Fitzroy Minerals Inc. (TSXV: FTZ, OTCQX: FTZFF, FSE: C3Y) has reported wide intervals of copper mineralization from its ongoing drilling program at the Buen Retiro copper project in northern Chile, alongside an exploration update for its Caballos copper project. The company is advancing towards a maiden mineral resource estimate and a preliminary feasibility study (PFS) for Buen Retiro, with infill drilling underway and a bulk sample prepared for metallurgical test work.
Drill hole BRT-DDH045 returned 384 meters grading 0.22% copper from 4 meters depth, including a 94-meter interval grading 0.33% copper from 30 meters. This intercept, located in the North area of the property, demonstrates two distinct styles of copper mineralization on a large scale. President and CEO Merlin Marr-Johnson noted that the hole is situated 3 kilometers north-northeast of high-grade copper oxide mineralization in the Southwest area, and combined with coincident geophysical anomalies, provides compelling evidence that Buen Retiro is a major copper system.
The company has initiated infill drilling with two diamond drill rigs, drilling approximately 160 meters per day of HQ core. A total of 15 additional holes (46 through 60) have been completed and are being processed. The infill program, expected to total about 6,000 meters, should be completed in April. Half-core from these holes is being aggregated into a representative bulk sample of approximately 2,800 kilograms for heap leach metallurgical test work at SGS Laboratories, scheduled to start in late March.
Fitzroy has also contracted Fleet Space Technologies to conduct an Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) passive seismic survey to image subsurface architecture and identify potential IOCG mineral systems. The survey will be carried out in two stages, with Phase 1 starting soon.
At the Caballos copper-molybdenum-gold project, an airborne MobileMT geophysical survey has been completed, with data currently being interpreted. Phase 2 drilling is planned for later this year once the geophysical data is integrated into the geological model.
The Buen Retiro project benefits from its location at low elevation on a brown-fields site, 4 kilometers from the Pan-American Highway and high-voltage transmission lines, close to the coast where a proposed desalination plant has a seawater extraction license, and near the mining center of Copiapo. Marr-Johnson emphasized that in an industry with decreasing discovery rates, Fitzroy aims to leverage potential future cash flow from the proposed heap leach operation to fund continued exploration for major copper deposits with minimal dilution.
The company follows strict quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) procedures, including the insertion of blanks, standards, and duplicates at a rate of about 12% of total samples. The qualified person for the news release is Dr. Scott Jobin-Bevans (P.Geo., Ph.D., PMP), who has reviewed and approved the technical information.
