Kodiak Copper drills 242 m of 0.52% CuEq at MPD
2021-07-07 07:28 ET – News Release
Mr. Claudia Tornquist reports
KODIAK REPORTS INCREASE IN STRIKE LENGTH OF GATE ZONE FROM 125 M TO 800 M, INTERSECTS 242 M OF 0.52% CUEQ IN 575 M STEP-OUT
Kodiak Copper Corp. has provided the first drill results for the fully financed 30,000-metre 2021 drill program at the 100-per-cent-owned MPD copper-gold porphyry project in Southern British Columbia.
- Gate zone: 575-metre stepout to south
- The Gate zone discovery has been successfully expanded by six times its previous strike length from approximately 125 metres to approximately 800 metres in a north-south direction.
- New drill hole MPD 21-009 was a 575-metre stepout south of all other Gate drill collars, and intersected 87 metres of 0.51 per cent copper, 0.43 gram per tonne gold and 0.81 g/t silver (0.78 per cent copper equivalent (CuEq*)) within 242 metres of 0.38 per cent copper and 0.22 g/t gold (0.52 per cent CuEq*) and a broader 468-metre interval of 0.25 per cent Cu, 0.16 g/t Au and 0.51 g/t Ag (0.35 per cent CuEq*). See attached table.
- MPD 21-009 intersected the first high-grade bornite-dominated copper-gold-silver mineralization observed on the property, accompanied by strong, illite-kaolinite overprinting of potassic alteration. Alteration and mineralization suggest this is the highest temperature area of the Gate zone porphyry copper system drilled to date and may be located closer to a potential mineralization source than the original Gate zone discovery area.
- With over 15 drill holes completed by Kodiak to date, results suggest that the 1.2-kilometre-long copper-in-soil target in this area is underlain by a significant copper-gold-silver porphyry system.
Chris Taylor, chairman of Kodiak, said: « With a six-fold increase in its drill-confirmed strike length to over 800 metres, and the identification of high-temperature bornite-rich copper mineralization, the Gate zone has growing similarities to other large scale copper porphyry systems in British Columbia. In particular, recent mineralization and alteration discoveries have similarities to the Red Chris deposit where Newcrest Mining Ltd. recently acquired a 70-per-cent interest. Like the Gate zone at MPD, Red Chris has high-grade copper-gold-silver mineralization core with a broad lower grade halo. Grades at Red Chris are similar to many of the drill intervals reported from the Gate zone to date. »
Continuing drilling in Gate zone discovery area
- Stepout drilling has intersected a significantly enriched copper-gold system over 800 metres of strike length, 350-metre width, and to 850-metre depth. Drilling continues to demonstrate excellent continuity of porphyry mineralization at the Gate zone.
- New drill holes MPD-21-003, 004 and 006 were drilled southward between the original Gate zone discovery and the 575-metre stepout in drill hole MPD-21-009. All holes successfully intersected copper-gold-silver mineralization.
- Drill hole MPD-21-004 intersected 87 metres of 0.58 per cent Cu, 0.32 g/t Au and 3.33 g/t Ag (0.81 per cent CuEq*) within a broader 361.4-metre interval of 0.35 per cent Cu, 0.18 g/t Au and 1.50 g/t Ag (0.47 per cent CuEq*).
- Drill hole MPD-21-006 intersected 51 metres of 0.54 per cent Cu, 0.36 g/t Au and 2.77 g/t Ag (0.79 per cent CuEq*) within a broader 678.0-metre interval of 0.26% Cu, 0.11 g/t Au and 0.89 g/t Ag (0.34 per cent CuEq*).
- Drill hole MPD-21-003 intersected 72 metres of 0.39 per cent Cu, 0.09 g/t Au and 1.23 g/t Ag (0.46 per cent CuEq*) within a broader 546-metre interval of 0.12 per cent Cu, 0.04 g/t Au and 0.48 g/t Ag (0.15 per cent CuEq*).
