Hot Chili’s Cortadera is set for its next growth spurt as drilling continues to strike true

Hot Chili is likely to see further growth to its already very substantial Cortadera copper-gold resource in Chili after drilling intersected mineralisation outside the current Cuerpo 1 mineralised envelope.

Notable results from this drilling are 270m grading 0.5% copper equivalent (0.4% copper and 1 gram per tonne gold) from surface including 114m at 0.7% CuEq (0.6% copper and 0.1g/t gold) from 70m in hole CRP0202D and 84m at 0.4% CuEq from 336m including 26m at 0.6% CuEqu (0.6% copper and 0.1g/t gold) from 374m in hole CORMET001.

Assays are also pending for a further three drill holes that are testing the potential for more copper-gold mineralisation at depth below the Cuerpo-1 porphyry, which could deliver even more resource growth for Hot Chili (ASX/TSXV: HCH, OTCQX: HHLKF).

The company is also waiting on assays for the remaining 15 reverse circulation holes under the first pass drill program across its new Western Cortadera (AMSA landholding), which had effectively doubled the prospective strike length of its Cortadera project.

Extending Cuerpo-1 mineralisation

Hot Chili had initially recorded an end-of-hole drill result of 6m at 0.6% copper from 354m at CORMET001, leading to a decision to extend the geotechnical diamond drill hole and the drilling of a further five holes below Cuerpo-1.

The results to date appear to indicate a significant extension to mineralisation with the intersection of mineralised porphyry up to 300m below the Indicated Resource at Cuerpo-1.

Western Cortadera drilling

Meanwhile, the drilling across Western Cortadera was primarily shallow – at less than 300m depth – and focussed on defining the extent of the Cuerpo-4 porphyry body.

It follows the first diamond hole – LCD001 – confirming significant copper mineralisation at Cuerpo-4 after returning a 120m intersection grading 0.5% CuEq (0.4% copper and 0.2g/t gold) from 22m to end of hole.

Notably, this included a 38m zone at 1% CuEq (0.8% copper and 0.4g/t gold) from 22m.

Once all assay results have been received and reviewed, Hot Chili and Antofagasta Minerals (AMSA) will plan a second-pass drill program to follow-up the initial results of this program as part of the 6,000m drill commitment to the option agreement.

Historical drilling by AMSA returned wide intersections of mineralisation with their shallow nature highlighting open pit resource growth potential.

Unsurprisingly, success here has significant potential to add substantial resources at Cortadera, which currently consists of a high confidence Indicated Resource of 471Mt grading 0.46% copper equivalent (CuEq) and an Inferred Resource of 108Mt at 0.35% CuEq.

This article was developed in collaboration with Hot Chili, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.