Hudbay may no longer be drilling at 777 mine, but exploration elsewhere in the region is plowing ahead amid optimism.
Callinex Mines plans to launch a 12-hole drilling campaign at its Pine Bay Project by Jan. 21, following up on promising results discovered last year.
The goal of this year’s exploration, the company said, is to identify additional high-grade volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralization rich in copper, zinc, gold and silver.
Callinex said it will focus its campaign on areas that have the potential for sizeable VMS deposits based on the latest geological, geophysical and geochemical interpretations.
“I am pleased that the collective efforts of our technical team has identified several highly prospective targets within favourable geological units,” said Max Porterfield, president and CEO of the Vancouver-based Callinex. “Furthermore, the ability to complete a fully funded 10,000-metre drilling campaign this year is a testament to Callinex’s prospective project portfolio, strong technical team and supportive shareholder base. We are excited to commence drilling in the near-term to test targets that have potential to host a large VMS deposit.”
The company expects to drill four holes totalling about 2,300 metres in the Sourdough deposit, part of the broader Pine Bay Project, to follow up on newly identified VMS mineralization and test additional targets generated since drilling last summer.
Another eight drill holes totalling about 5,000 metres are planned in the northern Pine Bay area.
That work will proceed adjacent to three “significant” VMS deposits that occupy the upper margins of what is known as the Baker Patton Felsic Complex (BPFC), Callinex said.
The BPFC is one of the largest, most highly altered and relatively underexplored felsic volcanic complexes known in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt, according to the company.
