Mining

Meteoric Resources’ drilling touches tip of giant copper-gold target at Juruena

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By Imelda Cotton - 
Meteoric Resources ASX MEI Juruena bonanza grades gold assay Brazil Dona Maria

Meteoric Resources’ latest drilling at Juruena has hit 14m at 81.7g/t gold, including 2.5m at 287.4g/t gold.

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Exploration company Meteoric Resources (ASX: MEI) has confirmed that a deep drilling program immediately below the high-grade Juruena gold deposit within Brazil’s Alta Floresta Belt has reached the tip of a giant copper-gold rich porphyry target.

The first of three drill holes started in February has reached a 500m depth and is close to intersecting a large geophysical IP (induced polarisation) chargeability anomaly interpreted to be associated with the target, which was identified in geological, geophysical and geochemical data.

Crentes-style target

Drilling is expected to then hit the copper-gold rich Crentes-style breccia-hosted mineralisation within the Juruena Fault system, at a depth of approximately 1,000m.

One of the final holes of Meteoric’s 2020 campaign at this target intersected significant shallow epithermal-style gold-copper breccia mineralisation with results including 51m at 1.4 grams per tonne gold and 0.25% copper from 118m.

Shallow copper-gold

Meteoric managing director Dr Andrew Tunks said the current deep drilling program had just reached the top of the interpreted deep IP anomaly, targeting a potential source for the shallow copper-gold seen at the Dona Maria and Crentes deposits.

“At this stage, [the first hole] has intersected regional alteration and some pyrite-rich zones along with minor molybdenite which is common in the porphyry environment,” he said.

“The Juruena fault zone intercept is an encouraging indication of the potential of [this area] to host mineralisation and be a fluid pathway from deeper systems.”

“While we know there is extensive copper gold mineralisation near surface, if we also strike similar at depth, it would immediately open a further exciting exploration opportunity.”

Deep IP survey

The Juruena deep drilling program started in mid-February with the first of three 1,200m-long holes designed to follow up positive results from a deep IP survey carried out in the region at the end of last year.

The survey was definitive in highlighting Juruena’s potential to contain various major magmatic hydrothermal-related porphyry and epithermal styles of copper-gold mineralisation.

It returned a large, high-chargeability anomaly centred at the Uilliam/Mauro target, just below the outcropping deposits.

The anomaly was interpreted to be located approximately 500m below the surface and associated with a potential giant porphyry copper-gold target, expected to be intersected by the first hole within the next few days.

Resource update

Meteoric confirmed all assays from the 2020 campaign had now been received and will be incorporated into a mineral resource update for all prospects within the Juruena project.

The company has commissioned mining consultant Trepanier Pty Ltd to complete the work.

The previous resource estimate for Juruena was released in 2017 by Big River Gold (ASX: BRV), formerly Crusader Resources.