NGEx rises on high-grade copper-gold hits at Lunahuasi

Drilling at NGEx Minerals’ (TSXV: NGEX; US-OTC: NGXXF) Lunahuasi project in northwest Argentina has returned results as high as 22 metres grading 2.23% copper, 6.02 grams gold per tonne and 45.6 grams silver, the company reported Thursday. Shares rose.

That intercept, from 782 metres depth in hole DPDH033, included 8.4 metres at 0.27% copper, 2.55 grams gold and 39.1 grams silver; as well as 5.6 metres at 3.28% copper, 19.32 grams gold and 94.7 grams silver. The hole extended the deposit to the north by up to 50 metres, NGEx said.

The assays show Lunahuasi consists of an extensive network of vein-hosted high-sulphidation mineralization associated with a porphyry copper-gold system, NGEx president and CEO Wojtek Wodzicki said in a release.

“We also continue to intersect significant gold grades which confirm Lunahuasi as a very interesting gold project in addition to the copper and silver,” he said.

Confidence rising

The results provide increased confidence in the geological interpretation of Lunahuasi, though more drilling is needed to confirm the dimensions at the project, BMO Capital Markets analyst Rene Cartier said in a note.

Lunahuasi, in San Juan province on the border with Chile, sits in the emerging copper-gold hotspot Vicuña District, where BHP (NYSE, LSE, ASX: BHP) and Lundin Mining (TSX: LUN) hold their Filo del Sol and Josemaria joint venture projects under the Vicuna Corp arrangement. Lundin’s 70%-held Caserones copper-molybdenum mine is located just north of Lunahuasi. JX Advanced Metals holds 30%.

NGEx shares gained 3.6% to $12.48 apiece on Thursday morning in Toronto, for a market capitalization of $2.56 billion. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $7.82 to $14.91.

Deep, high-grade copper

Highlight hole DPDH034 cut 136 metres grading 2.13% copper, 0.67 gram gold and 28.6 grams silver from 564 metres depth; including 11 metres at 4.81% copper, 1.91 grams gold and 30.1 grams silver; and 7.1 metres grading 4.6% copper, 1.06 grams gold and 23.6 grams silver.

A third highlight hole, DPDH028, intersected 6 metres grading 6.18% copper, 39.11 grams gold and 129.2 grams silver from 504.1 metres depth; and 38 metres at 5.98% copper, 9.7 grams gold and 90.4 grams silver.

The assays are from the company’s third stage, 25,000-metre drill program, which will wrap early next month before winter arrives in the Andean region.