 - 1,500 | 1,200 - 1,600 | 1,500 - 1,900 |
| Manitoba | ||||
| Gold | ounces | 170,000 - 200,000 | 170,000 - 200,000 | 170,000 - 200,000 |
| Zinc | tonnes | 27,000 - 35,000 | 25,000 - 33,000 | 18,000 - 24,000 |
| Copper | tonnes | 9,000 - 12,000 | 8,000 - 12,000 | 10,000 - 14,000 |
| Silver | ounces | 750,000 - 1,000,000 | 800,000 - 1,100,000 | 800,000 - 1,100,000 |
| British Columbia 2 | ||||
| Copper | tonnes | 30,000 - 44,000 | 30,000 - 45,000 | 44,000 - 54,000 |
| Gold | ounces | 17,000 - 26,000 | 24,000 - 36,000 | 24,000 - 29,000 |
| Silver | ounces | 300,000 - 455,000 | 290,000 - 400,000 | 450,000 - 550,000 |
| Total | ||||
| Copper | tonnes | 137,000 - 176,000 | 132,000 - 172,000 | 134,000 - 168,000 |
| Gold | ounces | 263,000 - 319,000 | 264,000 - 326,000 | 209,000 - 254,000 |
| Zinc | tonnes | 27,000 - 35,000 | 25,000 - 33,000 | 18,000 - 24,000 |
| Silver | ounces | 3,550,000 - 4,455,000 | 3,790,000 - 4,800,000 | 2,750,000 - 3,550,000 |
| Molybdenum | tonnes | 1,250 - 1,500 | 1,200 - 1,600 | 1,500 - 1,900 |
| 1 Metal reported in concentrate and doré is prior to treatment or refining losses or deductions associated with smelter terms. | ||||
| 2 Includes 100% of Copper Mountain mine production. Hudbay owns 75% of Copper Mountain mine. | ||||
Advancing Permitting at Copper World
The first key state permit required for Copper World, the Mined Land Reclamation Plan, was initially approved by the Arizona State Mine Inspector in October 2021 and was subsequently amended to reflect a larger private land project footprint. This approval was challenged in state court, but the challenge was dismissed in May 2023. In late 2022, Hudbay submitted the applications for an Aquifer Protection Permit and an Air Quality Permit to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. Hudbay continues to expect to receive these two outstanding state permits in 2024. Hudbay also received the floodplain use permit approval from Pima County in April 2024.
Copper World is one of the highest-grade open pit copper projects in the Americas iii with proven and probable mineral reserves of 385 million tonnes at 0.54% copper. There remains approximately 60% of the total copper contained in measured and indicated mineral resources (exclusive of mineral reserves), providing significant potential for Phase II expansion and mine life extension. In addition, the inferred mineral resource estimates are at a comparable copper grade and also provide significant upside potential.
Exploration Update
Progressing Maria Reyna and Caballito Exploration Permits
Hudbay controls a large, contiguous block of mineral rights with the potential to host mineral deposits in close proximity to the Constancia processing facility, including the past producing Caballito property and the highly prospective Maria Reyna property. The company commenced early exploration activities at Maria Reyna and Caballito after completing a surface rights exploration agreement with the community of Uchucarcco in August 2022. As part of the drill permitting process, environmental impact assessment applications were submitted for the Maria Reyna property in November 2023 and for the Caballito property in April 2024.
Executing Largest Snow Lake Exploration Program
The planned 2024 exploration program is Hudbay's largest Snow Lake program in company history and consists of modern geophysical programs and multi-phased drilling campaigns:
- Modern geophysics program – A majority of the newly acquired Cook Lake and former Rockcliff claims have been untested by modern deep geophysics, which was the discovery method for the Lalor deposit. A large geophysics program is currently underway including surface electromagnetic surveys using cutting-edge techniques that enable the team to detect targets at depths of almost 1,000 metres below surface.
- Multi-phased drilling program – The results from the winter 2024 surface drill program near Lalor are being analyzed and the company is planning follow-up drill programs for the balance of 2024.
The goal of the 2024 exploration program is to test mineralized extensions of the Lalor deposit and to find a new anchor deposit within trucking distance of the Snow Lake processing infrastructure, which has the potential to extend the life of the Snow Lake operations beyond 2038.
Advancing Access to the 1901 Deposit
In the first quarter of 2024, the company commenced the development of a smaller profile drift from the existing Lalor ramp towards the 1901 deposit. The 1901 development and exploration drift is proceeding on schedule and on budget and is expected to reach the mineralization in late-2024, followed by planned definition drilling in 2025 intended to confirm the optimal mining method, evaluate the orebody geometry and continuity, and convert inferred mineral resources in the gold lenses to mineral reserves. In addition to the benefits of being able to cycle development rounds faster, the smaller profile drift has significantly reduced the cost per metre of advance by 33% compared to average 2023 development costs incurred at Lalor.
Unlocking Value Through Flin Flon Tailings Reprocessing
Hudbay is advancing studies to evaluate the opportunity to reprocess Flin Flon tailings where more than 100 million tonnes of tailings have been deposited for over 90 years from the mill and the zinc plant. The studies are evaluating the potential to use the existing Flin Flon concentrator, which is currently on care and maintenance after the closure of the 777 mine in 2022, with flow sheet modifications to reprocess tailings to recover critical minerals and precious metals while creating environmental and social benefits for the region. The company is completing metallurgical test work and an early economic study to evaluate the tailings reprocessing opportunity.
The Flin Flon tailings facility contains materials generated from the metallurgical complex and confirmatory drilling has been conducted over the last several years:
- Mill tailings – Initial confirmatory drilling completed in 2022 indicated higher zinc, copper and silver grades than predicted from historical mill records while confirming the historical gold grade. In 2023, Hudbay advanced metallurgical test work and evaluated metallurgical technologies, including the signing of a test work co-operation agreement with Cobalt Blue Holdings ("COB") examining the use of COB technology to treat Flin Flon mill tailings. Initial results from preliminary roasting test work were encouraging in converting more than 90% of pyrite into pyrrhotite and molten sulphur, and the project has been advanced to the next stage of testing.
