Loyal Metals (ASX: LLM) has intercepted a high-grade copper-gold-silver zone in initial drilling at the historical Highway Reward mine in Queensland.
Assays from the first two drill holes targeting the eastern wall of the open pit confirmed a large, thick, near-surface zone with strong continuity and multiple high-grade copper-gold lenses within a broad system exceeding 100 metres in true width.
The first hole – approximately 40m from the open pit wall – intersected the zone at 100m vertical depth and returned a best copper equivalent (CuEq) assay of 145m at 1.50% CuEq (0.58% copper, 0.73 grams per tonne gold and 7g/t silver from 176m), including 17m at 3.15% CuEq (2.03% copper, 0.93g/t gold and 6.9g/t silver from 199m) and 6m at 4.28% CuEq (3.32% copper, 0.75g/t gold and 8.3g/t silver from 314m).
Loyal also discovered a shallow, zinc-rich, massive sulphide-polymetallic zone approximately 80m from surface in the same hole, returning 17m at 2.72% CuEq (0.48% copper, 0.31g/t gold, 35.3g/t silver, 1.5% lead and 4.9% zinc from 148m) including 2m at 10.93% CuEq (1.41% copper, 0.84g/t gold, 123.4g/t silver, 4.96% lead and 25.8% zinc from 150m).
Bulk Mining Development
Loyal drilled a second hole from an opposing 45-degree angle in the same broad body 50m from the open pit wall, returning 86m at 2.34% CuEq (1.17% copper, 0.95g/t gold and 7g/t silver from 199m).
This included sections of 14m at 4.35% CuEq (0.03% copper, 3.84g/t gold and 13.5g/t silver from 212m), 11m at 4.83% CuEq (4.22% copper, 0.44g/t gold and 6.5g/t silver from 255m), and 4m at 8.69% CuEq (7.41% copper, 0.97g/t gold and 12.3g/t silver from 256m).
The thickness, continuity and shallow depth of mineralisation intersected in both holes supports the potential for a large, bulk mining development in the eastern wall and beneath the existing Highway Reward pit.
Loyal sees this presenting a “materially different opportunity” to historical narrow-lens mining.
Broad and Coherent System
Managing director Adam Ritchie said the initial results confirmed that Highway Reward hosts a broad and coherent system with a level of continuity not fully appreciated during past mining.
“Intersecting thick mineralisation in the wall and directly beneath the existing pit supports our view that this system has meaningful scale and significant untested potential at depth and along strike,” he said.
Highway Reward is one of the world’s highest-grade copper mines, with past production totalling 3.65 million tonnes at 5.7% copper and 260,000 tonnes at 4.5g/t gold.
Loyal acquired the mine in July as part of a strategic plan to broaden its critical minerals focus into copper.
The company is looking to capitalise on a 680% increase in copper prices and 1,256% increase in gold prices since the mine’s 1997 feasibility study.