en.Wedoany.com Reported - Following high-grade copper mineralization encountered during drilling at the Buen Retiro project in northern Chile, the company is expanding its drilling program to further delineate near-surface resources and test the broader mineralized system.
The company announced that the best intersection was from hole BRT-DDH064, which returned 59 meters grading 1.73% copper from 92 meters depth, including 12 meters grading 5.39% copper from 136 meters depth. Another hole, BRT-DDH063, intersected 39 meters grading 1.17% copper from 87 meters depth, including 17 meters grading 2.16% copper from 96 meters depth.
President and CEO Merlin Marr-Johnson stated that the project has the potential for near-term copper cathode production with low capital requirements and shortened permitting timelines. One option currently being evaluated is to produce soluble copper sulfate concentrate on site, which would then be trucked to one of three electrowinning plants within a 90-kilometer radius for processing into copper cathode.
These results highlight the potential of near-surface leachable materials at the project, which could be processed using nearby solvent extraction-electrowinning plants owned by private Chilean miner Sociedad Punta del Cobre (Pucobre). Pucobre previously operated the Manto Negro mine in the area, which produced 34.4 million pounds of copper between 2005 and 2009. Fitzroy and Pucobre are discussing a development partnership for Buen Retiro.
The Buen Retiro project is located in the Atacama Desert, approximately 850 kilometers north of Santiago, covering an area of 132.4 square kilometers within the Punta del Cobre copper belt. This region is an iron oxide copper-gold district hosting several large mines, including Lundin Mining's Candelaria copper-gold mine, which produced 145,000 tonnes of copper last year.
Fitzroy Minerals has increased its drilling program by 7,000 meters this year, bringing the total meterage to 22,000 meters, to test new targets generated by geophysical surveys. The company stated that approximately 10,000 meters of drilling have been completed at the Buen Retiro project this year, with assay results from multiple holes still pending.
Additionally, hole BRT-DDH064 returned 23 meters grading 0.65% copper from 207 meters depth, and hole BRT-DDH062 returned 46 meters grading 0.47% copper from 63 meters depth. The company noted that mineralization remains open along strike and at depth.
Fitzroy Minerals' share price has risen 21% over the past 12 months, trading at approximately C$0.41 on the Toronto market. The company has a market capitalization of about C$135 million, with a 52-week trading range of C$0.24 to C$0.73.
