NGEx Announces Exploration Plan for Lunahuasi
2024 HIGHLIGHTS
The Phase 2 drill program at Lunahuasi completed in the first half of 2024 delivered some of the highest-grade copper, gold, and silver intercepts drilled anywhere in the world and confirmed that Lunahuasi has both unusually high grades and large size potential. The volume drill tested to date measures 400 meters by 900 meters by 960 meters and is open in all directions. High-grade holes mark the outer boundaries of the current drill pattern with the northern boundary marked by several significant drill holes including discovery hole DPDH002 that included 60m at 7.52% CuEq (5.65% Cu, 2.04 g/t Au, 44.0 g/t Ag); the southern boundary marked by DPDH021 that included 772 meters at 1.60% CuEq (1.02% Cu, 0.64 g/t Au, 14.2 g/t Ag), and the westernmost drill holes finishing in high-grade mineralization including the last 12 meters of DPDH022 grading 4.48% CuEq (3.82% Cu, 0.59 g/t Au, 25.2 g/t Ag).
These results set NGEx up for a very exciting drill season as the Company extends exploration into the large areas outside the current drill pattern that lie beneath very similar surface alteration.
EXPLORATION OBJECTIVES FOR 2024/2025 – MAXIMUM GROWTH
The upcoming Phase 3 campaign will be the largest program to date at Lunahuasi. The Company's goal is to grow Lunahuasi into one of the best, new high-grade copper and gold deposits. The planned program will use 6 drill rigs and is expected to total up to 20,000 meters which will more than double the meters drilled to date. The main objective for the program is to grow the deposit through step-out drilling and to provide enough closer spaced data to develop an initial Exploration Target as a step toward an eventual resource estimate. An Exploration Target is an estimate of the potential quantity and grade, expressed as ranges, of a target for further exploration and is defined under National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101).
A planned magneto-telluric geophysical survey will help the Company define potential extensions including potentially providing vectors toward the central part of the Lunahuasi system. Core scanning and integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into our core logging and geological interpretation processes is being implemented to improve work flows for more routine tasks and to give geologists more time for targeting and interpretation.
Our interpretation, based on almost 18,000m of drilling completed, is that we have drilled only a small part of the Lunahuasi high-grade deposit, and that what we have discovered so far is likely to be the peripheral part of a much larger mineralized system. Exploration over the past few years in the Vicu ña District has demonstrated that this unique area is capable of forming extremely large and notably high-grade deposits, and our geological team is confident that Lunahuasi will continue to surprise to the upside. Phase 1 drilling resulted in the initial discovery early in 2023, Phase 2 showed that the Lunahuasi deposit has exceptional grades throughout a large volume measuring at least 400m by 900m by 960m, and we expect Phase 3 will further extend mineralization and confirm Lunahuasi as one of the most significant discoveries of the last decade."
LUNAHUASI PHASE 3 DRILL PROGRAM DETAILS
The planned program will consist of three targeted ranges of drill spacing to accomplish different objectives. The Lunahuasi Phase 3 drill program will consist of up to 20,000m of diamond drilling to follow up on 17,862m drilled since discovery of the deposit in
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Long-range exploration holes (+300m spacing) are big step-outs that will test for significant extensions of mineralization to the north, south, and west and include holes that will explore for the central part of the Lunahuasi system.
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Mid-range step out holes (50-300m spacing) will explore extensions of the mineralized zone in all directions.
- Short-range infill holes (30-50m spacing) will test the short-range variability of mineralized structures and high-grade zones and confirm the main structural orientations and ultimately contribute towards developing a future mineral resource estimate for Lunahuasi.
The Phase 3 program is scheduled to start in early October and continue until the onset of the Austral winter, typically in May. Six drill rigs have been contracted, including rigs with capacity to drill beyond 2,000m to ensure we can accomplish the program objectives. Holes are planned to be collared from existing platforms as much as possible, with multiple holes from each platform, which will reduce the need for drill moves and increase the program efficiency.
Long-range Step-out Holes
NGEx's current interpretation of the Lunahuasi mineralization intersected to date is that it is the peripheral part of a much larger porphyry/high-sulphidation epithermal system, the centre of which should lie to the southwest in an area that has not yet been drilled according to our current geological understanding. Long-range step-out holes are designed to test this area to try to confirm this concept and begin to establish the full potential of the deposit. Several of these holes will be extensions of mid-range step-out holes, which will test for direct along-strike or down-dip extensions of drill intersections and then continue to the west to explore this compelling target area.
Mid-range Step-out Holes
To date the Lunahuasi deposit has been drilled over an along-strike (north-south) distance of over 400m, across an east-west panel thickness of 900m and over a dip length of almost 1,000m. It remains open in all directions and these holes are designed to step out from existing intersections at the edges of the deposit to try to determine its full extent.
To the north, the deposit remains completely open beyond the discovery hole, DPDH002, which intersected 60m at 7.52% CuEq (5.65% Cu, 2.04 g/t Au, 44.0 g/t Ag) in addition to eight additional high-grade structures (see news release dated
One of the most exciting areas targeted in the upcoming program is the southern part of the deposit, where two very successful step-out holes at the end of last season's program intersected strong mineralization along the interpreted extension of the same structure which hosts the intersection in DPDH002 noted above. Hole DPDH022 intersected 39m at 10.84% CuEq (2.92% Cu, 10.04 g/t Au, 67.7 g/t Ag) and DPDH021 intersected 20m at 15.05% CuEq (9.18% Cu, 6.86 g/t Au, 98.5 g/t Ag) almost 300m and 400m south of DPDH002 respectively (see news release dated
Several of the short-range holes to be drilled from west to east across the known mineralization will continue as mid-range step-outs and allow the Company to effectively test the area to the east of the current drill pattern, expanding it to well over 1km if successful.
