QMines (ASX: QML) has completed geological reconnaissance and mapping at its recently identified Tracker 1 anomaly, which lies within the company’s Mt Chalmers copper-gold project in Queensland.
Tracker 1 is located about 2.5km from the recent Artillery Road discovery where copper targets and a zinc anomaly were found.
This new anomaly was identified from high priority electromagnetic (EM) survey work.
It has now been decided that Tracker 1 is to be drilled as part of QMines’ EM pipeline.
Discussions with landowners for access
Last month QMines announced it had identified three large anomalous copper gossans at Artillery Road near its Mt Chalmers flagship project, 17km northeast of Rockhampton.
That large gossan outcrop extends over 700m, with an adjacent zinc soil anomaly.
QMines said that geological mapping, logging, EM and high-resolution magnetics all support Artillery Road as containing skarn mineralisation which are an important source of copper, gold, lead, zinc, tin, tungsten, molybdenum and rare earths.
Managing director Andrew Sparke said the company is now negotiating Tracker 1 access agreements with the landowners concerned, which will allow the company to undertake ground exploration.
Rock chip samples with high-grade copper
Recently the landholder at the Artillery Road deposit settled on access and compensation conditions with QMines.
The company said drilling was continuing at Artillery Road and it expects to release an update “shortly” on progress at that target.
Field reconnaissance at Tracker 1 identified outcropping gossan with visible malachite and azurite copper mineralisation.
Gossan rock chip sampling returned assays of up to 2.67% copper.
The most prospective area at Tracker 1 is a 300m strike zone, named VT23, being a copper mineralised stringer zone and revealing outcropping copper within a consistent copper in soil envelope.
Added to priority drilling list
The company says this north-south trending zone is reminiscent of the sulphide stringer zone that underlies the main Mt Chalmers ore body.
This has resulted in Tracker 1 being added to the priority drilling list.
Mr Sparke said QMines has spent a considerable amount of time digitising historical soil and structural data from previous explorers at the Tracker 1 prospect.
“This area has become another exciting target for future drilling,” he said.
