Caerus Mineral Resources provides exploration update
Published by Jessica Casey,
Editor
Global Mining Review,
Caerus Mineral Resources, an exploration and resource development company focused on developing mineral resources in Europe to supply the global ‘clean energy’ drive, has provided an update on the exploration work carried out in Cyprus.
N. Mathiatis drilling
Drilling began on 14 April 2021 ahead of schedule and will continue until a systematic grid of drillholes has been completed over the N. Mathiatis dumps. The dumps, estimated to be over 4 million t of material, are being drilled to test for copper and gold mineralisation remaining following the historic mining of the N. Mathiatis pyrite orebody.
Dumps located around the rim of the former opencast already display visible copper oxides in various locations together with copper sulfate leachate emanating from the base in some areas. The drilling programme is designed to broadly define areas within the dumps that contain copper mineralisation for more detailed follow-up, including the collection of bulk samples for metallurgical test work.
Award of new licences
The Mines Department of Cyprus has confirmed that the company’s applications for the Kapedes and Vrechia (Mala) Extension Licences have been accepted. Caerus will now await the formal granting of the licences, which is expected to take several months but will commence reconnaissance geological mapping and sampling in the interim.
The Kapedes Licence covers approximately 10.2 km2 and is located 25 km west of Nicosia. The company is targeting volcanogenic massive sulfide mineralisation (VMS) within the license and residual material at the old Kokkinochoma Mine. The Kokkinochoma Mine produced only 55 000 y of ore before closing prematurely whereas the nearby Kambia and Kokkinonero Mines produced more than 1.6 y tonnes of ore combined. To date there has been no modern exploration over the Kapedes Licence.
The Vrechia (Mala) Extension Licence covers an area of approximately 10 km2 and has been acquired to secure prospective ground extending from the company’s existing Vrechia Licence. Prospective geology, geobotanical anomalies and structures typically associated with VMS-type mineralisation have been noted along strike of the company’s current Vrechia Licence that hosts the former Mala opencast pyrite mine. The Mala Project comprises a partially drilled copper-gold sulfide body located close to surface that represents an extension of the mined-out Mala orebody together with dumps and tailings totalling approximately 1 million t thought to contain recoverable copper and gold.
Martyn Churchouse, CEO of Caerus Mineral Resources, commented: “Drilling at N. Mathiatis will provide critical information that will allow us to direct our future efforts to those parts of the dumps that contain recoverable copper and gold mineralisation. The acquisition of the two new licences is consistent with our strategy of maintaining a good mix of brownfield and greenfield exploration, giving us access to dumps, stockpiles and remnant mineralisation generated by former producing mines whilst also providing the potential upside for new discoveries.”
Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/exploration-development/15042021/caerus-mineral-resources-provides-exploration-update/
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