Andean Silver grows Cerro Bayo resource by 22% with new high-grade zones at Pegaso 7 and Cristal

Andean Silver (ASX: ASL) continues to reap the rewards of its aggressive exploration strategy at the Cerro Bayo silver-gold project in Chile, announcing a significant mineral resource increase.

Andean has maintained a consistent run of exploration since acquiring Cerro Bayo in February last year, now reflected in a 22% increase in the project’s mineral resource to 111 million ounces of silver equivalent at 353 grams per tonne.

The addition of initial resources at the Pegaso 7 and Cristal discoveries made by Andean in 2024 have boosted the maiden result.

‘Outstanding results’

“This is our first resource estimate which includes targets drilled by Andean since we acquired Cerro Bayo [and] the outstanding results continue to provide firm evidence that there is substantial untapped upside in the project,” chief executive Tim Laneyrie said.

“The increased resource shows Cerro Bayo has genuine scale and high grades but the potential for growth beyond this result is enormous.”

Andean’s future plans have been enhanced by confirmation that mineralisation remains open along strike and down plunge, identifying a significant pipeline of greenfield targets with sampling and geophysics.

Resource growth pathway

“This strong pipeline gives us a clear pathway to potential rapid resource growth, while over the medium term we have many years of targets to explore to maximise the potential of the project,” Mr Laneyrie said.

“Andean is well funded to continue drilling, grow the resource and advance the pipeline of targets.”

“Our focus clearly remains on systematically expanding the resource base while advancing toward potential development opportunities in this premier silver-gold province.”

Pegaso 7 upside

The initial resources for the Pegaso 7 and Cristal prospects at the Laguna Verde Mine Complex account for over 65% of the latest additions to the overall results.

Andean continues to explore Pegaso 7, where it has tested less than 50% of the known mineralisation strike, with a focus on the high-grade underground vein potential within the main central structure corridor.

Notably, the company has yet to test significant quantities of vein and stockwork intercepts within 300m of the central corridor in cross-cutting and parallel zones.