NGEx hits 6.8% copper at Argentina’s Lunahuasi

NGEx Minerals (TSX: NGEX; US-OTC: NGXXF) reported new high-grade drill results from its Lunahuasi copper-gold-silver project in Argentina that bode well for a first resource. The stock soared.

Hole DPDH059 cut 335 metres grading 2.25% copper, 2.17 grams gold per tonne and 27.6 grams silver from about 409 metres depth, NGEx said Monday in a statement. This included about 20 metres of 6.83% copper, 15.64 grams gold and 82.3 grams silver from about 472 metres downhole, and a 1.5-metre-long bonanza sample of 21.65% copper.

The drilling update “reinforces Lunahuasi as a large-scale, high-grade copper-gold system with an expanding footprint and strong resource upside potential,” Desjardins Capital Markets mining analyst Bryce Adams said Monday in a note.

NGEx shares jumped 12% to $24.69 Monday morning in Toronto as wider markets surged on a U.S.-Iran talks, boosting the company’s market value to about $5.4 billion (US$3.9 billion). The stock has traded between $10.15 and $32.41 in the past year.

Strong intervals

Other results also demonstrated strong copper intervals. Hole DPDH056 cut 294 metres of 1.87% copper from 433 metres downhole, including 8 metres of 14.09% copper, 4.06 grams gold and 87.1 grams silver from 553 metres depth, while DPDH058 cut about 36 metres of 2.77% copper, 3.3 grams gold and 113.5 grams silver from 431 metres downhole.

Two of the holes targeted the project’s Saturn zone, while the third was drilled towards the northern edge of the deposit to investigate a potential new zone.

Lunahuasi “continues to establish itself as one of the largest high-grade copper-gold-silver discoveries globally,” National Bank Financial mining analyst Rabi Nizami said in a note.

The new holes are part of NGEx’s ongoing drill campaign, which has now reached nearly 23,000 metres. Buoyed by consistent high-grade results and strong drilling efficiency, the company has raised the program’s target to 30,000 metres from 25,000 previously, with completion expected in early May.

Emerging district

Lunahuasi is a relatively new discovery, first identified in 2023 within the emerging Vicuña district along the Chile–Argentina border. The project has quickly gained attention for delivering some of the highest copper and gold grades encountered in the district, which hosts major deposits such as Josemaria and Filo del Sol held in the Lundin Mining (TSX: LUN) and BHP (LSE, NYSE, ASX: BHP) joint venture, and NGEx’s Los Helados.

Since last year, drilling has outlined multiple mineralization styles, including high-sulphidation epithermal systems, porphyry copper-gold mineralization and high-grade gold veins. The mineralized footprint, which extends over more than 1 km in multiple directions, remains open.

Lunahuasi remains at an early stage, with NGEx yet to publish a maiden resource estimate. While no formal capital cost estimate has yet been published, comparable large-scale Andean copper developments in the Vicuña district typically require multi-billion-dollar investments and multi-year construction timelines.

Two weeks ago, the mining authority of Argentina’s San Juan province approved NGEx’s environmental impact statement  for the development of an exploration adit at Lunahuasi. NGEx is targeting the fourth quarter to start underground development, subject to timely receipt of the remaining permits.

NGEx is part of the Lundin group of companies, whose founding family controls miners such as Lundin Mining and Lundin Gold (TSX: LUG; US-OTC: LUGDF). Lundin family members own 36% of NGEX’s equity.