REG - Phoenix Copper Ltd - Update for Navarre Creek Exploratory Drilling

Phoenix CopperAnnouncement

24/10/2023 07:00

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RNS Number : 0195R  Phoenix Copper Limited  24 October 2023

Phoenix Copper Limited / Ticker: PXC / Sector: Mining

24 October 2023

Phoenix Copper Limited

('Phoenix' or the 'Company')

 

Operational Update for Navarre Creek Exploratory Drilling

Additional Claims Added to Navarre Creek Claim Block

 

Phoenix Copper Ltd (AIM: PXC, OTCQX: PXCLF and PXCLY (ADRs)), the AIM-quoted
USA-focused base and precious metals company, is pleased to provide an update
on the 2023 Navarre Creek exploratory drilling programme in Idaho, USA.

 

Highlights:

-      Assay results from 28 reverse circulation ("RC") drill holes are
currently being assessed and analysed

-      Initial analysis of the first seven holes indicates zone of
continuous, low-grade gold mineralisation, open along strike and down-dip

-      20 additional unpatented mining claims totalling 400 acres staked
on the southwest end of the contiguous Navarre Creek claim block

-      Total Navarre Creek claim block size increased to 3,977 acres
(16.09 sq. km)

 

Ryan McDermott, Chief Executive Officer, said, "We have received the initial
assay results from our 2023 Navarre Creek exploratory drilling program, the
first drilling program to be conducted on the property.  28 RC holes were
completed at four different target areas within the 3,577-acre claim block. We
are currently assessing all of the results, so that we can put them into
context with the geologic system as we currently understand it. However, gold
values from the first target area, comprised of seven holes along the strike
of the Lehman Creek fault, show a clearly defined low-grade gold bearing zone
that is continuous across each drill hole.  The zone appears to trend off the
property to the southwest. As such, we have added 400-acres of unpatented
mining claims to the claim block on the southwest to ensure control of the
property while we finish our evaluation of the results. The results at the
other target areas are presently under evaluation.

 

"In addition to the evaluation of the Navarre Creek drilling results and the
additional claim staking, we are also in the process of updating the Empire
mine open pit resource model to include last year's metallurgical drilling
results, finalising metallurgical testing and  completing an updated
feasibility study for the open pit mine, as well as preparing for winter
operations in the Idaho mountains.

 

"The Empire mine open pit process design and development is well underway,
including the engineering evaluation of the footprint proposed as the site of
the processing facility on the Company's patented land near the future open
pit.  The final process design is critical to the success of the mining
operation as it is the step that ensures maximum metal recovery and maximum
revenue. We are advancing through the engineering studies at a pace reasonable
to maintain the integrity of the final design.

 

"We will release the results of the Navarre Creek exploratory drilling once
they have been fully evaluated and placed in the context of the geologic
system as a whole, to assist us to determine the drilling priorities for the
remaining 32 holes within our planned 60 hole RC drilling program and
application for additional drill permitting for the 2024 field season. I
understand that everyone is keenly interested in our progress and I very much
appreciate everyone's patience as we complete all of the work necessary to
maximize the project's economic potential."

Background on Navarre Creek

During the 2021 field season, Phoenix contracted Magee Geophysical Services
to acquire approximately 169 line-km of total field magnetic measurements at
the Company's Navarre Creek project and SpecTIR, LLC of Reno, Nevada to
complete an airborne hyperspectral survey of the same Navarre Creek area to
identify prospective exploration targets in an area, many of which are largely
concealed by glacial till.

The ground magnetics survey looked specifically for magnetite and
magnetic-bearing minerals, some of which have been identified in limited
outcroppings, while the hyperspectral imaging helps to identify alteration
minerals often associated with precious metal deposition.

