PolarX Ltd (ASX:PXX) has hit more than 400 metres of mineralised porphyry-style veins in the first diamond drill hole at Mars prospect within the Alaska Range Project in Alaska, USA.
This hole ended in mineralisation at 417 metres depth, intersecting multiple stages of porphyry veins containing visible iron, copper and molybdenum sulphides from the surface.
The hole contains a broad zonation with increasing vein intensity and increasing abundance of copper and molybdenum sulphides as the hole deepens.
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“Very large" system may be present
PolarX managing director Frazer Tabeart said: “Visual confirmation of even more intense porphyry-style veining containing chalcopyrite and molybdenite from 321 metres to the end of the first hole at 417 metres is extremely promising.
“The 400 metres down-hole thickness of mineralisation, the large size of the copper-gold-molybdenum surface geochemical and geophysical anomalies at Mars support our view that a very large mineralised system may be present.”
The Mars porphyry target occurs in the Stellar project, which is the area subject to the strategic partnership with Lundin Mining Corporation (TSE:LUN).
Mars occurs at the western end of a 12-kilometre-long mineralised corridor, which also hosts the high-grade Zackly copper-gold skarn and Saturn porphyry target.
A preliminary program of core drilling to evaluate Saturn and Mars was undertaken in August and September 2019.
19MAR001 at 357.5 metres depth. Coarse‐grained molybdenite in quartz‐carbonate vein.
Mars features a notable increase in visible copper and molybdenum sulphide at 321 metres, continuing to the end of the hole at 417 metres with visual estimates of 0.5% to 2% chalcopyrite.
The alteration, vein composition and morphology are consistent with magmatic hydrothermal mineralisation which may be related to a nearby porphyry deposit.
Surface geochemical soil sampling at Mars also recorded anomalous gold in addition to copper and molybdenum.
Gold is expected to be present in addition to the visible copper and molybdenum but can only be determined by assays which are currently underway.