Xanadu Mines (TSX:XAM,ASX:XAM) has boosted the resource estimate at its Kharmagtai project in Mongolia’s South Gobi region by 400 percent in contained copper and 249 percent in gold.

The increase has seen Kharmagtai’s resource estimate jump to 598 million tonnes (Mt) containing 1.9 Mt of copper and 4.3 million ounces (Moz) of gold. That compares with the project’s 2015 maiden resource estimate of 203 Mt containing 1,500 million pounds of copper and 2.2 Moz of gold.

The resource update is based on results from drill programs completed since 2015, including most of the results from infill drilling completed in Q3 2018.

The recent drill program’s goal was to convert inferred resources to the indicated category, with the increased resource now expected to have a positive impact on Kharmagtai’s life of mine.

“Xanadu’s exploration has been very efficient, driven by a high-quality geological model and understanding of the deposits. We are extremely delighted with the new results, particularly with the substantial increase in the open-pit shallow resource base at Kharmagtai,” Xanadu Managing Director and CEO Andrew Stewart said in a statement.

Moving forward, the company’s focus has shifted to completing a scoping study, which is expected to be finished during Q4 2018.

“With a 400% increase in contained copper, we are confident that the upcoming scoping study will show a financially robust open-pit starter project that will pave the way for Kharmagtai to develop into another high-quality Mongolian mining operation,” Stewart added.

Following the scoping study’s completion, Xanadu will be looking to add the recently discovered Zaraa and White Hill West deposits (both part of Kharmagtai) to its global resource base.

The company’s brownfields exploration strategy will focus on resource drilling at Zaraa, along with defining a potential shallow oxide gold project at Golden Eagle, also part of Kharmagtai.

“The addition of Zaraa to the global resource base should have a positive impact on the overall scale and grade. We are now thinking about how big the mineral endowment could be at Kharmagtai and what future production it could sustain,” Stewart said.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Olivia Da Silva, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.