Lumina hits long intersects at Taca Taca

The Taca Taca deposit in northwestern Argentina, 90 km east of Escondida, the world’s largest copper mine, has yielded the longest mineralized intercept to date—813 metres grading 0.60% copper equivalent including 134 metres of 1.22% copper equivalent—Lumina Copper (LCC-V) reports.

Breaking it down into its various components, step-out hole 71 returned 813 metres grading 0.50% copper, 0.07 gram gold per tonne and 0.01% molybdenum (for 0.60% copper equivalent), including 134 metres of 1.04% copper, 0.11 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (1.22% copper equivalent).

The hole was drilled 150 metres to the east of hole 52, which was drilled as a step-out along the northeastern boundary of the deposit and intersected 590 metres grading 0.57% copper, 0.06 gram gold per tonne and 0.01% molybdenum (0.66% copper equivalent) including 104 metres grading 1.62% copper, 0.12 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (1.81% copper equivalent). Assays from hole 52 were released late last year on Dec. 14.

Three hundred metres to the south of hole 71, hole 63 returned 437 metres grading 0.56% copper, 0.06 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (0.71% copper equivalent) including 54 metres grading 1.00% copper, 0.03 gram gold and 0.01% molybdenum (1.08% copper equivalent).

In-fill holes 61 and 62 were drilled within the northern supergene enrichment zone and have further defined the continuity of Taca Taca’s high-grade copper zone. Hole 61 cut 444 metres grading 0.73% copper, 0.14 gram gold and 0.03% molybdenum (0.99% copper equivalent), including 74 metres grading 1.36% copper, 0.25 gram gold and 0.06% molybdenum (1.87% copper equivalent).

Hole 62 returned 496 metres grading 0.67% copper, 0.13 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (0.87% copper equivalent), including 56 metres grading 1.92% copper, 0.22 gram gold and 0.04% molybdenum (2.29% copper equivalent).

The project’s most southerly hole, number 55—intersected two zones of sulphide copper mineralization. In the upper zone, hole 55 cut 46 metres grading 0.65% copper, 0.17 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (0.87% copper equivalent) and in the lower zone hole 55 contained 320 metres of 0.52% copper, 0.12 gram gold and 0.01% molybdenum (0.65% copper equivalent). The hole was lost in mineralization grading greater than 0.5% copper.

Further defining the eastern boundary of mineralization at Taca Taca, hole 66 was drilled into the eastern portion of the central hole and intersected 172 metres grading 0.23% copper, 0.11 gram gold and 0.02% molybdenum (0.41% copper equivalent). The hole also intersected two zones of oxide gold in the leached cap. The first contained 24 metres grading 0.34 gram gold, and the second averaged 0.37 gram gold over 72 metres.

Drilling at Taca Taca is focused on expanding the project’s resource estimate to the north, northeast, northwest, east, south and southeast as well as upgrading mineralization from the inferred category to the indicated category.

So far Lumina Copper has drilled a total of 96 core holes (52,706 metres) and 84 reverse circulation holes (13,420 metres) and has nine drill rigs on the property (seven core and two RC). The RC rigs are being used to pre-collar core holes as well as to explore and delineate the oxide gold resources in the leached cap of Taca Taca’s porphyry system.

Taca Taca–about 230 km west of the provincial capital of Salta in the Puna region of Argentina—has an indicated sulphide resource at a 0.4% copper equivalent cut-off grade, of 516 million tonnes grading 0.58% copper, 0.12 gram gold and 0.018% molybdenum (0.76% copper equivalent) for 6.6 billion pounds of copper, 2.1 million ounces of gold and 204.6 million pounds of molybdenum.

Inferred sulphide resources stand at 880 million tonnes grading 0.43% copper, 0.09 gram gold and 0.015% molybdenum (0.57% copper equivalent) for 8.3 billion pounds of copper, 2.3 million ounces of gold and 292.9 million pounds of molybdenum.

In addition, Lumina Copper has defined an oxide gold resource within the leached cap. At a 0.2 gram gold cut-off grade, the inferred resource stands at 190 million tonnes grading 0.25 gram gold for 1.5 million ounces of contained gold.

The copper equivalent cut-off grade used in the calculation of the mineral resource estimate was determined using US$2.00 per lb. copper, US$800 per oz. gold and US$12.00 per lb molybdenum.

The Taca Taca property contains a large Andean type porphyry copper hydrothermal system that has generated supergene and hypogene copper, molybdenum and gold mineralization. Other mineralization on the property includes remnant bodies of oxide/supergene deposits within the leached cap of the porphyry; gold-copper quartz veins to the north and west of the porphyry, and exotic copper oxide mineralization to the east and southeast beneath the Salar de Arizaro. Taca Taca lies along the western edge of the salar, the largest dry salt lake in the country. A surface molybdenum anomaly also defines the Taca Taca system.

Shares of Lumina Copper closed 38¢ or nearly 3% higher at $15.10 per share,  a new 52-week high.