Loyal Metals is targeting un-realised copper-gold treasures at Highway Reward

• Loyal Metals confirms significant remnant resource potential at Highway Reward with legacy data
• The company’s 3D VRIFY model allows investors to explore the project’s potential
• With $5.8m in funding, the company is positioned to begin drilling shortly

Special Report: Loyal Metals is eyeing big opportunities at Queensland’s Highway Reward Mine, having confirmed past copper-gold assays from over 122,000m of drilling and uncovering unmined high-grade potential alongside historical workings.

Past operations focused mainly on high-grade copper and largely ignored gold, leaving substantial remnant mineralisation just waiting to be explored.

Significant unmined copper-gold zones remain, with previous drilling returning impressive intercepts such as 33m at 5.0% copper and 10m at 17.7 g/t gold, as today’s commodity prices support a lower copper equivalent cut-off grade, allowing for broader mineralised zones to be considered.

The copper price is on the move, up 2.6% in the past month and nearly 7% year on year, even as top producer Chile prepares to lift output – aiming for a record 6Mt by 2027.

That global momentum sets the stage for projects like Highway Reward, where proven past production and high-grade remnant mineralisation point to plenty of copper and gold still on the table.

Mapping out the bounty with a $5.8m war chest

With past production delivering 3.65Mt at 5.7% copper and 260kt at 4.5g/t gold, the system still holds substantial remnant mineralisation near both open pit and underground workings with results including 33m at 5% copper, 30m at 5.1% copper, 2m at 105.4 g/t gold and 10m at 17.7 g/t gold.

To unlock this potential, the company is advancing 3D modelling, including an interactive VRIFY model to map out and prioritise remnant resource targets.

Backed by $5.8 million in funding, Loyal Metals (ASX:LLM) is now well-positioned to launch targeted drilling and fast-track mineral resource evaluation across the Highway Reward mining leases.

Drilling to begin shortly

LLM managing director Adam Ritchie said confirming the integrity of this legacy dataset provides a robust foundation to assess remnant copper-gold resource potential and define near-term drill targets.

“Investors can now explore the projects through our interactive 3D VRIFY model, which clearly illustrates the system’s scale, remnant resource potential and open areas for new discoveries,” he said.

“With commodity prices materially higher than at the time of the 1997 feasibility study, and high-resolution geophysics and AI-assisted targeting underway, we are planning to begin drilling in the coming months.”

In good company and exploration upside

 The Highway Reward copper-gold mine sits just 37km from Charters Towers in Queensland’s Mount Windsor Volcanic Belt, a region steeped in copper and gold mining history.

It’s in good company, too, with major operations nearby like Newmont’s 3.2Moz Mt Leyshon mine and Yuxin Holding’s 3.4Moz Pajingo mine.

The project also benefits from sitting near the Mount Carlton processing plant, with road and rail links connecting directly to Glencore’s Mount Isa hub, the Townsville refinery, and the Port of Townsville.

At Highway Reward, gold tends to be closely tied to pyrite within the massive sulphide pipes, while the richest copper grades historically came from chalcopyrite lenses in massive sulphide pipes.

Past mining largely overlooked gold, but remnant drilling has revealed plenty of unmined intervals worth following up for resource potential.

Some holes show broad zones of lower-grade gold, while others hit much higher grades, underscoring the opportunity to define meaningful gold resources alongside copper.

The Top 10 copper intercepts mined at Highway Reward reflect standout hits that showcase the systems’ scale and grade and set the benchmark for just how much exploration upside remains.

Watch: Loyal Metals takes the Highway with AI targeting

What’s next?

The team is now rolling out 3D modelling to zero in on the most promising zones, backed by a high-resolution MobileMTd geophysical survey to sharpen subsurface targeting.

With drilling just around the corner, these efforts are set to drive a focused resource definition strategy across the Highway Reward mining leases.

This article was developed in collaboration Loyal Metals, 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.