PolarX Ltd (ASX:PXX) (FRA:PX0) is set to kickstart a diamond core drilling program at the high-grade Caribou Dome Copper Project in Alaska targeting new high-priority targets for massive sulphide copper mineralisation.
The company has secured a contractor for the 1,500-metre diamond drilling program, which is scheduled to begin in August.
This program is designed to meet two goals – to test three newly developed exploration targets, each of which has the potential to host one or more massive sulphide lenses, and to provide high-grade copper sulphide samples for metallurgical testing.
Ultimately, these samples will determine potential co-processing options with copper mineralisation from PolarX’s 100%-owned neighbouring high-grade Zackly Copper-Gold Project.
The drilling and subsequent metallurgical test-work will form part of PolarX’s earn-in for 80% of the Caribou Dome Project under revised terms agreed in 2020.
Targets for 2021 field season
Caribou Dome in the Alaska Range Project.
Copper mineralisation at Caribou Dome occurs in nine known lenses of massive sulphide mineralisation.
Previous exploration revealed these lenses show strong copper anomalism in surface soil sample assays and can also be broadly mapped/predicted using induced polarization (IP) geophysical surveys, displaying chargeability highs.
PolarX has earmarked three new undrilled targets after a thorough review of geochemical soil sampling data and 3D imaging of the IP data.
The three new targets are all less than 500 metres from known mineralisation, and all have surface copper anomalism and coincident 3D IP chargeability highs.
Each target, therefore, has high potential to host one or more lenses of massive sulphide mineralisation.
Four dill holes are also planned to intersect known high-grade massive sulphide lenses at Caribou Dome to provide fresh samples to assess its potential combination with PolarX’s high-grade Zackly project.
Multiple high-priority targets undrilled
Copper mineralisation was discovered at the Caribou Dome Project in 1963.
From 1963-1970 nine lenses of volcanic sediment-hosted copper mineralisation were delineated over approximately 700 metres of strike.
Ninety-five diamond core holes were drilled during this period, from surface and underground.
Multiple high-priority targets based on surface geochemical soil sampling and IP survey remain undrilled.
With >18 kilometres of the stratigraphic horizon that hosts the mineralisation evident within the company’s project area, there is considerable potential to discover additional high-grade mineralisation and to continue to expand the resource base at the Project.
PolarX intends to evaluate the economic viability of trucking copper mineralisation from Caribou Dome to potential processing plant sites at Zackly.
Humbolt Range Project
At the company’s Humbolt Range Gold-Silver Project in Nevada, assays for recently completed grid soil sampling and vein sampling are expected soon and will be used to delineate preliminary drill targets.