Canada's Star Copper Completes 10,419 Meters of Copper-Gold Drilling
en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 27, Canadian mining company Star Copper confirmed the completion of the 2026 drilling program at its Star copper-gold project in the "Golden Triangle" region of northwestern British Columbia, with a total of 28 drill holes and 10,419 meters completed, setting a record for the largest single drilling campaign in the project's history. The exploration program lasted approximately 5 months, deployed 2 drill rigs, and completed 37 line-kilometers of geophysical surveys. Geological logging of drill core identified new copper-bearing mineralized zones in the northeastern part of the main deposit and at depth to the west, and the project plans to conduct its first mineral resource estimate in 2027.
The drilling was mainly concentrated in the Star Main copper-gold porphyry mineralized zone, where 24 drill holes totaling 9,357 meters were completed, focusing on investigating the eastward, northeastward, northward and westward extensions of the existing mineralized system. The remaining 4 drill holes were distributed across three peripheral exploration targets—Copper Creek, Star North and Star East—totaling approximately 1,062 meters. Of these, Copper Creek completed 2 holes for 585 meters, Star North completed 246 meters, and Star East completed 230.6 meters, further expanding drilling coverage in the project's peripheral areas.
A total of 7 drill holes totaling 2,489 meters were completed in the northeastern part of Star Main, with drilling positions extending beyond the coverage of historical drill holes. Geological logging identified chalcopyrite mineralization, potassic alteration and quartz-sulfide veins in multiple drill holes. Among them, hole S-066A encountered copper mineralization near the surface, and hole S-067 reached a depth of 482 meters, still intersecting altered and mineralized intrusive and volcanic rocks below 300 meters. These results have been incorporated into the geological interpretation of the extension of the northeastern copper-gold mineralized system.
Deep drilling in the west yielded new mineralization observations. Hole S-076, located approximately 70 meters southwest of historical hole S-037, successfully passed through a fault zone that had previously limited drilling, identifying approximately 60 meters of continuous visible copper sulfide mineralization at a vertical depth of about 525 meters. Another hole, S-079, located approximately 60 meters northwest of S-037, reached a final depth of 750 meters, the deepest hole of the year, and also encountered visible copper mineralization at a similar depth horizon. The company has designated the deep western and northwestern areas as priority exploration targets for follow-up work.
Geophysical work conducted alongside drilling included three-dimensional induced polarization (3D IP) and magnetotelluric (MT) surveys, with approximately 37 line-kilometers of data acquired, and the 2D and 3D inversion results have been delivered. The project team is integrating the geophysical results with 2025–2026 drill hole data, geological mapping and geochemical data to build an updated 3D geological model and further analyze the spatial relationships between the main mineralized zone and surrounding targets.
Core cutting for the 2026 program has entered its final stage, and samples are being sent to the laboratory in batches for assay. The company plans to proceed with its first mineral resource estimate once copper and gold grade assay results are received, combined with the geological model, targeting the first quarter of 2027, and plans to complete a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) in the fourth quarter of 2027. The visible copper mineralization identified to date represents geological observations of drill core; its grade, true thickness and continuity still require laboratory analysis and further geological evaluation to determine.