Hyperspectral imaging incorporates a small airplane with mounted infrared
lights and sensors to detect a wide range of wavelengths, mineral absorption
and reflectance within the target area. The wavelength data collected in this
survey are VNIR (Visible and Near-Infrared), SWIR (Short-Wave Infrared), and
LWIR (Long-Wave Infrared). The human eye can detect wavelengths (colours) from
390 nanometers ('nm') to 700nm. The VNIR and SWIR sensors collected wavelength
data from 390nm to 2,450nm, while the LWIR sensors ranged from 8,000nm to
12,000nm.

The Navarre Creek project is located within an intrusive dome complex, where
the magnetic components in overlying volcanic lithologies are destroyed by
silicic alteration associated with steam-heated, acidic, and oxidised
hydrothermal fluids. The survey highlighted several such areas including
the Lehman Creek fault, one or more porphyry plugs, and several
contacts/faults.

The survey identified volcanic-associated alteration that is both acidic and
of fairly high temperature as evidenced by pyrophyllite and dickite. As would
be expected in the Challis Volcanic Field, the white mica is Al-rich
(paragenetic) and also shows zoned crystallinity patterns, typical of
intermediate-to-high sulfidation systems, and is likely proximal to a magmatic
heat source. The presence of iron oxide associated with some of these zones
adds prospectivity. The alteration pattern is useful in developing an
exploration model to optimise future drill targets.

During the summer of 2020, Konnex Resources' exploration team previously
mapped and sampled the Company's Navarre Creek gold property, which was then
comprised of 2,420 acres of unpatented mining claims, located approximately
5km north-northwest of the Empire Mine.  90 rock chip and grab samples were
collected in the hydrothermally altered volcanic rocks that make up
the Navarre Creek claims and sent to ALS Laboratories in Reno, USA for
geochemical analysis.

Of the 90 samples, 53 were above the detection limit for gold with a high of
0.569 grammes per tonne ('g/t'), and 25 above the detection limit for
silver.

The Navarre Creek claim block now covers 3,977 acres (16.09 km²),
representing over 6km of prospective strike length, including an area of
secondary alteration thought to be epithermal in nature, with over 2.5km of
highly brecciated, west-trending jasperoid intersecting argillically and
silicically altered Eocene Challis volcanics.

Qualified Person

The foregoing technical information in this news release has been reviewed and
verified by Dennis Thomas, ACSM, FIMMM, FGS, CEng, Eurlng, co-founder of
Phoenix Copper Limited and Member of the Company's Advisory Board.  Mr.
Thomas has held both executive and non-executive roles in a number of
international private and public natural resources companies and is a
chartered mining engineer from the Camborne School of Mines. He is a
Qualified Person under the AIM Rules and consents to the inclusion of the
information in the form and the context in which it appears.

Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling was conducted by Midnight Sun
Drilling, Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada, and was supervised by the
Konnex exploration team. All assays reported are uncut unless otherwise
stated. Samples reported herein were assayed by ALS USA, Inc. of Reno,
Nevada which is independent of Phoenix. All Reverse Circulation assays
reported were obtained using a four-acid digestion and ICP-AES finish with
overruns completed on values exceeding 10,000 ppm for Cu, Zn, and Pb and 100
g/t for Ag. The only exception being that Au assays reported were obtained
using a fire assay with AA-finish or using gravimetric finish for values over
100 g/t Au.

Intercepts cited do not necessarily represent true widths, unless otherwise
noted, however, drilling is generally intersecting interpreted mineralized
zones at angles between ±30°. True width determinations are not estimated
due to the irregular shape of the skarn mineralization.

Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance

Phoenix is committed to meeting and exceeding the environmental standards
required by law as a core value of the Company. The baseline environmental
data collected to date will be used for furthering the permitting process, but
as importantly, will be used as the building blocks for the Company's ongoing
Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) platform, overseen by
the Company's ESG & Sustainability Committee. The Company has recently
published its inaugural Sustainability Report, which can be viewed on the
Company's website.

