TIDMEEE
RNS Number : 1764O
Empire Metals Limited
30 January 2023
Empire Metals Limited / LON : EEE / Sector: Natural
Resources
30 January 2023
Empire Metals Limited
("Empire " or "the Company")
Stellar Results from Soil and Rock Sampling at the Pitfield
Copper Project
Empire Metals Limited (LON: EEE), the AIM-quoted resource
exploration and development company, is pleased to announce that
surface sampling carried out in December 2022 at the Pitfield
Copper Project ("Pitfield") in Western Australia has confirmed
extensive copper anomalism just south of the historic Mt Scratch
workings and several very high-grade rock samples have been
discovered in the process.
Highlights
-- Empire's exploration team have completed two field campaigns,
collecting soil and rock samples as well as surface mapping of
geological features.
-- Sampling has confirmed an historic copper-in-soil anomaly
associated with the Mt Scratch workings and extended this anomaly
over a 4km distance south of the workings, trending along the
western margin of the highly magnetic stratigraphic units.
-- The soil and rock sampling results add further evidence that
Pitfield has the potential to contain multiple sediment-hosted
stratabound copper ("SSC") deposits lying within what may be a
"Giant" copper mineralised system.
-- Several of the rock samples collected produced stellar results including:
o 17.88% Cu and 125.46 g/t Ag (Sample PMR009)
o 4.63% Cu and 7.15 g/t Ag (Sample PMR008)
o 0.65% Cu and 3.68 g/t Ag (Sample PMR012)
-- The third and final field phase of initial geological mapping
and soil sampling programme is now underway.
-- Additional soil sampling and reconnaissance Dipole - Dipole
Induced Polarisation ("DD-IP") geophysical surveying are expected
to be completed in Q1 2023 with a view to expediting a maiden drill
programme at Pitfield to evaluate the economic potential of SSC
targets defined by the current work.
Shaun Bunn, Managing Director, said: "I am delighted to provide
an update on our emerging Giant copper exploration project at
Pitfield, where our recent geochemical sampling has confirmed
highly anomalous values of copper, silver and other base metals
over a 4km extent to the south of the historical Mt Scratch copper
mine. The field mapping and rock sampling has verified the soil
anomaly by locating extraordinarily high-grade samples of copper
and silver, with one sample reporting nearly 18% Cu and 125 g/t Ag.
These results bring us a step closer to confirming our previous
belief of Pitfield containing a potential giant copper mineral
system. This discovery is happening at a crucial time in the
world's transition to a more electric future, which is largely
reliant on copper production, with substantial copper deficits
forecast in the coming years.
"The detailed technical interpretation of the recent DD-IP
survey results is also expected soon, and I look forward to
updating the market further on how these additional results will
provide targets for an initial drill programme across this large
copper-anomalous area."
Field Mapping, Soil and Rock Sampling
The favourable geology of the Yandanooka basin for large-scale
copper deposits has previously attracted major mining companies
which carried out exploration within the area, including: Kennecott
Corporation ("Kennecott"), MIM Holdings ("MIM"), BHP Group Limited
("BHP") and CRA. Widespread copper, silver, nickel and zinc
anomalism has been identified over large parts of the Yandanooka
basin by these previous explorers, particularly in association with
magnetite-altered rocks.
CRA (1992) completed IP geophysics and auger sampling defining a
+7km Cu-in-auger anomaly (plus Ag) over what is now the western
flank of the Pitfield project, and remains open to the east and
south. CRA followed up with two diamond holes, the southern hole on
Pitfield recording copper anomalism with a maximum value of 570ppm
(from 4m chip samples of drillcore) associated with
fracture-controlled malachite and minor native copper.
CRA also carried out soil sampling at Mt Scratch towards the
north of the project area which shows a direct correlation between
more strongly anomalous copper-in-soils with magnetic rock units
within the stratigraphy. Rock chip samples taken by CRA from
surface exposures returned very encouraging Cu-Ag values (up to
2.3% Cu and 20.8 g/t Ag) within the magnetic units highlighting a
large, highly prospective SSC target (Figure 1).
Figure 1.Surface sampling by CRA highlighting Cu anomalism in a
compostie image of soils, auger and rock.
The current geological mapping and soil sampling programme is
focussed on unexplored portions of the project with soil sample
lines positioned in the northern, central and southern areas of the
licence (refer Figure 2). To date, 580 soil samples and 27 rock
specimens have been collected and assayed. The location of the five
traverses of DD-IP geophysical survey, which was announced 12
January 2023, is also shown.
Figure 2. Location of recent soil and rock sampling and DD-IP
survey traverses.
