Three recently completed infill holes have confirmed the presence of a high-grade copper core at the Williams Creek oxide deposit of equal partners Thermal Energy (ASE) and Western Copper Holdings, an affiliate of Teck (TSE). The property is 140 miles northwest of Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory and is being evaluated for its open pit, heap leach potential. Preliminary reserves were last reported at 16.3 million tons grading 1.15% copper at a cutoff grade of 0.6%.
The three recent holes were drilled to confirm the potential of a high-grade copper zone within the main deposit as well as provide fresh samples for further metallurgical testing. Assays from one of the recently completed holes are as follows: From-To Width Copper Gold Hole(ft.) (ft.) oxide% (oz/ton) 90-1 139-209 70 0.39 0.004 209-241 32 1.24 0.009 241-333 92 2.40 0.033 139-333 194 1.48 0.019
According to Thermal, hole 90-1 was drilled about 150 ft. above a previous intersection that yielded 1.93% copper and 0.03 oz. gold per ton over a width of 165 ft. (true width 134 ft).
Assays for two other recent holes, drilled to the south of 90-1, are still awaited. Further diamond drilling to define the grade and limits of the deposit will be done next year, the company said.
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