Altamira Gold Corp. (TSX-V:ALTA, OTC:EQTRF), the Brazil-focused explorer, has reported encouraging news from its Santa Helena copper-gold asset, saying the first three drill holes hit porphyry-style mineralization.
The confirmation at the Gabriel target confirms the prospectivity of the belt and gives the firm an exciting new target style as well as the high-grade gold and base metal veins already identified.
"The identification of compelling evidence of porphyry-style alteration at depth at Santa Helena is extremely encouraging so early in the drill program, and with a 28 square kilometer area of known surface copper and gold mineralization, we now need to use geophysical exploration techniques over this area to help identify the best drill targets for the second phase of drilling," said Altamira CEO Mike Bennett in a statement.
"This new porphyry discovery by Altamira is only 60 kilometers to the south-west of the Jaca Porphyry Copper discovery by Anglo American in 2017 and we are extremely excited for both the copper and gold potential within our extensive Santa Helena project," he added.
READ: Altamira Gold kicks off diamond drilling at Santa Helena project in Brazil to test porphyry potential
Samples will be dispatched during February this year to the lab for assay.
The Santa Helena project is immediately adjacent to the paved BR-163 federal highway in the state of Mato Grosso and Altamira is now planning drone magnetometer surveys and IP surveys to optimize initial drill tests of a coherent copper-in-soil anomaly measuring 1,000m by 1,200m to the north-east of the initial drilling area.
It is also now accelerating geophysical surveys to site drillholes over the copper anomaly outlined in soil sampling.
Elsewhere, diamond drilling and soil sampling are also in progress at the Mutum target within the Apiacas project. A total of nine holes have been completed to date with results pending on seven, the firm added.
Altamira also holds eight projects comprising around 190,000 hectares (Ha), within the prolific Juruena gold belt which historically produced an estimated 7 to 10 million ounces (Moz) of placer gold.
Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com