Short-range Infill Holes
Lunahuasi drilling has intersected numerous high- to bonanza-grade massive sulphide +/- massive silica structures with estimated true widths up to 100 meters. The large number of these features combined with relatively large spacing between drillholes results in ambiguities in correlations of intersections between holes.
In general, the structures appear to strike approximately 20 degrees east of north – parallel to the main
Short-range holes will be drilled as 30 to 50m step-outs in all directions around one of the high-grade intersections in hole DPDH014 (71.9m at 9.63% CuEq (5.79% Cu, 4.70 g/t Au, 46.9 g/t Ag)) (see news release dated
Information from the short-range holes will be used to refine the interpretation and correlation of mineralized structures from hole-to-hole throughout the rest of the deposit and allow for more efficient targeting of mid-range step-out holes.
LUNAHUASI AND LOS HELADOS GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS
Two geophysical surveys are planned for the upcoming season – a helicopter supported ZTEM (airborne electromagnetic) survey over the Los Helados claim block and a ground-based SPARTAN MT (magnetotelluric) survey over the Lunahuasi project area. The ZTEM survey is expected to start before the end of September, and the MT survey during early October.
SPARTAN MT is a frequency domain electromagnetic (EM) geophysical method that infers the Earth's subsurface electrical properties from measurements of natural electric and magnetic variation at the Earth's surface. A large survey was completed in 2023, jointly with Filo Corp. and Lundin Mining Corporation, across the entire
Ground MT completed a number of years ago was very successful in outlining conductivity anomalies over the Condor, Fenix, and Alicanto high-grade zones at Los Helados. The ZTEM survey being undertaken over Los Helados is a passive, natural field electromagnetic method that excels at mapping conductivity anomalies that may be related to porphyry mineralization under cover and at depth. It is the preferred airborne EM system in rugged, mountainous terrain where safety considerations preclude the low-level drape flying required by active EM systems. This survey will cover the entire Los Helados claim block, including most of the deposit area. Survey logistics will be shared with the adjacent Caserones mine which is co-owned by Lundin Mining and a subsidiary of
ESG INITIATIVES
As part of its continued commitment to sustainable practices, NGEx has engaged the
The Company's Sustainability Summary is available on its website at www.ngexminerals.com.
QUALIFIED PERSONS AND TECHNICAL NOTES
The scientific and technical disclosure included in this news release have been reviewed and approved by
Samples were cut at NGEx's operations base in
Copper equivalent (CuEq) for drill intersections is calculated based on
ABOUT
NGEx owns 100% of Lunahuasi and is the majority partner and operator for the Los Helados project, subject to a Joint Exploration Agreement with
The Company's common shares are listed on the TSX under the symbol "NGEX" and also trade on the OTCQX under the symbol "NGXXF". NGEx is part of the
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Website: www.ngexminerals.com
Additional Information
Neither the TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
The information contained in this news release was accurate at the time of dissemination but may be superseded by subsequent news release(s). The Company is under no obligation, nor does it intend to update or revise the forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made and information contained herein in the news release constitutes "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking information"). All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this document constitute forward-looking information, including but not limited to, statements regarding: the nature and timing of the work to be undertaken to advance the Lunahuasi and Los Helados projects, including actual metres that will be completed during the Company's 2024/25 field program and the Company's ability to continue drilling holes in-progress in a future drill program; the potential for further discovery and/or extension of mineralized zones at the Lunahuasi project; the timing of, and conclusions resulting from, an update to the geological interpretation at Lunahuasi, including the Company's ability to establish an Exploration Target, or the timing and/or results thereof; and the Company's ability to use information gathered from drilling to date to effectively target and drill in future campaigns, including whether the timing and ultimate outcome of the Company's efforts to locate the centre of the Lunahuasi system; the timing and outcome of geophysical surveys undertaken at the Lunahuasi and Los Helados projects; and the timing and outcome of the Company's application to the UNGC. Generally, this forward-looking information can frequently, but not always, be identified by use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "projects", "budgets", "assumes", "strategy", "objectives", "potential", "possible", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events, conditions or results "will", "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will be taken", "will occur" or "will be achieved" or the negative connotations thereof.
Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon various estimates and assumptions including, without limitation, the expectations and beliefs of management with respect to the nature, scope and timing of the work to be undertaken to advance the
The forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on information available to the Company as at the date of this news release. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update and/or revise any of the included forward-looking information, whether as a result of additional information, future events and/or otherwise. Forward-looking information is provided for the purpose of providing information about management's current expectations and plans and allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of the Company's operating environment. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that would cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. All the forward-looking information contained in this document is qualified by these cautionary statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information due to the inherent uncertainty thereof.
Cautionary Note to
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nformation concerning the mineral properties of the Company contained in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Canadian securities laws, which differ in material respects from the requirements of securities laws of
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