Project operator Minera Teck S.A. de C.V. (Teck), a 100% owned subsidiary of Teck Resources Ltd, has completed its first drilling campaign on Azure Minerals Ltd’s Alacrán project, located in the northern Mexican state of Sonora.
During the year, following the December 2016 decision to exercise its right to earn back an ownership interest in the Alacrán project, Teck carried out exploration comprising geological mapping, surface geochemical sampling and geophysical (IP and CSAMT) surveys, with most activities focused in the western half of the property. This work confirmed two high priority targets, which were tested by diamond drilling, with three rigs completing 11 holes totalling 4905 m.
The southern extension of the Loma Bonita epithermal silver-gold deposit towards Cerro San Simon was one area considered high priority. This 1 km long corridor was initially identified by Azure’s 2015 – 2016 exploration programs, and then refined by Teck’s exploration to define specific targets considered prospective for additional epithermal mineralisation.
The second area targeted was Cerro Colorado where an IP survey completed by Teck identified strong geophysical anomalies coincident with anomalous geochemistry in soil and rock chip samples, indicating potential for porphyry copper mineralisation.
Logging and sampling of these drill holes is nearing completion and Teck is expected to report results to Azure in February 2018. Teck has indicated that it will be continuing its exploration and will advise of its intended 2018 exploration program following evaluation of all results.