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SolGold (TSX: SOLG; LSE: SOLG) has released an initial resource estimate for its Cacharposa porphyry copper-gold deposit, part of the company’s Porvenir project in southern Ecuador, about 100 km south of Lundin Gold’s (TSX: LUG) Fruta del Norte deposit, and roughly 100 km north of the country’s border with Peru.
The resource was based on about 18,636 metres of diamond drilling and 440 metres of surface rock-saw channel sampling from 23 outcrops.
At a 0.16% copper-equivalent cut-off grade, Cacharposa’s indicated resources total 397 million tonnes grading 0.35% copper and 0.14 gram gold per tonne (0.44% copper-equivalent) for 1.4 million tonnes of contained copper and 1.8 million oz. gold (1.75 million tonnes of copper-equivalent).
Inferred resources add 96.9 million tonnes grading 0.29% copper and 0.12 gram gold per tonne (0.37% copper-equivalent) for 280,000 tonnes of copper and 380,000 oz. of gold (360,000 tonnes copper-equivalent).
The company noted that the resource “includes strong grades exposed at surface over a 650 metre long strike length,” and that open-pit optimization studies “show that this near-surface zone is indicative of a potential starter pit of 44 million tonnes grading 0.64% copper-equivalent (0.44% copper, o.34 gram gold per tonne).”
SolGold’s CEO, Darryl Cuzzubbo, said in a press release that the resource estimate and “continued encouraging drilling results” were a “testament to the quality of the company’s regional exploration portfolio.”
“Whilst the strong grades exposed at surface at Cacharposa attest to the economic potential, the Porvenr project continues to grow and with numerous other nearby mineralized targets identified, we believe the Porvenir project has the potential to become a very significant copper-gold porphyry camp.”
The company reported drill results from Cacharposa on December 6, with highlights of 722 metres grading 0.66% copper-equivalent starting from surface and including 118 metres of 1.13% copper-equivalent starting from 12 metres in drill hole PDH-21-019; and 124 metres grading 0.76% copper-equivalent from 478 metres in drill hole PDH-21-018; and 122 metres of 0.44% copper-equivalent from 8 metres downhole in PDH-21-020.
The company has one drill rig turning at Cacharposa and two rigs at the nearby Mula Muerta satellite target.
(This article first appeared in The Northern Miner)
