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‘Intriguing’ Mushima North shows positive soil sample results

Tertiary Minerals plc reported positive follow-up results from portable XRF analysis of soil samples at the C1 target at the Mushima North copper project, Zambia.

Prospectivity: drill optimisation planning will now take place for the target (stock photo)

OPEN-ENDED ANOMALY

The project, covering 701.3km2, lies 100km east of Manyinga in North-Western Province.

C1 target, one of three so far identified, may hold iron-oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) style and traditional copper belt sediment-hosted mineralisation.

The company’s resampling of a lone 1970s drill hole, RKN800, showed 33m grading 0.24% copper from 122m to the end of hole in association with highly anomalous arsenic.

A total 572 soil samples collected on 200m x 200m grid defined a “significant open-ended copper anomaly above 60ppm over 4km x 1.25km, with peak value of 211ppm copper close to RKN800”.

Tertiary said that the highest copper-in-soil values were coincident with the highest arsenic values in pXRF soil results, and consistent with strongly anomalous arsenic in hole RKN800.

A subset of the sample will be sent for laboratory check analysis, while the company awaits pXRF results from Mushima North’s A1 and A2 targets.

Executive chairman Patrick Cheetham added: “Target C1 contains intriguing gravity and magnetic anomalies, key geophysical targets for buried IOCG mineralisation, as well as known mineralisation of traditional copper belt style in hole RKN800.

“It’s encouraging to see the geochemical signature of the mineralisation in RKN800 replicated in the soil pXRF results, further enhancing the possibility that mineralisation of this style is present over a wider area.

“These new soil results confirm and highlight the prospectivity of target C1 and drill optimisation planning will now take place.”