Copper and silver assay results from drilling in Botswana’s Kalahari Copper Belt are ‘encouraging’ according to Sandfire Resources.
Sandfire Resources Ltd., a global mining firm, has announced encouraging copper-silver (Cu-Ag) assay results from recent and ongoing drilling at its A1 prospect, located 20 km north-east of the Motheo Copper Mine in the Kalahari Copper Belt (KCB) of Botswana.
Copper and silver and Sandfire’s long-term plans
The international and diversified sustainable mining company is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX:SFR). The Motheo Copper Mine represents the foundation for Sandfire’s long-term growth plans in Botswana. It is expected to generate about 1,500 jobs during construction and 600 full-time jobs during operation.
Motheo will form the center of a new long-life copper production hub in the central portion of the Kalahari Copper Belt, where Sandfire has an extensive ground-holding spanning Botswana and Namibia, according to Karl Simich, CEO, MD and Executive Director of Sandfire Resources.
The board approved the commercial development of Motheo in December 2020. The final investment decision was based on the positive results of a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) that outlined an initial 12.5-year operation on an initial Base Case 3.2 Mtpa processing capacity and open pit development of the T3 Deposit.
1.8 km strike
Drilling to date has demonstrated the presence of mineralization over a strike extent of at least 1.8 km, trending northeast-southwest along the A1 Dome. Importantly, the mineralization intersected in the approximately 200 m spaced drilling completed to date remains open to the north-east, and up- and down-dip.
The copper-silver mineralization at A1 is interpreted to be hosted in a thrust-related vein system, located near-surface at the center of a periclinal anticline within the D’Kar Formation, a similar geological setting to the T3 and A4 Deposits.
The recent drilling success at A1 demonstrates the substantial exploration potential of Sandfire’s Kalahari Copper Belt landholding, where it is developing an extensive pipeline of exploration opportunities within haulage distance of the new Motheo Production Hub.
Further work expected at A1 following completion of the current program includes testing of a potential ~4km strike extension of the mineralized horizon to the north-east and drilling to test the potential for deeper NPF contact-style mineralization.
Data collection
Sandfire continues to collect high-quality geophysical data to further develop its understanding of the basin architecture in the Kalahari Copper Belt and incorporate these learnings into the company’s regional exploration model.
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