Mining News: Trilogy initiates $10M Bornite drill program

Trilogy Metals Inc. June 12 said a US$10 million exploration program is now underway at Bornite, a high grade copper deposit at the company’s Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects in Northwest Alaska. Funded by South32 Ltd., a coal and base metals miner spun out of BHP Billiton in 2015, this program will include 12,000 meters of drilling focused on extending the copper mineralization last drilled by Trilogy in 2013. "We have waited three long years to be able to come back and drill at Bornite,” said Trilogy President and CEO Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse. “With the support of South32, we will be drilling 12,000 meters at Bornite this field season to test the extent of our impressive drill holes from our 2013 drill campaign.” Bornite hosts an open-pit resource with roughly 2.7 billion pounds of copper in roughly 124.6 million metric tons of material averaging nearly 1 percent copper; and an underground resource with roughly 3.7 billion lb of copper in 57.8 million tons of material averaging 2.89 percent copper, according to a resource calculated in 2016. The high-grade underground portion of this deposit remains open along a 1,000-meter wide front to the north. The 2013 program at Bornite included 4,684 meters of drilling at the Ruby Creek zone (a potential open pit resource) and 3,458 meters drilled at the South Reef zone (a potential underground resource). Hole RC13-0220, the most northeasterly hole drilled at South Reef, cut three very high-grade intervals from 877 to 923 meters (at a 2.0 percent cutoff): 5.9 meters of 6.66 percent copper; 9.9 meters of 2.48 percent copper; and 19.7 meters of 2.24 percent copper. Hole RC13-0224, drilled about 800 meters west of hole 220, cut five high-grade intercepts from 579 meters to 755 meters along this northern front: 19.5 meters of 3.02 percent copper; 16.8 meters of 2.36 percent copper; 39.5 meters of 2.37 percent copper; 8.6 meters of 3.26 percent copper; and 6.5 meters of 7.7 percent copper. Trilogy has hired drilling companies with expertise in deep directional drilling to continue to trace the South Reef zone to the north. The ability to drill multiple daughter holes from a single parent hole is expected to result in drill efficiency and lower costs. Three diamond core rigs capable of drilling to depths of 1,400 meters are being used.

–SHANE LASLEY