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

The Company deems the information contained within this announcement to
constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations
(EU) No. 596/2014, which has been incorporated into UK law by the European
Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement via
the Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered
to be in the public domain.

Contacts

For further information, please visit https://phoenixcopperlimited.com
(https://phoenixcopperlimited.com/)  or contact:

 Phoenix Copper Limited                              Ryan McDermott                                Tel: +1 208 954 7039

                                                     Brittany Lock                                 Tel: +1 208 794 8033

                                                     Richard Wilkins                               Tel: +44 7590 216 657
 SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated Adviser)  David Hignell / Kasia Brzozowska              Tel: +44 20 3470 0470
 Tavira Financial Limited (Joint Broker)             Jonathan Evans / Oliver Stansfield            Tel: +44 20 7100 5100

 WH Ireland (Joint Broker)                           Harry Ansell / Katy Mitchell                  Tel: +44 20 7220 1666
 Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited (Joint Broker)          John Prior / Hugh Rich / Ailsa Macmaster      Tel: +44 20 7886 2500
 EAS Advisors (US Corporate Adviser)                 Matt Bonner / Rogier de la Rambelje           Tel: +1 (646) 495-2225
 BlytheRay                                           Tim Blythe / Megan Ray                        Tel: +44 20 7138 3204

(Financial PR)

 

 

Notes

Phoenix Copper Limited is a USA focused, base and precious metals emerging
producer and exploration company, initially targeting copper, gold and silver
production from an open pit mine.

Phoenix's primary operations are focused near Mackay, Idaho in the Alder
Creek mining district, at the 80% owned Empire Mine property, which
historically produced copper at grades of up to 8%, as well as gold, silver,
zinc and tungsten, from an underground mine.

Since 2017, Phoenix has carried out extensive drill programmes which have
defined a NI 43-101 completed PEA (preliminary economic assessment) for an
open pit heap leach solvent extraction and electrowinning ("SX-EW") mine,
which was updated in October 2020. From the 2020 PEA, the measured and
indicated resource is: 22,909,059 tonnes at an average grade of 0.38% copper,
0.324 grammes per tonne ("g/t") gold, 10.3 g/t silver, and 0.19% zinc. The
contained metal for the measured and indicated resource is 87,543 tonnes of
copper, 238,406 ounces of gold, 7,595,198 ounces of silver and 43,871 tonnes
of zinc.

In addition to Empire, the district includes the historic Horseshoe, White
Knob and Blue Bird Mines, past producers of copper, gold, silver, zinc, lead
and tungsten from underground mines. A new discovery at Red Star, 330 metres
northwest of the Empire Mine proposed open pit, has revealed high grade
silver / lead sulphide ore, and from three shallow exploration drill holes a
maiden inferred resource of 103,000 tonnes containing 173.4 g/t silver, 0.85
g/t gold and 3.85% lead (1.6 million ounces silver equivalent) was reported in
an NI 43-101 technical report published in May 2019. Additionally, the
district includes Navarre Creek, a volcanic-hosted precious metals target in
a 16.09 sq km area. The Company's total land package at Empire comprises 8,434
acres (34.13 sq kms).

At Empire, it is estimated that less than 1% of the potential ore system has
been explored to date and, accordingly, there is a significant opportunity to
increase the resource through phased exploration. The stated aim of the
Company is to fund this phased exploration through free cashflow generated by
its initial mine. A Plan of Operations in respect of the initial open pit mine
was filed with the relevant regulatory authorities in June 2021.

Phoenix also has two wholly owned cobalt properties on the Idaho Cobalt Belt
to the north of Empire. An Earn-In Agreement has been signed with Electra
Battery Materials, Toronto, in respect of one of those properties.

Phoenix is listed on London's AIM (PXC), and trades on New York's OTCQX
Market (PXCLF and PXCLY (ADRs)). More details on the Company, its assets and
its objectives can be found on PXC's website
at https://phoenixcopperlimited.com/ (https://phoenixcopperlimited.com/)

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