- Zinc plant tailings – This section of the tailings facility was previously unable to be drilled in 2022 due to water levels from operations. The water levels have receded since the completion of operations in mid-2022, and in 2024, Hudbay completed an initial confirmatory drill program in this portion of the tailings facility with results pending.
A key benefit of tailings reprocessing is the potential to reduce the environmental footprint by removing acid-generating properties of the tailings, which would improve the environmental impacts through higher quality water in the tailings facility and reduce the need for long-term water treatment.
Marubeni Flin Flon Exploration Partnership
In March 2024, Hudbay entered into an option agreement (the "Marubeni Option Agreement") with Marubeni Corporation, pursuant to which Hudbay has granted Marubeni's wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary an option to acquire a 20% interest in three projects located within trucking distance of Hudbay's existing processing facilities in the Flin Flon area. Pursuant to the Marubeni Option Agreement, the option holder must fund a minimum of C$12 million in exploration expenditures over a period of approximately five years in order to exercise its option. All three projects hold past producing mines that generated meaningful production with attractive grades of both base metals and precious metals. The properties remain highly prospective with potential for further discovery based on the attractive geological setting, limited historical deep drilling and promising geochemical and geophysical targets.
Upon successful completion of the option holder's earn-in obligations and the exercise of the option, a joint venture will be formed to hold the selected projects with Hudbay, acting as operator, holding an 80% interest and Marubeni indirectly holding the remaining 20% interest.
Website Links
Hudbay:
www.hudbay.com
Management's Discussion and Analysis:
https://www.hudbayminerals.com/MDA524
Financial Statements:
https://www.hudbayminerals.com/FS524
Conference Call and Webcast
| Date: | Tuesday, May 14, 2024 |
| Time: | 11:00 a.m. ET |
| Webcast: | www.hudbay.com |
| Dial in: | 1-416-764-8650 or 1-888-664-6383 Additional Dial-in |
Qualified Person and NI 43-101
The technical and scientific information in this news release related to the company's material mineral projects has been approved by Olivier Tavchandjian, P. Geo, Senior Vice President, Exploration and Technical Services. Mr. Tavchandjian is a qualified person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").
For a description of the key assumptions, parameters and methods used to estimate mineral reserves and resources at Hudbay's material mineral properties, as well as data verification procedures and a general discussion of the extent to which the estimates of scientific and technical information may be affected by any known environmental, permitting, legal title, taxation, sociopolitical, marketing or other relevant factors, please see the technical reports for the company's material properties as filed by Hudbay on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and EDGAR at www.sec.gov.
Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures
Adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per share, adjusted EBITDA, net debt, cash cost, sustaining and all-in sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, cash cost and sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold produced, combined unit costs and ratios based on these measures are non-IFRS performance measures. These measures do not have a meaning prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. These measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with IFRS and are not necessarily indicative of operating gross profit or cash flow from operations as determined under IFRS. Other companies may calculate these measures differently.
Management believes adjusted net earnings (loss) and adjusted net earnings (loss) per share provides an alternate measure of the company's performance for the current period and gives insight into its expected performance in future periods. These measures are used internally by the company to evaluate the performance of its underlying operations and to assist with its planning and forecasting of future operating results. As such, the company believes these measures are useful to investors in assessing the company's underlying performance. Hudbay provides adjusted EBITDA to help users analyze the company's results and to provide additional information about its ongoing cash generating potential in order to assess its capacity to service and repay debt, carry out investments and cover working capital needs. Net debt is shown because it is a performance measure used by the company to assess its financial position. Net debt to adjusted EBITDA is shown because it is a performance measure used by the company to assess its financial leverage and debt capacity. Cash cost, sustaining and all-in sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced are shown because the company believes they help investors and management assess the performance of its operations, including the margin generated by the operations and the company. Cash cost and sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold produced are shown because the company believes they help investors and management assess the performance of its Manitoba operations. Combined unit cost is shown because Hudbay believes it helps investors and management assess the company's cost structure and margins that are not impacted by variability in by-product commodity prices.
The following tables provide detailed reconciliations to the most comparable IFRS measures.
Adjusted Net Earnings (Loss) Reconciliation
| Three Months Ended | ||||||
| (in $ millions) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||
| Net earnings for the period | 18.5 | 33.5 | 5.4 | |||
| Tax expense | 49.3 | 47.5 | 12.0 | |||
| Earnings before tax | 67.8 | 81.0 | 17.4 | |||
| Adjusting items: | ||||||
| Mark-to-market adjustments 1 | 12.8 | 12.7 | 6.8 | |||
