Mining News: Final holes test Pyramid edges

CopperBank Resources Corp. Nov. 14 reported results for the final seven holes of a 13-hole diamond drill program carried out this year at its Pyramid Copper project on the Alaskan Peninsula. Hole DDH 17PY037, which is entirely outside the historical resource, cut 331.6 meters of 0.31 percent copper 0.12 grams per metric ton gold and 0.02 percent molybdenum. This intercept started from a depth of 7.3 meters and ran to the bottom of the hole. This hole was drilled to verify the orientation of the mineralization between the three mineralized zones at Pyramid – Main, North and West. CopperBank said the long intercept proves a link between the North and Main zones, and the copper mineralization is of a higher grade than in the West zone. Hole 17PY038, drilled in the North zone, cut 50 meters of 0.31 percent copper 0.24 g/t gold and 0.01 percent molybdenum. Hole 17PY039, drilled between the three zones, cut 56 meters of 0.34 percent copper and 0.08 g/t gold. Hole 17PY040, drilled to test outcropping chalcocite mineralization located south of the North zone, cut 302 meters of 0.1 percent copper, 0.06 g/t gold and 0.01 percent molybdenum. Hole 17PY041, drilled into the core of the West zone, cut 80.2 meters averaging 0.33 percent copper 0.02 g/t gold and 0.01 percent molybdenum. Hole 17PY042, which tested an eastern extension of the North zone, cut 240.9 meters averaging 0.12 percent copper, 0.04 g/t gold and 0.03 percent molybdenum. Hole 17PY043, which tested a potential northern extension of the West zone, cut 32 meters of 0.15 percent copper, 0.01 g/t gold and 0.01 percent molybdenum. The 3,690-meter drill program completed this year was designed to verify the extensions of known mineralization within the deposit and to validate a historical resource estimate calculated in 2013. “The 2017 drilling campaign at Pyramid has achieved its goal of confirming the presence of significant copper mineralization as well as identifying the extension of higher grade zones falling outside of the historical resource envelope. With these results now in hand, we expect an updated resource estimate to be completed in the coming months,” said CopperBank Executive Chairman Gianni Kovacevic. “The data acquired as part of this most recent drill program has significantly increased our understanding of the deposit and will additionally help define a follow-on work program at Pyramid in 2018.” The 2013 estimate outlined 122.5 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 0.41 percent (1.1 billion pounds) copper, 0.1 grams per metric ton (389,000 ounces) gold and 0.021 percent (56.7 million lb) molybdenum.

–SHANE LASLEY