REG - Great Southrn.Copper - Sampling at Victoria Delivers Strong Assay Results

Great Southern CopperAnnouncement

05/02/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 0032C  Great Southern Copper PLC  05 February 2024

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION AS STIPULATED UNDER THE UK
VERSION OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION NO 596/2014 WHICH IS PART OF ENGLISH
LAW BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018, AS AMENDED.  ON
PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA A REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE, THIS
INFORMATION IS CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

 

 

5 February 2024

 

Great Southern Copper plc

("GSC" or the "Company")

 

 

Rock Chip Sampling at Victoria Prospect Delivers Assay Results up to 4.04% Cu,
4.16g/t Au and 26.7g/t Ag from Multiple Quartz-Sulphide Vein Breccias

 

Exciting pipeline of high-grade Cu-Au targets continues to develop at
Especularita

 

Great Southern Copper plc (LSE: GSCU), the company focused on copper-gold and
lithium exploration in Chile, is pleased to announce results from the latest
mapping and sampling programme at its Victoria prospect, Especularita.

 

Highlights:

·    Assay results from 71 rock chip and rock float samples with grades up
to 4.04% Cu, 4.57g/t Au and 26.7g/t Ag

·    91% of outcropping silica-sulphide vein-breccia samples are anomalous
in copper (>0.1% Cu) with 36% of these samples assaying over 1% Cu

·    High grade Cu+Au-Ag hosted in multiple sub-parallel
quartz-sulphide+carbonate vein-breccias mapped and sampled over a 1000 x 600m
area

·    Similar to Teresita style Cu-Au vein-breccia mineralisation currently
being drill-tested

·    Exploration to prioritise locations for scout drilling in H1 2024 is
underway

 

Early reconnaissance and follow-up prospect-scale exploration activities at
Victoria prospect, Especularita, has discovered new high-grade Cu-Au-Ag
mineralisation associated with mesothermal style, intrusive-related
quartz-sulphide-carbonate vein breccias mapped over an area of 1000 x
600m(1,2,3,4). Historical sampling by the Company has reported results up to
6.94% Cu, 1.85g/t Au and 84.8g/t Ag.

 

Sam Garrett, Chief Executive Officer of Great Southern Copper, said: "Whilst
we complete our scout drilling programmes at Abundante and Teresita, our
exploration team is working to enhance the pipeline of drilling prospects at
Especularita. These new rock chip results continue to highlight the
significance of the Victoria prospect with consistent high grades of copper
and associated gold-silver mapped and sampled in outcrop.

 

"The mineralisation is similar in style to that currently being drill-tested
at our Teresita prospect, although the Victoria mineralisation is typically
copper-rich, whereas the Teresita veins tend to be gold-rich. This type of
metal zonation across the Especularita project is important to understand and
alludes to the large-scale endowment of the project.

 

"Work continues at Victoria with a view to better understanding the controls
on mineralisation and advancing the prospect toward being ready for drill
testing. These results further emphasise the pipeline of high quality
copper-gold drill targets that GSC's team is developing across this
significant project."

 

Victoria prospect mesothermal intrusion-related Cu+Au-Ag vein breccias:

Prospect-scale geology mapping and sampling at Victoria has identified a
network of ineralizati structures including quartz-sulphide matrix
vein-breccias hosted in hornfelsed volcanics, and quartz-carbonate-sulphide
matrix to carbonate matrix-supported vein-breccias hosted in granodiorite.
Beneath the shallow gravel cover the geology of the prospect area is dominated
by hornfelsed andesitic volcanic that is apparently fault-bound to the north
against the Colorada advanced argillic lithocap. To the west and south the
gravel overlaps the regionally extensive granodiorite intrusive. Both the
granodiorite and volcanics exhibit evidence of overprinting by anastomosing
quartz-carbonate+sulphide-filled structures (Figure 1).

 

The vein-breccia structures typically strike in a NNE-NE orientation over a
distance of up to 400m and vary in outcrop width from 3 to 20m. Outcrop in the
prospect area is obscured by shallow scree and colluvium which has the
potential to bury additional mineralised structures - confirmed by several
shallow artisanal pits and workings.

 

Copper ineralization typically occurs as coarsely disseminated chalcopyrite
(with pyrite-specularite) hosted exclusively within quartz-dominant zones of
the vein-breccia structures. Partial oxidation of the chalcopyrite to pitch
limonite and other Cu oxides is evident in most locations. Leaching of copper
from surface outcrops is also evident where strongly inerali boxwork textures
are coincident with lower copper grades. 33 outcrop and 11 float samples of
quartz-sulphide vein-breccias were collected during this survey period.

 

In places late carbonate is observed to infill the open-space quartz-sulphide
veins and overprint the silicification event resulting in re-brecciation and
dilution of the silica-sulphide filled structures often resulting in massive
carbonate veins and stockwork systems. These later carbonate-dominant
structures are typically sulphide-poor. Character samples of the
carbonate-dominant veins (24 outcrop and 3 float samples) were collected to
establish the Cu-Au grade relationship between silica-sulphide dominant veins
and carbonate veins within the overall Victoria system. All of the
carbonate-dominant vein structures sampled in this programme returned copper
assay grades below 250ppm Cu.

 

The copper+gold-silver ineralization at Victoria is consistent with
mesothermal intrusive-related type mineralisation and is similar to the
gold-copper rich vein breccia system which is currently being tested with
scout RC drill holes at the Company's Teresita prospect, located approximately
7.5km to the south-southeast (Figure 2).

 

Planning is now underway for the next phase of exploration at Victoria which
is designed to identify targets for prospect-scale reconnaissance drilling
planned for the first half of 2024.

 

Sampling and results:

All rock chip and float samples collected are located using hand-held GPS
units (WGS84 zone 19S datum, UTM coordinate system) and allocated a unique
sample number using a ticket-book system.