- Stepout drilling will continue to systematically evaluate the Gate zone copper-in-soil anomaly, which lies central to a regional magnetic low spanning three kilometres. The company also plans to explore for possible connections between the Gate zone into the Man target area which is located an additional one kilometre to the south within the same regional magnetic low.
Claudia Tornquist, president and chief executive officer of Kodiak, said: « We are delighted with the 2021 drill results to date. This is a big step forward, validating our thesis that MPD has the potential to host a major porphyry system. We have still only tested a portion of the target area defined by the copper-in-soil anomaly that is related to the Gate zone mineralization. We are also looking forward to further exploration along the underlying three-kilometre-long magnetic trend that extends all the way to the Man area which has historical copper in trenches and shallow drill holes. With two drill rigs turning now we also plan to turn our attention to other, equally promising target areas such as Dillard in the second half of this year. »
Stepout to north of Gate discovery area
- Two stepout drill holes, MPD-21-001 and 002, were collared 70 metres north of the original Gate zone discovery. While the centre of the porphyry system is interpreted to occur to the south, the company must also define the outer margins of the copper mineralization in all directions.
- Both drill holes intersected wide intervals of lower grade copper mineralization, with propylitic alteration (epidote pyrite and/or chalcopyrite) typical of the outer envelope of larger porphyry systems. These holes represent the northernmost intercepts of the wider envelope of porphyry-related mineralization at Gate.
- New drill hole MPD-21-001 intersected a broad zone of 517.5 metres of 0.10 per cent Cu, 0.02 g/t Au and 0.35 g/t Ag (0.11 per cent CuEq*).
- New drill hole MPD-21-002 also intersected a wide zone of 537 metres of 0.15 per cent Cu, 0.04 g/t Au and 0.57 g/t Ag (0.18 per cent CuEq*).
WEIGHTED ASSAY INTERVALS FOR HOLES MPD-21-001 TO MPD-21-004, MPD-21-006 AND MPD-21-009
Hole ID From m To m Int.** m Cu % Au g/t Ag g/t CuEq %*
MPD-21-009 245 713 468 0.25 0.16 0.51 0.35
includes 414 656 242 0.38 0.22 0.63 0.52
includes 434 614 180 0.43 0.27 0.67 0.6
and includes 446 533 87 0.51 0.43 0.81 0.78
MPD-21-006 143 821 678 0.26 0.11 0.89 0.34
includes 323 686 363 0.29 0.16 1.19 0.39
includes 436.9 515 78.2 0.37 0.21 1.4 0.51
includes 623 674 51 0.54 0.36 2.77 0.79
and includes 737 821 84 0.4 0.08 0.5 0.46
MPD-21-004 184.8 546.2 361.4 0.35 0.18 1.5 0.47
includes 320 527 207 0.47 0.27 2.06 0.66
includes 326 413 87 0.58 0.32 3.33 0.81
and includes 440 494 54 0.53 0.31 1.24 0.73
MPD-21-003 102 648 546 0.12 0.04 0.48 0.15
includes 444 648 204 0.23 0.05 0.74 0.27
includes 498 648 150 0.28 0.06 0.86 0.32
and includes 576 648 72 0.39 0.09 1.23 0.46
MPD-21-002 150 687 537 0.15 0.04 0.57 0.18
includes 306 687 381 0.18 0.04 0.68 0.21
includes 434.7 633 198.4 0.21 0.05 0.86 0.25
and includes 453 603 150 0.24 0.06 0.96 0.29
MPD-21-001 86 603.5 517.5 0.1 0.02 0.35 0.11
includes 121.9 179 57.1 0.12 0.03 0.31 0.14
includes 359 454.9 95.9 0.17 0.03 0.5 0.2
and includes 556.4 603.5 47.1 0.12 0.03 0.35 0.14
* Copper equivalent grades (CuEq) are for comparative purposes only. Calculations are uncut and recovery
is assumed to be 100 per cent as no metallurgical data are available. Metal prices of $4.25 (U.S.) per
pound copper, $1,800 (U.S.)/oz gold and $26 (U.S.)/oz silver, using the formula: CuEq per cent is equal
to Cu grade plus (Au price multiplied by Au grade plus Ag price multiplied by Ag grade) divided by 31.104
divided by (Cu price multiplied by 22.046).
