Auris Minerals cements 70% interest in Cheroona JV in WA’s Bryah Basin
Auris Minerals now owns 70% of the Cheroona joint venture tenements in WA’s Bryah Basin, which are prospective for gold, copper and base metals.
Copper and gold explorer Auris Minerals (ASX: AUR) has bedded-down its 70% stake in the Bryah Basin-based Cheroona joint venture with Northern Star Resources (ASX: NST) retaining the remaining 30%.
The duo initially inked the farm-in agreement in December 2013, which required Auris to spend $500,000 on exploration at the Western Australian project to secure a 51% interest by March 2016.
To cement the remaining 19% in the project, Auris spent a further $800,000, which has now given it 70% ownership of the tenements.
The joint venture covers three tenements and Auris wholly-owns a further two tenements with all tenements combined making up the wider Cashman project.
Previous gossan samples from Cashman have returned up to 17.4% copper and 41.7 grams per tonne gold, with the combined tenements situated in a known VMS district.
Additionally, previous drilling at the tenements has generated 5m at 0.86 grams per tonne gold from 96m, 5m at 0.25% copper from 101m, 16m at 0.43% zinc from 101m, and 9m at 0.34g/t gold, 0.16g/t silver, 0.19% copper from 294m, including 1m at 3.42g/t gold from 301m.
Meanwhile, more than 3,500 soil samples were collected from the Cashman tenements in 2018 and geological and geophysical interpretation work has been ongoing.
Auris is planning a small aircore and reverse circulation drilling program to target the Karalundi formation as well as other magnetic and VTEM anomalies.
Sandfire joint venture
Copper miner Sandfire Resources (ASX: SFR) entered a farm-in agreement with Auris in February 2018.
Under the agreement, Sandfire paid Auris $1.5 million to earn-in to the Morck Well East and Doolgunna projects, which are close to Cashman.
The initial agreement noted that Sandfire must spend a minimum of $2 million on exploration at the projects over two years to earn a 70% stake.
By March 2019, Sandfire had forked out $9.4 million on exploring the tenements.
Aircore drilling to-date has returned 11m at 3.5% copper, 6m at 1.3% copper and 9m at 2.3% copper.
By late morning trade, shares in Auris were up 20% to $0.18.