Mongolia-focused Kincora Copper Ltd (CVE:KCC) updated Monday on first phase exploration work this season, in which nine holes have tested five targets at its Bronze Fox and East Tsagaan Suvarga (East TS) projects.
Last week, the group also announced an earn-in deal worth up to over US$6 million for the Badrakh copper gold project, where the first of a proposed two-hole program has just kicked off.
The company is aiming to make the next Tier 1 discovery in the East Asian country.
READ: Kincora Copper unveils option deal for Badrakh copper gold project in Southern Gobi
"Field activities have been under budget, safely and successfully executed, systematically advancing the company's wholly owned 828.3 sq km district scale portfolio, focused on first phase target testing drilling at Bronze Fox and East Tsagaan Suvarga," said senior vice-president of exploration Peter Leaman.
"The company remains well funded to continue to pursue our dual exploration and project generation strategy, with two prospective targets being drilled at the Badrakh project, and with budget for a significant phase 2 drilling in 2020 across the license portfolio," he added.
At Bronze Fox, six holes were sunk and final assays have now been received, which will be enough for a maiden resource. The work has confirmed and better defined a large lower grade porphyry system with localised higher-grade zones at the West West Kasulu target, Kincora said.
At East Tsagaan Suvarga, this first target testing drill program focused on three independent targets with three holes and 1,848.2 metres sunk. Drilling failed to confirm the targeted geological concepts and so this project has now become too "high a risk proposition" for a junior to solely fund.
Meanwhile, at Badrakh, drilling has now started, in a bid, for the first time, to test the potential for a preserved large-scale porphyry under a near-surface cap.
The deal is to earn up to 80% in stages of the asset, which is a former high priority exploration project of Ivanhoe Mines.
Large scale porphyry
Kincora says it offers a path to control, alongside a well-credentialed vendor and partner, for a priority drill ready project underpinned by large-scale porphyry targets, which are favourably located to existing infrastructure and on China's doorstep.
The first hole will test a large scale coincident chargeability high oversetting a donut magnetic anomaly on the margin of a silica cap, brecciated quartz–baryte zone and a phyllic alteration zone, the firm added.
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