USA — Alderan Resources Limited (ASX: AL8) has announced plans to commence a Stage 1 drilling program at its New Years copper prospect in the Cactus copper-gold district, Utah, during the first week of September 2024.
The program will consist of three holes totalling 340 metres, aimed at verifying past drill intersections from 1964 and 2002.
The New Years prospect is part of the historically productive Cactus mining district, which reported production of 1.27 million tonnes at 2.07 per cent copper and 0.33 g/t gold between 1905 and 1919.
Previous drilling at New Years yielded promising results, including:
- Hole NY-6: 13.7m @ 2.32% Cu within 19.8m @ 1.67% Cu from 22.9m downhole
- Hole NY-2: 10.7m @ 1.52% Cu within 27.4m @ 0.85% Cu from surface
- Hole NYM-1: 10.7m @ 1.60% Cu and 4.6m @ 1.3% Cu within 42.7m @ 0.80% Cu from surface
New Years shares geological similarities with the historical Cactus and Comet copper-gold mines, featuring a coincident magnetic low anomaly within the same northwest-southeast magnetic low corridor.
The prospect boasts a 400m x 300m pXRF soil anomaly grading up to 0.33 per cent copper, along with three newly identified anomalies on the sampling grid.
Scott Caithness, Managing Director of Alderan, highlighted the potential for both oxide and primary copper mineralisation at New Years, noting that the depth of oxidation extends irregularly to over 42 metres.
Alderan’s exploration strategy extends beyond the New Years prospect.
The company’s 3-D magnetic inversion modelling has identified twelve new Cactus ‘look-a-like’ magnetic anomalies in the district.
Additionally, 3-D modelling of the Cactus and Comet deposits suggests that mineralisation remains open and potentially more extensive than historically mined.
A Stage 2 drilling program, contingent on Stage 1 results, is planned to extend mineralisation and test geophysical targets at New Years.
This phase will require additional permitting following archaeological inspections of proposed drill sites.
As Alderan Resources prepares to commence drilling, the company remains optimistic about the potential of the New Years prospect and the broader Cactus district.
The results of this program could significantly impact the company’s future exploration activities in the region.
