North Bay Resources Inc. (OTC:NBRI) reported high-grade copper, silver, and vanadium mineralization from its February 2025 exploration program at the Copper Island project in British Columbia.
Rock sampling from eight outcrops at the Pomeroy 1-3, Beaver, and Copper Bell zones returned assay values as high as 5.69% copper, 1 ounce per ton silver, and 0.22% vanadium.
The average results from the samples stood at 4.6% copper, 0.5 ounces per ton silver, and 0.9% vanadium.
Metallurgical testing indicated that up to 74.4% of the copper is in oxide form, with average oxide copper content of 40.3% to 58.4% across three different leach tests. Oxide copper is generally more cost-effective to process with high recovery rates, the company said.
The Copper Island property is a Red-Bed Copper deposit near Campbell River, British Columbia, and adjacent to North Bay’s Murex copper project.
The Pomeroy 3 and 4 zones have the largest known copper-silver mineralization on the property, extending approximately 750 feet along strike. Other mineralized zones include Copper Valley, Butte, Copper Bell, Colleen, Vanadium, and Ingersoll, where copper-bearing veinlets and fracture zones have been traced for up to 600 feet at surface.
Historic exploration at the site dates back to the 1950s, with Dodge Copper and Prince Stewart Mines conducting trenching and diamond drilling. Between 1972 and 1974, the work resulted in a historical resource estimate of over 50 million pounds of copper. More recent sampling in 2011 by Copper Island Mines Ltd. identified copper grades exceeding 2% in multiple areas.
Results from North Bay’s 2023 exploration program further confirmed the property's high-grade potential. Drilling highlights include 7.46% Cu, 8.48% Cu, 4.51% Cu, 3.28% Cu at the Pomeroy 1 Zone and 14.7% Cu and 3.42% Cu at the Copper Bell Zone.
North Bay Resources said it plans to continue exploration and metallurgical studies to assess the economic potential of the Copper Island Project.