| Foreign exchange loss | 4.8 | 4.2 | 0.3 | |||
| Inventory adjustments | — | 1.4 | — | |||
| Variable consideration adjustment - stream revenue and accretion | 4.0 | — | (5.0 | ) | ||
| Premium paid on redemption of notes | — | 2.2 | — | |||
| Re-evaluation adjustment - environmental provision 2 | (5.3 | ) | 34.0 | (8.2 | ) | |
| Insurance recovery | — | (4.2 | ) | — | ||
| Value-added-tax recovery | — | (3.9 | ) | — | ||
| Write off fair value of the Copper Mountain bonds | — | (1.0 | ) | — | ||
| Reduction of obligation to renounce flow-through expenditures | (0.7 | ) | — | — | ||
| Restructuring charges | 0.9 | 0.6 | — | |||
| Loss on disposal of investments | — | — | 0.7 | |||
| Write-down/loss on disposal of PP&E | 9.0 | 6.6 | 0.1 | |||
| Adjusted earnings before income taxes | 93.3 | 133.6 | 12.1 | |||
| Tax expense | (49.3 | ) | (47.5 | ) | (12.0 | ) |
| Tax impact on adjusting items | 13.6 | (14.8 | ) | — | ||
| Adjusted net earnings | 57.6 | 71.3 | 0.1 | |||
| Adjusted net earnings ($/share) | 0.16 | 0.20 | 0.00 | |||
| Basic weighted average number of common shares outstanding (millions) | 350.8 | 349.1 | 262.0 | |||
| 1 Includes changes in fair value of the gold prepayment liability, Canadian junior mining investments, other financial assets and liabilities at fair value through net earnings or loss and share-based compensation expenses. | ||||||
| 2 Changes from movements to environmental reclamation provisions are primarily related to the Flin Flon operations, which were fully depreciated as of June 30, 2022, as well as other Manitoba non-operating sites. | ||||||
Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
| Three Months Ended | |||||||
| (in $ millions) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||
| Net earnings for the period | 18.5 | 33.5 | 5.4 | ||||
| Add back: | |||||||
| Tax expense | 49.3 | 47.5 | 12.0 | ||||
| Net finance expense | 44.0 | 48.9 | 35.0 | ||||
| Other expenses | 16.3 | 10.6 | 5.0 | ||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 109.3 | 121.9 | 67.4 | ||||
| Amortization of deferred revenue and variable consideration adjustment | (23.2 | ) | (26.5 | ) | (15.9 | ) | |
| Adjusting items (pre-tax): | |||||||
| Re-evaluation adjustment - environmental provision | (5.3 | ) | 34.0 | (8.2 | ) | ||
| Inventory adjustments | — | 1.4 | — | ||||
| Option agreement proceeds | (0.4 | ) | — | — | |||
| Share-based compensation expense 1 | 5.7 | 3.1 | 1.2 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | 214.2 | 274.4 | 101.9 | ||||
| 1 Share-based compensation expenses reflected in cost of sales and selling and administrative expenses. | |||||||
Net Debt Reconciliation
| (in $ thousands) | |||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||
| Total long-term debt | 1,278,587 | 1,287,536 | 1,225,023 | ||||
| Less: Cash and cash equivalents | 284,385 | 249,794 | 255,563 | ||||
| Net debt | 994,202 | 1,037,742 | 969,460 | ||||
| (in $ millions, except net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio) | |||||||
| Net debt | 994.2 | 1,037.7 | 969.5 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA (12 month period) | 760.5 | 647.8 | 467.3 | ||||
| Net debt to adjusted EBITDA | 1.3 | 1.6 | 2.1 | ||||
| Trailing Adjusted EBITDA | Three Months Ended | LTM 1 | ||||||||
| (in $ millions) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Sept. 30, 2023 | Jun. 30, 2023 | ||||||
| Net earnings (loss) for the period | 18.5 | 33.5 | 45.5 | (14.9 | ) | 82.6 | ||||
| Add back: | ||||||||||
| Tax expense (recovery) | 49.3 | 47.5 | 38.7 | (15.8 | ) | 119.7 | ||||
| Net finance expense | 44.0 | 48.9 | 30.9 | 30.5 | 154.3 | |||||
| Other expenses | 16.3 | 10.6 | 8.9 | 13.9 | 49.7 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 109.3 | 121.9 | 113.8 | 88.7 | 433.7 | |||||
| Amortization of deferred revenue and variable consideration adjustment | (23.2 | ) | (26.5 | ) | (16.8 | ) | (18.1 | ) | (84.6 | ) |
| Adjusting items (pre-tax): | ||||||||||
| Re-evaluation adjustment - environmental provision | (5.3 | ) | 34.0 | (32.4 | ) | (4.7 | ) | (8.4 | ) | |
| Inventory adjustments | — | 1.4 | — | 0.9 | 2.3 | |||||
| Option agreement proceeds | (0.4 | ) | — | — | — | (0.4 | ) | |||
| Share-based compensation expenses 2 | 5.7 | 3.1 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 11.6 | |||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | 214.2 | 274.4 | 190.7 | 81.2 | 760.5 | |||||
| 1 LTM (last twelve months) as of March 31, 2024. | ||||||||||
| 2 Share-based compensation expense reflected in cost of sales and administrative expenses. | ||||||||||
Copper Cash Cost Reconciliation
| Consolidated | Three Months Ended | |||||
| Net pounds of copper produced 1 | ||||||
| (in thousands) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||
| Peru | 54,181 | 73,209 | 45,233 | |||
| British Columbia 2 | 15,485 | 18,755 | — | |||
| Manitoba | 6,942 | 8,234 | 4,508 | |||
| Net pounds of copper produced | 76,608 | 100,198 | 49,741 | |||
| 1 Contained copper in concentrate. | ||||||
| 2 Includes 100% of Copper Mountain mine production, Hudbay owns 75% of Copper Mountain mine. As Copper Mountain was acquired on June 20, 2023, there were no comparative figures for the period ended March 31, 2023. | ||||||
| Consolidated | Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||
| Cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | |||||||
| Mining | 102,133 | 1.33 | 89,587 | 0.89 | 64,538 | 1.30 | |||||||
| Milling | 83,474 | 1.09 | 90,763 | 0.91 | 61,039 | 1.23 | |||||||
| G&A | 38,335 | 0.50 | 38,937 | 0.39 | 26,555 | 0.53 | |||||||
| Onsite costs | 223,942 | 2.92 | 219,287 | 2.19 | 152,132 | 3.06 | |||||||
| Treatment & refining | 27,664 | 0.36 | 35,665 | 0.36 | 18,495 | 0.37 | |||||||
| Freight & other | 27,062 | 0.36 | 32,273 | 0.32 | 17,776 | 0.36 | |||||||
| Cash cost, before by-product credits | 278,668 | 3.64 | 287,225 | 2.87 | 188,403 | 3.79 | |||||||
| By-product credits | (266,686 | ) | (3.48 | ) | (271,738 | ) | (2.71 | ) | (146,111 | ) | (2.94 | ) | |
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 11,982 | 0.16 | 15,487 | 0.16 | 42,292 | 0.85 | |||||||
| Consolidated | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||||||||
