Global Geoscience (ASX: GSC) and Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) have identified and acquired tenure over the Towers Mountain porphyry copper system in central Arizona, U.S., one of the world’s premier copper provinces.
Global owns 178 unpatented mining claims covering of 14.5 square kilometres, in which Antofagasta can earn a 70% interest by spending US$5 million over six years, including US$1 million in the first two years to earn 51%.
The new property is the result of work conducted under the existing Arizona Exploration Alliance between Global and Antofagasta.
The area was identified by Global using its structural targeting methods, identifying a zoned stream sediment geochemical anomaly that included a central copper-molybdenum zone covering eight square kilometres.
Follow-up exploration identified the Towers Mountain porphyry intrusive and breccia complex as the source of the copper-molybdenum geochemical anomaly.
The Towers Mountain porphyry complex has been mentioned in several published reports dating back to the 1920’s, yet has never extensively explored.
Surrounding the central breccia is a discontinuous annular zone of copper mineralisation up to 400 metres wide, coincident with intense phyllic alteration.
The annular copper zone has not been tested in detail by drilling, and represents a high priority target for exploration.
Towers Mountain shares similarities with other large porphyry systems in the region, such as Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold’s (NYSE:FCX) Bagdad porphyry copper mine 80 kilometres to the northwest, which hosts 3 billion tonnes at 0.4% copper.
Global is working with a mining major, near major mines, and is capitalised at under $8 million.