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Sunstone Metals’ latest assays confirm large, mineralised porphyry system at El Palmar in Ecuador

Last updated: 01:47 23 Feb 2022 GMT, First published: 01:31 23 Feb 2022 GMT

Sunstone Metals Ltd -

Sunstone Metals Ltd (ASX:STM) has confirmed the existence of a large, mineralised copper-gold porphyry system at the El Palmar Project in Ecuador after receiving strong assay results from two more exploratory drill holes.

In light of this, Sunstone has moved to increase its interest in the project to 70% from 51% by paying US$300,000 to the project vendor under the Staged Acquisition Agreement.

Highlight assays from broad, near-surface mineralisation in the two drill holes include:

  • 97 metres at 0.43 g/t gold and 0.11% copper from 194 metres in EPDD004;
  • 124.35 metres at 0.41 g/t gold and 0.16% copper from 10.65 metres in EPDD006; and
  • 50.0 metres at 0.43 g/t gold and 0.24% copper from 314 metres in EPDD006.

Results are still pending for holes 7-11.

The company says there is still ‘immense’ upside remaining, as drilling so far has been limited to the south-eastern portion of the project tenure and the western and northern areas remain largely untested.

"Abundant evidence" for discovery

Sunstone managing director Malcolm Norris said it was now clear that El Palmar was a large mineralised system with an expanding footprint.

“We now have abundant evidence that El Palmar is a substantial copper-gold discovery,” Norris said. “We have intersected significant widths of ore-grade mineralisation over a rapidly growing area.

“We believe we are at the top of the system and that the deeper portions are highly prospective. For example, drill hole EPDD004 has drilled the top of a series of narrow intrusives and we interpret these to widen and coalesce at depth where the magnetic signature broadens.

“We have not explored below hole EPDD004, nor the sub-vertical magnetic anomaly that was targeted in hole EPDD005. We are also commencing exploration of the satellite targets.

“We are confident that further drilling will create significant value as we define the geometry of the gold-copper mineralisation, which we know extends from surface to in excess of 500 metres deep.”

Ongoing exploration

Deeper drilling is ongoing at El Palmar; Hole EPDD012 has reached 930 metres depth and has intersected intervals of copper mineralisation.

Similarly, the company is actively undertaking concession-wide exploration which has highlighted a cluster of targets within a 2.5-kilometre by 1.5-kilometre domain.

New assays from the promising Alba discovery at the Bramaderos Project are expected soon, and Sunstone remains well funded to continue its exploration activities with some A$14 million in cash and equities on hand.

Read: Sunstone Metals intersects broad gold-copper porphyry zones below Alba gold discovery in Ecuador

About Sunstone Metals

Sunstone Metals holds a portfolio high quality gold and copper assets in Ecuador.

The Bramaderos Gold-Copper Project is prospective for the discovery of porphyry and epithermal gold-copper deposits.

The El Palmar Copper-Gold Project is in northern Ecuador and is the subject of a Staged Acquisition Agreement with Golden Exploration Ecuador.

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on 15/8/23