| Supplementary cash cost information | $000s | $/lb 1 | $000s | $/lb 1 | $000s | $/lb 1 | ||||||
| By-product credits 2 : | ||||||||||||
| Zinc | 14,589 | 0.19 | 18,474 | 0.18 | 17,374 | 0.35 | ||||||
| Gold 3 | 209,812 | 2.74 | 216,178 | 2.16 | 93,479 | 1.88 | ||||||
| Silver 3 | 23,039 | 0.30 | 22,698 | 0.23 | 11,998 | 0.24 | ||||||
| Molybdenum & other | 19,246 | 0.25 | 14,388 | 0.14 | 23,260 | 0.47 | ||||||
| Total by-product credits | 266,686 | 3.48 | 271,738 | 2.71 | 146,111 | 2.94 | ||||||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 11,982 | 15,487 | 42,292 | |||||||||
| By-product credits | 266,686 | 271,738 | 146,111 | |||||||||
| Treatment and refining charges | (27,664 | ) | (35,665 | ) | (18,495 | ) | ||||||
| Share-based compensation expense | 355 | 301 | 79 | |||||||||
| Inventory adjustments | (24 | ) | 1,402 | — | ||||||||
| Change in product inventory | 9,554 | 29,326 | (9,409 | ) | ||||||||
| Royalties | 2,873 | 1,032 | 706 | |||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization 4 | 109,273 | 121,812 | 67,422 | |||||||||
| Cost of sales | 373,035 | 405,433 | 228,706 | |||||||||
| 1 Per pound of copper produced. | ||||||||||||
| 2 By-product credits are computed as revenue per consolidated financial statements, amortization of deferred revenue and pricing and volume adjustments. | ||||||||||||
| 3 Gold and silver by-product credits do not include variable consideration adjustments with respect to stream arrangements. Variable consideration adjustments are cumulative adjustments to gold and silver stream deferred revenue primarily associated with the net change in mineral reserves and resources or amendments to the mine plan that would change the total expected deliverable ounces under the precious metal streaming arrangement. For the three months ended March 31, 2024 the variable consideration adjustments amounted to an expense of $3,849, the three months ended December 31, 2023 $nil, and for the three months ended March 31, 2023 income of $4,885. | ||||||||||||
| 4 Depreciation is based on concentrate sold. | ||||||||||||
| Peru | Three Months Ended | |||||
| (in thousands) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||
| Net pounds of copper produced 1 | 54,181 | 73,209 | 45,233 | |||
| 1 Contained copper in concentrate. | ||||||
| Peru | Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||
| Cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | |||||||
| Mining | 29,220 | 0.54 | 30,336 | 0.41 | 26,786 | 0.59 | |||||||
| Milling | 43,624 | 0.80 | 50,199 | 0.69 | 46,191 | 1.03 | |||||||
| G&A | 23,092 | 0.43 | 24,909 | 0.34 | 16,466 | 0.36 | |||||||
| Onsite costs | 95,936 | 1.77 | 105,444 | 1.44 | 89,443 | 1.98 | |||||||
| Treatment & refining | 14,975 | 0.28 | 19,626 | 0.27 | 10,603 | 0.24 | |||||||
| Freight & other | 16,580 | 0.30 | 20,854 | 0.28 | 12,427 | 0.27 | |||||||
| Cash cost, before by-product credits | 127,491 | 2.35 | 145,924 | 1.99 | 112,473 | 2.49 | |||||||
| By-product credits | (104,329 | ) | (1.92 | ) | (106,227 | ) | (1.45 | ) | (50,899 | ) | (1.13 | ) | |
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 23,162 | 0.43 | 39,697 | 0.54 | 61,574 | 1.36 | |||||||
| Peru | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||||||||
| $000s | $/lb 1 | $000s | $/lb 1 | $000s | $/lb 1 | |||||||
| By-product credits 2 : | ||||||||||||
| Gold 3 | 69,533 | 1.28 | 77,517 | 1.05 | 19,301 | 0.43 | ||||||
| Silver 3 | 15,550 | 0.29 | 14,322 | 0.20 | 8,577 | 0.19 | ||||||
| Molybdenum | 19,246 | 0.35 | 14,388 | 0.20 | 23,021 | 0.51 | ||||||
| Total by-product credits | 104,329 | 1.92 | 106,227 | 1.45 | 50,899 | 1.13 | ||||||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 23,162 | 39,697 | 61,574 | |||||||||
| By-product credits | 104,329 | 106,227 | 50,899 | |||||||||
| Treatment and refining charges | (14,975 | ) | (19,626 | ) | (10,603 | ) | ||||||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 116 | 85 | (14 | ) | ||||||||
| Change in product inventory | 14,077 | 8,048 | (11,135 | ) | ||||||||
| Royalties | 2,118 | 1,456 | 665 | |||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization 4 | 71,030 | 85,722 | 41,960 | |||||||||
| Cost of sales 5 | 199,857 | 221,609 | 133,346 | |||||||||
| 1 Per pound of copper produced. | ||||||||||||
| 2 By-product credits are computed as revenue per consolidated financial statements, including amortization of deferred revenue and pricing and volume adjustments. | ||||||||||||
| 3 Gold and silver by-product credits do not include variable consideration adjustments with respect to stream arrangements. | ||||||||||||
| 4 Depreciation is based on concentrate sold. | ||||||||||||
| 5 As per IFRS consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||||||||||
| British Columbia | Three Months Ended | ||
| (in thousands) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | |
| Net pounds of copper produced 1 | 15,485 | 18,755 | |
| 1 Contained copper in concentrate. | |||
| British Columbia | Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | ||||||||
| Cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | |||||
| Mining | 28,553 | 1.85 | 19,015 | 1.01 | |||||
| Milling | 23,374 | 1.51 | 25,218 | 1.35 | |||||
| G&A | 3,897 | 0.25 | 5,643 | 0.30 | |||||
| Onsite costs | 55,824 | 3.61 | 49,876 | 2.66 | |||||
| Treatment & refining | 3,476 | 0.22 | 4,850 | 0.26 | |||||
| Freight & other | 4,293 | 0.28 | 4,654 | 0.25 | |||||
| Cash cost, before by-product credits | 63,593 | 4.11 | 59,380 | 3.17 | |||||
| By-product credits | (9,543 | ) | (0.62 | ) | (9,286 | ) | (0.50 | ) | |
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 54,050 | 3.49 | 50,094 | 2.67 | |||||
| British Columbia | Three Months Ended | |||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | |||||||
| Supplementary cash cost information | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | ||||
| By-product credits 2 : | ||||||||
| Gold | 7,564 | 0.49 | 6,876 | 0.37 | ||||
| Silver | 1,979 | 0.13 | 2,410 | 0.13 | ||||
| Total by-product credits | 9,543 | 0.62 | 9,286 | 0.50 | ||||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 54,050 | 50,094 | ||||||
| By-product credits | 9,543 | 9,286 | ||||||