** Intervals are downhole drilled core intervals. Drilling data to date are insufficient to determine true
width of mineralization.
The Gate zone was discovered in 2019 and the 2020 drill campaign extended the Gate zone with a total of 6,698 metres drilled in nine holes. Drilling in 2021 will continue to focus on expanding the copper-gold mineralization at the Gate zone through stepout drilling along the kilometre-long copper-in-soil anomaly. The 2021 drill program of up to 30,000 metres will also test additional analogous porphyry targets such as Dillard that demonstrate strong potential for similar copper-gold porphyry mineralization.
Drill holes MPD-21-001 and 002 were drilled westward from the first 2021 drill set up located 70 metres north of last year’s drilling. Holes MPD-21-003 to 006 were drilled to test the Gate zone mineralization south and southeast from a previously approved site (MPD-21-005 was lost before target depth). Hole MPD-21-009 was drilled from a third pad located 575 metres south of the second set-up.
The company recently received an amendment to its current area-based exploration permit authorizing expanded exploration activity and multiple new drill sites to 2026. Work will now focus on infill drilling at Gate and additional high-priority targets across the MPD property. Plans for 2021 also include geotechnical studies, prospecting, and geophysical, geochemical and environmental surveying.
MPD is a large, consolidated land package (14,716 hectares with the recent Axe acquisition) located near several operating mines in the southern Quesnel terrane, British Columbia’s primary copper-gold-producing belt. The project is located midway between the towns of Merritt and Princeton, with year-round accessibility and excellent infrastructure nearby.
Webinar
Kodiak will host a webinar to discuss the company’s recent results and future exploration plans. The webinar will take place on Wednesday, July 7, at 9 a.m. PST/12 p.m. EST. Management will be available to answer questions following the presentation.
To join the webinar, please go on-line.
Quality assurance/quality control procedures
NQ size core was split and sampled over approximately three-metre intervals. All core samples were sent to ALS Canada Ltd. in North Vancouver, B.C., for preparation and analysis. ALS meets all requirements of International Standards ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and ISO 9001:2015 for analytical procedures. Samples were analyzed using ALS’s fire assay fusion method (Au-AA24) with an AA finish for gold; and by a 33-element four-acid digest ICP-AES analysis (ME-ICP61) with additional analysis for ore grade elements (ME-OG62) and ore grade Cu (Cu-OG62). In addition to ALS Laboratory quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) protocols, Kodiak implements an internal QA/QC program that includes the insertion of sample blanks, duplicates and standards in the field.
Jeff Ward, PGeo, vice-president of exploration and the qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release. Kodiak believes historic results referenced herein to be from reliable sources using industry standards at the time. However, the company has not independently verified, or cannot guarantee, the accuracy of this historic information.
About Kodiak Copper Corp.
Kodiak is focused on its 100-per-cent-owned copper porphyry projects in Canada and the United States. The company’s most advanced asset is the MPD copper-gold porphyry project in the prolific Quesnel trough in south-central British Columbia, Canada, where the company made a discovery of high-grade mineralization within a wide mineralized envelope in 2020. Kodiak also holds the Mohave copper-molybdenum-silver porphyry project in Arizona, near the world-class Bagdad mine. Kodiak’s porphyry projects have both been historically drilled and present known mineral discoveries with the potential to hold large-scale deposits.
Kodiak’s founder and chairman is Chris Taylor, who is well known for his gold discovery success with Great Bear Resources. Kodiak is also part of Discovery Group led by John Robins, one of the most successful mining entrepreneurs in Canada.