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New Mongolian copper discovery buoys Xanadu; shares jump 11pc
Mining
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Special Report: Xanadu Mines’ quest to find a monster copper-gold system beneath the sands of Mongolia’s South Gobi Desert has taken another positive turn, with the company proclaiming a new discovery at its flagship Kharmagtai project.
Xanadu announced on Thursday that drilling at the Zaraa prospect, one of 19 new large-scale exploration targets identified within the Kharmagtai Licence Area, had returned impressive mineralised intersections pointing to the discovery of a new porphyry copper-gold deposit.
The announcement of the new discovery at Zaraa coincided with the price of copper rising by more than 2 per cent overnight on Thursday and helped lift Xanadu shares as high as 20.5c — an 11 per cent jump.
The shares closed Thursday at 20c. At that price, the company is capitalised at close to $120 million.
Assays (test results) from hole KHDDH462 drilled at Zaraa returned intercepts of 316 metres at 0.32% copper and 0.26 grams per tonne (g/t) gold (0.49% copper equivalent) from a depth of 458 metres including 217m at 0.4% copper and 0.33 g/t gold (0.61% copper equivalent) from a depth of 557 metres and 108m at 0.46% copper and 0.42 g/t gold (0.73% copper equivalent) from a depth of 645m.
The hole is now at a depth of 1200m and remains in mineralisation with visible copper bearing sulphides.
Results for the deeper part of the hole are expected in the first week of May.
Zaraa lies about 2km to the east of the established copper-gold deposits at Kharmagtai: Stockwork Hill, White Hill and Copper Hill.
“We have now tested eight of the 19 large-scale porphyry targets recently identified and five have produced significant intervals of porphyry alteration and mineralisation,” Xanadu Managing Director Dr Andrew Stewart said.
“Zaraa represents the latest target tested and we are extremely excited by the first diamond drill results.
“It is a new porphyry centre and early indications are the system has the grade and scale to represent a significant new discovery.
“Our strategy is clear: the best way to add tonnes and grade to the existing resources is by discovering additional high-grade deposits within the Kharmagtai Licence Area.
“With four rigs drilling around the clock, we are delivering on this strategy.”
In March 2015 Xanadu announced a mineral resource for Kharmagtai of 203 million tonnes at 0.34% copper and 0.33 g/t gold (0.55% copper equivalent) for 1.5 billion pounds of contained copper and 2.2 million ounces of contained gold.
But since then intensive exploration has identified significantly more mineralisation in the district.
Were a resource calculation to be done today, it would have grown substantially.
This special report is brought to you by Xanadu.
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