BASE METALS SPECIAL — USMX search uncovers copper

A gold exploration effort in Mexico has turned up a number of base metal prospects that will be further explored by USMX (USMX-N) or its joint-venture partners.

The list includes Las Rastras in Sonora state, a project USMX staked in 1995 to cover an area prospective for gold and copper mineralization. A gold target was drilled with negative results; however, the project was revived when Teck (TEK-T) approached the company seeking a joint venture.

A deal was signed, allowing the major to earn a 60% interest by paying US$330,000 to USMX and spending US$2 million on exploration. Teck has since identified a potential porphyry copper target, which it intends to explore this year by a combination of geophysics and drilling.

In Chihuahua state, Phelps Dodge (PD-N) is testing the Samalayuca project, described as a major, quartzite-hosted, copper-silver property 30 miles south of El Paso, Texas. USMX had previously explored the property, encountering significant mineralization in shallow holes along several kilometres of strike length. The company viewed the property as having major size potential that would be time-consuming and extensive to test. Early this year, it signed the deal with Phelps Dodge, which plans to drill targets outlined in the current geophysical program.

Meanwhile, USMX continues to explore its Amargosa project in Chihuahua state, having already defined a mineralized breccia pipe believed to represent “metal leakage” from a buried massive sulphide deposit. The company intends to explore the property on its own until a joint-venture partner is found.

The company has consolidated its land position in the region and plans to drill a new target area this year. USMX also plans to seek a partner to explore its holdings in the Sierra Mojada district, a historic base and precious metals camp in Coahuila state. The project is described as “an attractive base metal and silver target that is poorly understood and under-explored.”

USMX’s exploration efforts in the Americas are mostly focused on gold. The company turned out 55,388 oz. of the yellow metal last year, at a cash cost of US$289.