Duke Exploration reports visible copper at historic Mt Flora mine site
Duke chairman Toko Kapea said the results had already exceeded the company’s expectations of how big Mt Flora could be.
Duke Exploration (ASX: DEX) has reported that the first drill hole targeting an electromagnetic plate at its Mt Flora prospect in Queensland has successfully intersected visible copper mineralisation in stacked veins.
The mineralisation began at 47m down hole and continues in several sections to a depth of 225m.
Drilling of the hole is continuing to a depth of 250m.
Mt Flora is part of the company’s 100%-owned Bundarra project in Queensland.
Bundarra is located near Mackay and the ground includes the site of the old Mt Flora mine and two associated tenements, Duania and Waitara.
The Mt Flora mine was, during one part of the 1800s, Australia’s highest-grade copper producer.
Critical to understanding size of copper, silver mineralisation
The company says that this drilling result is critical in giving it a better-understanding of the source of regional anomalies at Bundarra, along with the scale of the silver and copper mineralisation at Mt Flora.
The stacked veins intersected by the drill hole are interpreted to be similar to stacked massive sulphide veins that were mined to the south of Mt Flora.
In this hole so far, the drilling has hit six sections containing visible chalcopyrite.
“The hole extends the strike of the Mt Flora deposit that requires resource drilling by 250m, which will further add to the mineralised area defined by drilling to the south,” the company said.
Two holes, 60m and 120m respectively along strike to the north, will now be drilled to test the extent of this new vein system.
These should be completed by the end of February and could extend the strike of the known copper and silver at Mt Flora by more than 500m, the company added.
Drill results already exceed expectations
Chairman Toko Kapea said the visible copper sulphides logged and the number of sulphide veins confirm the known copper and silver mineralisation.
“This is a very exciting time for the company as these results have already exceeded our expectations of how big Mt Flora could be,” he said.
Duke listed in early November with a focus on copper-gold and projects inland from Mackay, near Rockhampton and Canberra.
In its prospectus, the company noted that it planned to use government-funded mineral system research and precompetitive data combined with computer-based data analytical techniques to refine exploration.
This, the company said, would offer new, effective ways to identify opportunities typically not recognised by most exploration strategies.