| Treatment and refining charges | (3,476 | ) | (4,850 | ) | ||||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 5 | — | ||||||
| Change in product inventory | (3,965 | ) | 8,469 | |||||
| Royalties | 755 | (424 | ) | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization 3 | 11,649 | 5,489 | ||||||
| Cost of sales 4 | 68,561 | 68,064 | ||||||
| 1 Per pound of copper produced. | ||||||||
| 2 By-product credits are computed as revenue per consolidated financial statements, including pricing and volume adjustments. | ||||||||
| 3 Depreciation is based on concentrate sold. | ||||||||
| 4 As per consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||||||
Sustaining and All-in Sustaining Cash Cost Reconciliation
| Consolidated | Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||
| All-in sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | |||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 11,982 | 0.16 | 15,487 | 0.16 | 42,292 | 0.85 | |||||||
| Cash sustaining capital expenditures | 62,314 | 0.80 | 87,609 | 0.87 | 47,869 | 0.96 | |||||||
| Capitalized exploration | 2,100 | 0.03 | 5,150 | 0.05 | — | — | |||||||
| Royalties | 2,873 | 0.04 | 1,032 | 0.01 | 706 | 0.02 | |||||||
| Sustaining cash cost, net of by-product credits | 79,269 | 1.03 | 109,278 | 1.09 | 90,867 | 1.83 | |||||||
| Corporate selling and administrative expenses & regional costs | 18,094 | 0.24 | 12,727 | 0.13 | 10,215 | 0.20 | |||||||
| Accretion and amortization of decommissioning and community agreements 1 | 4,007 | 0.05 | 8,967 | 0.09 | 1,958 | 0.04 | |||||||
| All-in sustaining cash cost, net of by-product credits | 101,370 | 1.32 | 130,972 | 1.31 | 103,040 | 2.07 | |||||||
| Reconciliation to property, plant and equipment additions: | |||||||||||||
| Property, plant and equipment additions | 46,220 | 54,040 | 33,554 | ||||||||||
| Capitalized stripping net additions | 31,983 | 40,861 | 26,984 | ||||||||||
| Total accrued capital additions | 78,203 | 94,901 | 60,538 | ||||||||||
| Less other non-sustaining capital costs 2 | 26,982 | 19,945 | 19,850 | ||||||||||
| Total sustaining capital costs | 51,221 | 74,956 | 40,688 | ||||||||||
| Capitalized lease an equipment financing payments | 8,274 | 8,708 | 4,702 | ||||||||||
| Community agreement cash payments | 800 | 2,274 | 1,189 | ||||||||||
| Accretion and amortization of decommissioning and restoration obligations 3 | 2,019 | 1,671 | 1,290 | ||||||||||
| Cash sustaining capital expenditures | 62,314 | 87,609 | 47,869 | ||||||||||
| 1 Includes accretion of decommissioning relating to non-productive sites, and accretion and amortization of current community agreements capitalized to Other assets. | |||||||||||||
| 2 Other non-sustaining capital costs include Arizona capitalized costs, capitalized interest, capitalized exploration, right-of-use lease asset additions, equipment financing asset additions and growth capital expenditures. | |||||||||||||
| 3 Includes amortization of decommissioning and restoration PP&E assets and accretion of decommissioning and restoration liabilities related to producing sites. | |||||||||||||
| Peru | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||||||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | ||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 23,162 | 0.43 | 39,697 | 0.54 | 61,574 | 1.36 | ||||||
| Cash sustaining capital expenditures | 29,779 | 0.55 | 42,351 | 0.58 | 33,564 | 0.74 | ||||||
| Capitalized exploration 1 | 2,100 | 0.04 | 5,150 | 0.07 | — | — | ||||||
| Royalties | 2,118 | 0.04 | 1,456 | 0.02 | 665 | 0.02 | ||||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced | 57,159 | 1.06 | 88,654 | 1.21 | 95,803 | 2.12 | ||||||
| 1 Only includes exploration costs incurred for locations near to existing mine operations. | ||||||||||||
| British Columbia | Three Months Ended 1 | |||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | |||||||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced | $000s | $/lb | $000s | $/lb | ||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 54,050 | 3.49 | 50,094 | 2.67 | ||||||
| Royalties | 20,361 | 1.31 | 24,063 | 1.28 | ||||||
| Cash sustaining capital expenditures | 755 | 0.05 | (424 | ) | (0.02 | ) | ||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced | 75,166 | 4.85 | 73,733 | 3.93 | ||||||
| 1 As Copper Mountain was acquired on June 20, 2023, there were no comparative figures for the three months ended March 31, 2023. | ||||||||||
Gold Cash Cost and Sustaining Cash Cost Reconciliation
| Manitoba | Three Months Ended | |||
| (in thousands) | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |
| Net ounces of gold produced 1 | 56,831 | 59,683 | 36,034 | |
| 1 Contained gold in concentrate and doré. | ||||
| Manitoba | Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||
| Cash cost per ounce of gold produced | $000s | $/oz | $000s | $/oz | $000s | $/oz | |||||||
| Mining | 44,360 | 780 | 40,236 | 673 | 37,752 | 1,048 | |||||||
| Milling | 16,476 | 290 | 15,346 | 256 | 14,848 | 412 | |||||||
| G&A | 11,346 | 200 | 8,385 | 140 | 10,089 | 280 | |||||||
| Onsite costs | 72,182 | 1,270 | 63,967 | 1,069 | 62,689 | 1,740 | |||||||
| Treatment & refining | 9,213 | 162 | 11,189 | 186 | 7,892 | 219 | |||||||
| Freight & other | 6,189 | 109 | 6,765 | 113 | 5,349 | 148 | |||||||
| Cash cost, before by-product credits | 87,584 | 1,541 | 81,921 | 1,368 | 75,930 | 2,107 | |||||||
| By-product credits | (45,734 | ) | (805 | ) | (55,928 | ) | (934 | ) | (42,131 | ) | (1,169 | ) | |
| Gold cash cost, net of by-product credits | 41,850 | 736 | 25,993 | 434 | 33,799 | 938 | |||||||
| Manitoba | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||||||||
| Supplementary cash cost information | $000s | $/oz 1 | $000s | $/oz 1 | $000s | $/oz 1 | ||||||
| By-product credits 2 : | ||||||||||||
| Copper | 25,635 | 451 | 31,489 | 526 | 21,097 | 585 | ||||||
| Zinc | 14,588 | 257 | 18,473 | 308 | 17,374 | 482 | ||||||
| Silver 3 | 5,510 | 97 | 5,966 | 100 | 3,421 | 95 | ||||||
| Other | — | — | — | — | 239 | 7 | ||||||
| Total by-product credits | 45,734 | 805 | 55,928 | 934 | 42,131 | 1,169 | ||||||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||||||||
