Tertiary Minerals plc reported continuation of a “higher-grade copper zone” as suggested from preliminary drilling results at the silver-copper-zinc target A1 at Mushima North in Zambia.
MRE
Ox Drilling, which began the programme in June, has started drilling to improve definition of the zone, which lies within the “near surface, lower grade oxide mineralisation”, in the north of the target.
The results are from portable X-Ray fluorescence (pXRF) analysis of reverse circulation drilling samples from the first 12 drill holes of phase IV drilling.
Returns include pXRF silver values of up to “214 g/t [grammes per tonne] and broad intervals (>20 g/t) in line with previous pXRF results”.
Tertiary said that the values were indicative as the p-XRF analysis for silver is semi-quantitative.
Laboratory analysis will provide certified silver, copper and zinc results, as well as for bismuth, antimony and gallium.
Other preliminary results include drill hole 26TMNRC-045 intersections of 45m at 0.41% copper and 0.28% zinc from 12m downhole, including 10 metres at 0.81% copper and 0.35% zinc from 42m downhole.
Drill hole 26TMNRC-049 revealed 55m at 0.32% copper and 0.29% zinc from 26m downhole, including 14m at 0.44% copper and 0.32% zinc from 32m downhole.
P-XRF results from the additional 10 holes drilled are pending.
A total of 22 drill holes for 2,175m have so far been completed of a planned 4,000m programme, targeting an exploration target of five to 30 million tonnes at 40-60 g/t silver equivalent.
The overall drilling campaign will be in two phases to allow Tertiary to revise the geological model using new data, ahead of delineating a mineral resource estimate.
Managing director Richard Belcher added: “This is a very exciting start to this drill programme and we eagerly await the independent external laboratory analysis for these drill holes.”
Futher geochemical and/or geophysical targets, such as A2, B1, B2, B3, C2, have yet to be drill tested.
The majority of the targets are located within a 12km radius of A1.