Jaguar Powering Towards Q3 Resource Upgrade as Drilling Continues to Deliver Strong Results

Centaurus Metals (ASX Code: CTM) is pleased to report outstanding new drill results from ongoing resource growth and development drilling at its 100%-owned Jaguar Nickel Sulphide Project in the Carajás Mineral Province of northern Brazil.

• Step-out drilling at Onça Preta (OP) continues to deliver strong, consistent results with new assays including:
  • 31.7m at 1.61% Ni from 369.4m including 5.6m at 4.34% Ni from 374.9m in JAG-DD-22-263 (OP)
  • 22.7m at 1.47% Ni from 383.3m including 6.4m at 2.49% Ni from 386.6m in JAG-DD-22-284 (OP)
  • 13.5m at 1.26% Ni from 406.6m including 3.7m at 2.23% Ni from 411.2m in JAG-DD-22-263 (OP)
  • 14.1m at 0.96% Ni from 475.1m in JAG-DD-22-263 (OP)
  • 6.7m at 1.55% Ni from 406.3m in JAG-DD-22-267 (OP)
  • 3.7m at 3.00% Ni from 235.0m in JAG-DD-22-300 (OP)
• Further significant results received from ongoing in-fill drilling at the Jaguar Central (JC), Jaguar Central North (JCN), Jaguar Northeast (JNE) and Jaguar South (JS) deposits, demonstrating the continuity of the mineralisation within the current Mineral Resource model. New assay results include:
  
  • 50.6m at 0.63% Ni from 110.0m including 7.2m at 1.87% Ni from 145.8m in JAG-DD-22-289 (JC)
  • 28.8m at 0.97% Ni from 8.2m including 9.1m at 1.49% Ni from 10.3m in JAG-DD-22-303 (JCN)
  • 15.4m at 1.50% Ni from 112.2m including 2.4m at 5.76% Ni from 121.9m in JAG-DD-22-270 (JS)
  • 30.0m at 0.72% Ni from 82.1m in JAG-DD-22-278 (JNE)
  • 15.6m at 1.16% Ni from 66.5m including 6.7m at 2.17% Ni from 66.5m in JAG-DD-22-293 (JNE)
  • 30.5m at 0.49% Ni from 268.0m in JAG-DD-22-291 (JCN)
  • 19.0m at 0.77% Ni from 304.5m JAG-DD-22-291 (JCN)
  • 22.3m at 0.67% Ni from 318.9m in JAG-DD-22-268 (JCN)
  • 17.9m at 0.71% Ni from 121.5m in JAG-DD-22-278 (JNE)
  • 9.8m at 1.10% Ni from 59.0m including 2.1m at 3.56% Ni from 63.6m in JAG-DD-22-292 (JS)
• The Jaguar December 2021 MRE, comprising 80.6Mt @ 0.91% Ni for 730,700t of contained nickel, is already one of the largest nickel sulphide resources held by an ASX-listed company and the largest outside of the majors.
  
• There are currently 15 rigs on site (13 diamond and two RC) drilling double-shift. Resource development drilling is nearing completion with the rigs set to move to Resource growth and discovery drilling.
• Centaurus is well-funded with cash reserves of approximately A$60 million.

The results are expected to contribute to an increase in the global Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE), due for delivery at the end of September, as well as to upgrade more of the Jaguar MRE into the higher-confidence Measured and Indicated categories in advance of Ore Reserve estimation as part of the DFS.

Centaurus’ Managing Director, Mr Darren Gordon, said: “The resource development in-fill program has been our focus for the past six months and continues to demonstrate the consistency and quality of the nickel sulphide mineralisation that sits within the planned open pit limits.

“We are confident that these results will push the majority of the upcoming MRE into the higher confidence Measured and Indicated Resource categories that will, in turn, underpin a maiden Ore Reserve Estimate for the Definitive Feasibility Study. This represents a major step to de-risking the Jaguar Project.

“It’s also great to see the existing deposits continuing to grow, with outstanding step-out results of up to 31.7m at 1.61% Ni received from below the current MRE limits at Onça Preta. This is further supported by our deepest hole on the project to date, which stepped-off over 120m down-dip targeting DHEM conductor plates. Visual inspection of this step-out hole has confirmed the presence of semi-massive sulphides.

“We are quickly approaching the completion of the current Resource development in-fill drilling program for the upcoming MRE and, once we do, we will immediately swing the majority of the 15 rigs across to Resource Growth and greenfields discovery drilling – which should make for a very interesting second half of 2022 at Jaguar."

Resource Growth – Step-out Drilling

While drilling has so far been focused on the in-fill program that is required for the upgrade and development of the Jaguar Resource, 2-3 rigs have been designated to specifically target resource growth by undertaking step-out drilling at the Onça Preta and Jaguar South Deposits.

The current base of both the Onça Preta and Jaguar South Deposits has now been extended well below the base of the underground operations identified in the May 2021 Jaguar Project Scoping Study, which was already restricted by the base of the March 2021 MRE. Any new resource tonnes generated by step-out drilling are therefore expected to result in growth of the overall MRE and, in time, contribute to future underground operations.

Onça Preta

The December 2021 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) expanded the Onça Preta Deposit to 5.2Mt at 1.52% Ni for more than 78kt of contained nickel. Onça Preta is the highest-grade deposit at the Jaguar Project.

Step-out drilling continues to intersect semi-massive and massive zones of nickel sulphides including 31.7m at 1.61% Ni and 13.5m at 1.26% Ni in JAG-DD-22-263 on section 476885mE and 22.7m at 1.47% Ni in JAG-DD-22-284 on section 476935mE (Figure 1). Both drill-holes intersected mineralisation below the base of the December 2021 MRE, indicating a likely increase in the MRE due for delivery at the end of September 2022.

Importantly, drill hole JAG-DD-22-3752, the deepest hole drilled to date at Onça Preta, has intersected 20m of semi- massive nickel sulphide mineralisation within a broader mineralised intersection a further 50m down-dip from JAG- DD-22-263, highlighting the potential for further resource growth. For photos of the core and visual estimates of hole JAG-DD-22-375, see Figure 10 and Table 3.

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