Explorator Resources (EXO-V, EXRAF-O) is about to begin exploration on the newly acquired Venus block on its 11-sq.-km El Espino-Venus project in Chile, where nine small copper-gold mines are in operation.
Together, the mines produce 3,000 tonnes of ore per month and are operated under lease agreements with the previous owners. The operating agreements will expire within two years.
The Venus portion of the project, which was acquired last May, lies north of El Espino. Venus is along strike of the Main copper zone on El Espino, where 25,000 metres of drilling have been completed, including past work by Teck Cominco (TCK.B-T, TCK-N).
Explorator has begun a detailed mapping and sampling program and a ground magnetic survey on Venus to better define targets before drilling. The company already has six drill rigs on the property, which means there will be no delays once it’s time to start drilling, says Explorator president and CEO David O’Connor.
“We are keen to begin drilling as there has been no modern exploration in the area, despite it being well-known for its rich copper-gold mines,” said O’Connor in a statement.
A National Instrument 43-101 report on the acquisition of the Venus properties found that the copper grade of the mine dumps sampled ranged from 1.63% copper to 29.11% copper. The report said these numbers reflect the relative grade of the veins and possibly the degree of high-grading practised by local miners.
Gold samples graded up to 41.3 grams gold per tonne, with 25% of samples having gold values greater than 1 gram gold per tonne.
The company reported that the possibility of further copper-gold mineralization in shallowly dipping mantos on Venus, as found on the El Espino block, must be considered speculative, while the steeply dipping mineralized structures outcropping at Venus are up to tens of metres wide and hundreds of metres long and may represent additional mineralizing feeder zones to those found at El Espino.
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