| Cash cost, net of by-product credits | 41,850 | 25,993 | 33,799 | |||||||||
| By-product credits | 45,734 | 55,928 | 42,131 | |||||||||
| Treatment and refining charges | (9,213 | ) | (11,189 | ) | (7,892 | ) | ||||||
| Inventory adjustments | (24 | ) | 1,402 | — | ||||||||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 234 | 216 | 93 | |||||||||
| Change in product inventory | (558 | ) | 12,809 | 1,726 | ||||||||
| Royalties | — | — | 41 | |||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization 4 | 26,594 | 30,601 | 25,462 | |||||||||
| Cost of sales 5 | 104,617 | 115,760 | 95,360 | |||||||||
| 1 Per ounce of gold produced. | ||||||||||||
| 2 By-product credits are computed as revenue per consolidated interim financial statements, amortization of deferred revenue and pricing and volume adjustments. | ||||||||||||
| 3 Silver by-product credits do not include variable consideration adjustments with respect to stream arrangements. | ||||||||||||
| 4 Depreciation is based on concentrate sold. | ||||||||||||
| 5 As per IFRS consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||||||||||
| Manitoba | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||
| Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | ||||||||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of gold produced | $000s | $/oz | $000s | $/oz | $000s | $/oz | ||||||
| Gold cash cost, net of by-product credits | 41,850 | 736 | 25,993 | 434 | 33,799 | 938 | ||||||
| Cash sustaining capital expenditures | 12,173 | 214 | 21,195 | 354 | 14,304 | 397 | ||||||
| Royalties | — | — | — | — | 41 | 1 | ||||||
| Sustaining cash cost per pound of gold produced | 54,023 | 950 | 47,188 | 788 | 48,144 | 1,336 | ||||||
Combined Unit Cost Reconciliation
| Peru | Three Months Ended | |||||
| (in thousands except ore tonnes milled and unit cost per tonne) | ||||||
| Combined unit cost per tonne processed | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||
| Mining | 29,220 | 30,336 | 26,786 | |||
| Milling | 43,624 | 50,199 | 46,191 | |||
| G&A 1 | 23,092 | 24,909 | 16,466 | |||
| Other G&A 2 | (7,688 | ) | (8,303 | ) | (1,539 | ) |
| Unit Cost | 88,248 | 97,141 | 87,904 | |||
| Tonnes ore milled | 8,078 | 7,939 | 7,664 | |||
| Combined unit cost per tonne | 10.92 | 12.24 | 11.47 | |||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||
| Unit cost | 88,248 | 97,141 | 87,904 | |||
| Freight & other | 16,580 | 20,854 | 12,427 | |||
| Other G&A | 7,688 | 8,303 | 1,539 | |||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 116 | 85 | (14 | ) | ||
| Change in product inventory | 14,077 | 8,048 | (11,135 | ) | ||
| Royalties | 2,118 | 1,456 | 665 | |||
| Depreciation and amortization | 71,030 | 85,722 | 41,960 | |||
| Cost of sales 3 | 199,857 | 221,609 | 133,346 | |||
| 1 G&A as per cash cost reconciliation above. | ||||||
| 2 Other G&A primarily includes profit sharing costs. | ||||||
| 3 As per IFRS consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||||
| Manitoba | Three Months Ended | |||||
| (in thousands except tonnes ore milled and unit cost per tonne) | ||||||
| Combined unit cost per tonne processed | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | Mar. 31, 2023 | |||
| Mining | 44,360 | 40,236 | 37,752 | |||
| Milling | 16,476 | 15,346 | 14,848 | |||
| G&A 1 | 11,346 | 8,385 | 10,089 | |||
| Less: Other G&A related to profit sharing costs | (4,131 | ) | (1,522 | ) | (1,139 | ) |
| Unit cost | 68,051 | 62,445 | 61,550 | |||
| USD/CAD implicit exchange rate | 1.35 | 1.36 | 1.35 | |||
| Unit cost - C$ | 91,748 | 85,013 | 83,193 | |||
| Tonnes ore milled | 389,767 | 393,837 | 385,661 | |||
| Combined unit cost per tonne - C$ | 235 | 216 | 216 | |||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||||
| Unit cost | 68,051 | 62,445 | 61,550 | |||
| Freight & other | 6,189 | 6,765 | 5,349 | |||
| Other G&A related to profit sharing | 4,131 | 1,522 | 1,139 | |||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 234 | 216 | 93 | |||
| Inventory adjustments | (24 | ) | 1,402 | — | ||
| Change in product inventory | (558 | ) | 12,809 | 1,726 | ||
| Royalties | — | — | 41 | |||
| Depreciation and amortization | 26,594 | 30,601 | 25,462 | |||
| Cost of sales 2 | 104,617 | 115,760 | 95,360 | |||
| 1 G&A as per cash cost reconciliation above. | ||||||
| 2 As per IFRS consolidated interim financial statements. | ||||||
| British Columbia | Three Months Ended | |||
| Combined unit cost per tonne processed | Mar. 31, 2024 | Dec. 31, 2023 | ||
| Mining | 28,553 | 19,015 | ||
| Milling | 23,374 | 25,218 | ||
| G&A 1 | 3,897 | 5,643 | ||
| Unit cost | 55,824 | 49,876 | ||
| USD/CAD implicit exchange rate | 1.35 | 1.37 | ||
| Unit cost - C$ | 75,282 | 68,168 | ||
| Tonnes ore milled | 3,180 | 3,262 | ||
| Combined unit cost per tonne - C$ | 23.67 | 20.90 | ||
| Reconciliation to IFRS: | ||||
| Unit cost | 55,824 | 49,876 | ||
| Freight & other | 4,293 | 4,654 | ||
| Share-based compensation expenses | 5 | — | ||
| Change in product inventory | (3,965 | ) | 8,469 | |
| Royalties | 755 | (424 | ) | |
| Depreciation and amortization | 11,649 | 5,489 | ||
| Cost of sales 2 | 68,561 | 68,064 | ||
| 1 G&A as per cash cost reconciliation above | ||||
| 2 Other G&A primarily includes profit sharing costs. | ||||
| 3 As per consolidated financial statements. | ||||
| 4 As Copper Mountain was acquired on June 20 2023, there were no comparative figures for the three months ended March 31, 2023. | ||||
Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. All information contained in this news release, other than statements of current and historical fact, is forward-looking information. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "budget", "guidance", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "strategy", "target", "intends", "objective", "goal", "understands", "anticipates" and "believes" (and variations of these or similar words) and statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" "occur" or "be achieved" or "will be taken" (and variations of these or similar expressions). All of the forward-looking information in this news release is qualified by this cautionary note.
Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the company's production, cost and capital and exploration expenditure guidance, expectations regarding reductions in discretionary spending and capital expenditures, the ability of the company to stabilize and optimize the Copper Mountain mine operation and achieve operating synergies, the fleet production ramp up plan and the accelerated stripping strategies at the Copper Mountain site, the ability of the company to complete business integration activities at the Copper Mountain mine, the estimated timelines and pre-requisites for sanctioning the Copper World project and the pursuit of a potential minority joint venture partner, expectations regarding the permitting requirements for the Copper World project (including expected timing for receipt of such applicable permits), the expected benefits of Manitoba growth initiatives, including the advancement of and timeline for the development and exploration drift at the 1901 deposit, the benefits and results of the option agreement entered into with Marubeni Corporation, the company's future deleveraging strategies and the company's ability to deleverage and repay debt as needed, expectations regarding the company's cash balance and liquidity, the company's ability to increase the mining rate at Lalor, the anticipated benefits from completing the Stall recovery improvement program, expectations regarding the ability to conduct exploration work and execute on exploration programs on its properties and to advance related drill plans, including the advancement of the exploration program at Maria Reyna and Caballito and the status of the related drill permit application process, the ability to continue mining higher-grade ore in the Pampacancha pit and the company's expectations resulting therefrom, expectations regarding the ability for the company to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the company's evaluation and assessment of opportunities to reprocess tailings using various metallurgical technologies, expectations regarding the prospective nature of the Maria Reyna and Caballito properties, the anticipated impact of brownfield and greenfield growth projects on the company's performance, anticipated expansion opportunities and extension of mine life in Snow Lake and the ability for Hudbay to find a new anchor deposit near the company's Snow Lake operations, anticipated future drill programs and exploration activities and any results expected therefrom, anticipated mine plans, anticipated metals prices and the anticipated sensitivity of the company's financial performance to metals prices, events that may affect its operations and development projects, anticipated cash flows from operations and related liquidity requirements, the anticipated effect of external factors on revenue, such as commodity prices, estimation of mineral reserves and resources, mine life projections, reclamation costs, economic outlook, government regulation of mining operations, and business and acquisition strategies. Forward-looking information is not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking information is based on, among other things, opinions, assumptions, estimates and analyses that, while considered reasonable by the company at the date the forward-looking information is provided, inherently are subject to significant risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors that may cause actual results and events to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information.
The material factors or assumptions that Hudbay has identified and were applied in drawing conclusions or making forecasts or projections set out in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to:
- the ability to achieve production, cost and capital and exploration expenditure guidance;
- the ability to achieve discretionary spending reductions without impacting operations;
- no significant interruptions to operations due to social or political unrest in the regions Hudbay operates, including the navigation of the complex political and social environment in Peru;
- no interruptions to the company's plans for advancing the Copper World project, including with respect to timely receipt of applicable permits and the pursuit of a potential joint venture partner;
- the ability for the company to successfully complete the integration and optimization of the Copper Mountain operations, achieve operating synergies and develop and maintain good relations with key stakeholders;
- the ability to execute on its exploration plans and to advance related drill plans;
- the ability to advance the exploration program at Maria Reyna and Caballito;
- the success of mining, processing, exploration and development activities;
- the scheduled maintenance and availability of the company's processing facilities;
- the accuracy of geological, mining and metallurgical estimates;
- anticipated metals prices and the costs of production;
- the supply and demand for metals the company produces;
- the supply and availability of all forms of energy and fuels at reasonable prices;
- no significant unanticipated operational or technical difficulties;
- no significant interruptions to operations due to adverse effects from extreme weather events, including the current forest fire in the Flin Flon region and potential seasonal forest fires that may affect the regions in which the company operates;
- the execution of the company's business and growth strategies, including the success of its strategic investments and initiatives;
- the availability of additional financing, if needed;
- the company's ability to deleverage and repay debt as needed;
- the ability to complete project targets on time and on budget and other events that may affect the company's ability to develop its projects;
- the timing and receipt of various regulatory and governmental approvals;
- the availability of personnel for the company's exploration, development and operational projects and ongoing employee relations;
- maintaining good relations with the employees at the company's operations;
- maintaining good relations with the labour unions that represent certain of the company's employees in Manitoba and Peru;
- maintaining good relations with the communities in which the company operates, including the neighbouring Indigenous communities and local governments;
- no significant unanticipated challenges with stakeholders at the company's various projects;
- no significant unanticipated events or changes relating to regulatory, environmental, health and safety matters;
- no contests over title to the company's properties, including as a result of rights or claimed rights of Indigenous peoples or challenges to the validity of the company's unpatented mining claims;
- the timing and possible outcome of pending litigation and no significant unanticipated litigation;
- certain tax matters, including, but not limited to current tax laws and regulations, changes in taxation policies and the refund of certain value added taxes from the Canadian and Peruvian governments; and
- no significant and continuing adverse changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets (including commodity prices and foreign exchange rates).
The risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information may include, but are not limited to, risks related to the ongoing business integration of Copper Mountain and the process for designing, implementing and maintaining effective internal controls for Copper Mountain, the failure to effectively complete the integration and optimization of the Copper Mountain operations or to achieve anticipated operating synergies, political and social risks in the regions Hudbay operates, including the navigation of the complex political and social environment in Peru, risks generally associated with the mining industry and the current geopolitical environment, including future commodity prices, currency and interest rate fluctuations, energy and consumable prices, supply chain constraints and general cost escalation in the current inflationary environment, risks related to the renegotiation of collective bargaining agreements with the labour unions representing certain of the company's employees in Manitoba and Peru, uncertainties related to the development and operation of the company's projects, the risk of an indicator of impairment or impairment reversal relating to a material mineral property, risks related to the Copper World project, including in relation to permitting, project delivery and financing risks, risks related to the Lalor mine plan, including the ability to convert inferred mineral resource estimates to higher confidence categories, dependence on key personnel and employee and union relations, risks related to political or social instability, unrest or change, risks in respect of Indigenous and community relations, rights and title claims, risks related to extreme weather events, including risks arising from the current forest fire in the Flin Flon region, potential seasonal forest fires that may affect the regions in which the company operates and other severe storms, operational risks and hazards, including the cost of maintaining and upgrading the company's tailings management facilities and any unanticipated environmental, industrial and geological events and developments and the inability to insure against all risks, failure of plant, equipment, processes, transportation and other infrastructure to operate as anticipated, compliance with government and environmental regulations, including permitting requirements and anti-bribery legislation, depletion of the company's reserves, volatile financial markets and interest rates that may affect the company's ability to obtain additional financing on acceptable terms, the failure to obtain required approvals or clearances from government authorities on a timely basis, uncertainties related to the geology, continuity, grade and estimates of mineral reserves and resources, and the potential for variations in grade and recovery rates, uncertain costs of reclamation activities, the company's ability to comply with its pension and other post-retirement obligations, the company's ability to abide by the covenants in its debt instruments and other material contracts, tax refunds, hedging transactions, as well as the risks discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the company's most recent Annual Information Form and under the heading "Financial Risk Management" in the company's most recent management's discussion and analysis, each of which is available on the company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca and the company's EDGAR profile at www.sec.gov.
Should one or more risk, uncertainty, contingency or other factor materialize or should any factor or assumption prove incorrect, actual results could vary materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Hudbay does not assume any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information after the date of this news release or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and any forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law.
Note to United States Investors
This news release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the securities laws in effect in Canada, which may differ materially from the requirements of United States securities laws applicable to U.S. issuers.
About Hudbay
Hudbay (TSX, NYSE: HBM) is a copper-focused mining company with three long-life operations and a world-class pipeline of copper growth projects in tier-one mining-friendly jurisdictions of Canada, Peru and the United States.
Hudbay's operating portfolio includes the Constancia mine in Cusco (Peru), the Snow Lake operations in Manitoba (Canada) and the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia (Canada). Copper is the primary metal produced by the company, which is complemented by meaningful gold production. Hudbay's growth pipeline includes the Copper World project in Arizona (United States), the Mason project in Nevada (United States), the Llaguen project in La Libertad (Peru) and several expansion and exploration opportunities near its existing operations.
The value Hudbay creates and the impact it has is embodied in its purpose statement: "We care about our people, our communities and our planet. Hudbay provides the metals the world needs. We work sustainably, transform lives and create better futures for communities." Hudbay's mission is to create sustainable value and strong returns by leveraging its core strengths in community relations, focused exploration, mine development and efficient operations.
For further information, please contact:
Candace Brûlé
Vice President, Investor Relations
(416) 814-4387
investor.relations@hudbay.com
____________________
i Adjusted net earnings (loss) and adjusted net earnings (loss) per share; adjusted EBITDA; cash cost, sustaining cash cost and all-in sustaining cash cost per pound of copper produced, net of by-product credits; cash cost and sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold produced, net of by-product credits; combined unit costs, net debt and any ratios based on these measures are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further information and a detailed reconciliation, please see the "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" section of this news release.
ii Calculated using the mid-point of the guidance range.
iii Sourced from S&P Global, August 2023.
News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia
Reconnaissance Drilling Delivers Grades up to 2.19% CuEq at Fortuna Project
The prospect areas are part of a suite of promising exploration targets within an under- explored copper belt, which the Company is aggressively exploring.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Multiple zones of shallow, high-grade copper mineralisation intersected.
- Mineralisation hosted within broad zones of favourable host rocks.
- Highlighted downhole intersections include:
- 13.3m @ 0.59% CuEq from 20m;
- 4m @ 0.65% CuEq from 45m;
- 7m @ 0.67% CuEq from 55m, including 1m of 2.19% CuEq; and
- 2m @ 1.33% CuEq from 95m.
- Drilling ongoing at Lana Corina Project within >3km prospective corridor.
Culpeo Minerals’ Managing Director, Max Tuesley, commented:
“To drill and intersect multiple zones of shallow copper mineralisation on our first pass reconnaissance drilling program at Vaca Muerta is extremely positive and highlights the significant potential of the target area. This result coupled with the ongoing exploration success at El Quillay indicates that the Fortuna Project continues to provide potential for a major copper discovery with three distinct targets now identified that include: breccia hosted copper mineralisation at El Quillay and Vaca Muerta, porphyry copper and gold at La Florida and high- grade structurally controlled copper and gold at Piedra Dura.”
EL QUILLAY DRILLING PROGRAM
Assay results from the second hole drilled at El Quillay North returned 13.3m @ 0.59% CuEq from 20m downhole (Figure 1 and 2, Table 1 and Appendices C & D), confirming further shallow copper mineralisation within the target. Previous drillhole CMEQD002 returned 26m @ 0.81% CuEq from 29m including a high-grade zone of 4m of 1.87% CuEq from 51 to 55m1.
Figure 1: Plan view with results of CMEQD001 and CMEQD002
These drilling results highlight the significant widths of outcropping mineralisation that are hosted within the El Quillay Fault. This structure is known to have at least 3km of strike extent, the majority of which remains undrilled and with the discovery of mineralisation at El Quillay East2 and geophysical targets to the west6, the Company has initiated the next phase of field work. This will include detailed surface mapping and sampling, trenching in areas prior to drilling and ground truthing of targets identified from historic geophysical data.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Culpeo Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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