The geological mapping and soil sampling results have confirmed
an extensive copper-in-soil anomaly extending 4km south of Mt
Scratch coinciding with the western-most magnetic trend of the
regional 40km long magnetic anomaly (refer Figure 3). What the soil
sampling highlights in this northern area of the licence is two
mineralized trends, the Mt Scratch and Greenbrook Trends, each
potentially representing separate SSC deposit targets that belong
to one Giant Cu mineral system extending the entire length of the
40km long magnetic anomaly.
Results from soil sampling along the Mt Scratch trend confirm
that the most elevated copper values are associated with magnetic
sedimentary horizons (white and light grey colours in Figure 3),
with copper values typically lower in non-magnetic units. The
Empire soil results confirm and extend copper anomalism seen in the
historical CRA sampling work to some 4km in length. The absolute
copper values in the Empire sampling are somewhat lower than in the
CRA work, likely due to differences in the sampling or analytical
approach taken. The nature of the regolith appears to have a strong
bearing on the copper-in-soil values with the best values usually
associated with weathered bedrock outcrop, and copper values
decreasing (depleted) in the laterite layer. Wind-blown sand is
quite extensively developed in parts of the project with copper
assay results indicating that the sand cover completely masks the
bedrock copper response. Soil sampling was stopped when the sand
areas were encountered.
Figure 3. Surface sampling by Empire highlighting Cu anomalism
near Mt Scratch.
Importantly, 27 rock samples of interest, including a
malachite-bearing silicified breccia (copper carbonate mineral), a
magnetite-enriched sandstone, and several samples with intense
iron-oxide enrichment were collected during field traversing with
several producing stellar results (location shown in Figure 4)
including:
-- 17.88% Cu and 125.46 g/t Ag (Sample PMR009 - refer to Figure 5)
-- 4.63% Cu and 7.15 g/t Ag (Sample PMR008)
-- 0.65% Cu and 3.68 g/t Ag (Sample PMR012)
These rock specimens are particularly encouraging as they
confirm the presence of copper enrichment along with quartz and
magnetite - all key elements of the SSC model.
These copper enriched rock samples are likely "float" samples
and may relate to now backfilled c1900 era prospecting shafts which
demonstrate the presence of strong copper values at shallow depths
(probably <10m) within what appears to be a highly ferruginous
(iron-rich) and copper-leached surface layer.
Figure 4. High-grade surface rock samples collected by Empire
near Mt Scratch
Figure 5. Rock Sample PMR009 which assayed at 17.88% Cu and
125.46 g/t Ag.
Future Work Programmes
Two phases of field work have been completed to date, with the
third and final phase of the geological mapping and soil sampling
programme now underway. Additional soil sampling and reconnaissance
DD-IP surveying is expected to be completed in Q1 2023 with a view
to expediting a maiden drill programme at Pitfield to evaluate the
economic potential of SSC targets defined by the current work.
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
Certain information contained in this announcement would have
been deemed inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, as incorporated into UK law by the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, until the release of this
announcement.
**S**
For further information please visit www.empiremetals.co.uk or
contact:
Empire Metals Ltd Tel: 020 7907 9327
Shaun Bunn / Greg Kuenzel
S. P. Angel Corporate Finance LLP Tel: 020 3470 0470
(Nomad & Broker)
Ewan Leggat / Adam Cowl
-------------------
Shard Capital Partners LLP (Joint Tel: 020 7186 9950
Broker)
Damon Heath
-------------------
St Brides Partners Ltd (Financial Tel: 020 7236 1177
PR)
Susie Geliher / Ana Ribeiro / Max
Bennett
-------------------
About Empire Metals Limited
Empire Metals is an AIM-listed (LON: EEE) exploration and
resource development company with a project portfolio comprising
gold interests in Australia and Austria.
The Company's strategy is to develop a pipeline of projects at
different stages in the development curve. Its initial focus has
been on the high-grade Eclipse and Gindalbie Gold Projects in
Western Australia. The Company expanded its exploration licence
area in April 2022 from 9.5km(2) to 1,728km(2) with the acquisition
of the Pitfield Copper-Gold Project and the Walton Copper-Gold
Project in Western Australia, and the Stavely Copper-Gold Project
in the Stavely Arc region of Victoria.
Empire also holds a portfolio of three precious metals projects
located an historically high-grade gold production region
comprising the Rotgulden, Schonberg and Walchen prospects in
central-southern Austria.
The Board continues to evaluate opportunities through which to
realise the value of its wider portfolio and reviews further assets
which meet the Company's investment criteria.
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END
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