 

Samples are transported from the field and delivered by Company employees to
ALS Laboratories in Santiago where they are prepared for analysis (weighed,
dried, crushed and pulverised). A subsequent 200g split of each sample pulp is
then forwarded to the ALS geochemical laboratory in Lima, Peru, where samples
are assayed for gold (30g fire assay with ICP-AES finish, ALS code AU-ICP21)
and analysed for 48 major, base and trace elements by ICP-MS following a
four-acid digest (ALS code ME-MS61).

 

Assay results for the 44 outcrop and float samples of quartz-sulphide
vein-breccia range up to 4.04% Cu, 4.57g/t Au and 26.7g/t Ag. Significantly,
however, 91% of the outcrop samples and 73% of the float samples were
anomalous in copper (>0.1% Cu). In addition, 36% of the quartz-sulphide
outcrop and 27% of the float samples returned assay grades over 1% Cu.

 

Figure 1: Copper geochemistry results for rock chip and float samples at
Victoria prospect, Especularita. Note: 10,000ppm Cu = 1% Cu. Interpreted
location of quartz-carbonate-sulphide vein-breccias (red dashed lines) and
unmineralised, carbonate-dominated vein-breccias and stockwork zones (orange
dashed lines) are indicated.

 

 

Figure 2: Summary map of exploration activity at Especularita, January 2024.

 

References:

1.    RNS 2146H (22 November 2022): Early exploration at Especularita
identifies multiple Cu-Au targets

2.    RNS 3666Q (20 February 2023): Exploration update at Especularita and
San Lorenzo

3.    RNS 2868U (27 March 2023): Float sampling at Victoria prospect

4.    RNS 0445V (03 April 2023): Rock chip assay grades up to 6.9% Cu and
1.85g/t Au in outcrop from Victoria prospect.

 

Enquiries:

 

 Great Southern Copper plc
 Sam Garrett, Chief Executive Officer      +44 (0) 20 4582 3500

 SI Capital Limited
 Nick Emerson                              +44 (0) 1483 413500

 Gracechurch Group
 Harry Chathli, Alexis Gore, Henry Gamble  +44 (0) 20 4582 3500

 

Notes for Editors:

 

About Great Southern Copper

 

Great Southern Copper PLC is a UK-listed mineral exploration company focused
on the discovery of copper-gold and lithium deposits in Chile. The Company has
the option to acquire rights to 100% of two projects in the under-explored
coastal belt of Chile that are prospective for large scale copper-gold
deposits. In addition, the Company has the option to acquire rights to 100% of
a lithium project located in the Salar de Atacama district of Chile. Chile is
a globally significant mining jurisdiction being the world's largest copper
producer and the second-largest producer of lithium.

 

The two, early-stage Cu-Au projects comprise the San Lorenzo and Especularita
Projects, both located in the coastal metallogenic belt of Chile which hosts
significant copper mines and deposits, including Teck's Carmen de Andacollo
copper mine, and boasts excellent access to infrastructure such as roads,
power and ports. Significant historical small-scale and artisanal workings for
both copper and gold are readily evident in both exploration project areas.

 

The Company's Monti Lithium project is strategically located in the pre-Andean
region of Salar de Atacama which is Chile's premier lithium-producing region
with well-established lithium mining operations and infrastructure.

 

Great Southern Copper is strategically positioned to support the global market
for copper and lithium - both critical battery metals in the clean energy
transition around the world. The Company is actively engaged in exploration
and evaluation work programmes targeting both large tonnage, low to medium
grade Cu-Au and Li deposits as well as high-grade Cu-Au deposits.

 

Further information on the Company is available on the Company's website:
https://gscplc.com (https://gscplc.com)

 

Competent Person Statement

 

The information in this announcement that relates to exploration results is
based on and fairly represents information reviewed or compiled by Mr Sam
Garrett, a Competent Person who is a Member of the Australian Institute of
Geoscientists and a Fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists. Mr Garrett
is the CEO and a shareholder of Great Southern Copper PLC. Mr Garrett has
sufficient experience that is relevant to the styles of mineralisation and
types of deposit under consideration and to the activity being undertaken to
qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the
"Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and
Ore Reserves". Mr Garrett has provided his prior written consent to the
inclusion in this announcement of the matters based on information in the form
and context in which it appears.

 

This announcement includes information that relates to Exploration Results
prepared and first disclosed under the JORC Code (2012) and extracted from the
Company's previous LSE announcements as noted, and the Company's Prospectus
dated 20 December 2021. Copies of these announcements are available from the
LSE Announcements page of the Company's website: www.gscplc.com
(http://www.gscplc.com) .

 

The Company confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that
materially affects the information included within the Prospectus dated 20
December 2021.

 

Forward Looking and Cautionary Statements

Some statements in this announcement regarding estimates or future events are
forward-looking statements. They include indications of, and guidance on,
future earnings, cash flow, costs and financial performance. Forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements preceded by words such
as "planned", "expected", "projected", "estimated", "may", "scheduled",
"intends", "anticipates", "believes", "potential", "predict", "foresee",
"proposed", "aim", "target", "opportunity", "could", "nominal", "conceptual"
and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements, opinions and estimates
included in this report are based on assumptions and contingencies which are
subject to change without notice, as are statements about market and industry
trends, which are based on interpretations of current market conditions.
Forward-looking statements are provided as a general guide only and should not
be relied on as a guarantee of future performance. Forward-looking statements
may be affected by a range of variables that could cause actual results to
differ from estimated or anticipated results and may cause the Company's
actual performance and financial results in future periods to materially
differ from any projections of future performance or results expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements. So, there can be no assurance that
actual outcomes will not materially differ from these forward-looking
statements.

 

 

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