Emma Davies

December 18, 2024

Stuff these in your stocking: 10 red hot copper low caps. Pic via Getty Images.

• Copper price could hit US$17,000/t by 2025 as demand soars
• Analysts reckon the commodity could outperform this decade
• Here are 10 stocks with a market cap under $15m on the hunt for copper

Demand for copper is going gangbusters. The consensus is that we’ll see big shortages for the red metal due to rising demand for poles and wires to service renewables, electric vehicles, urbanisation and AI.

By 2050, BHP (ASX:BHP) predicts copper demand will rise 70% to 50Mt, with the energy transition accounting for 23% of demand and digital applications making up 6%.

Traditional uses of copper (replacement demand, urbanisation) will account still for 71%, (down from 92% today).

On the pricing front, back in September, the Bank of America’s independent analyst lifted its price target for the metal beyond US$10,000/t for 2025.

And by the time October rolled round, the price had powered past that magical US$10,000/t mark thanks to China’s stimulus announcement in October.

But we could see prices surge even further, since producers Chile and Peru have stagnated and are looking down the barrel of long approval timeframes and the supply side looks set to struggle to catch up to demand.

US$17,000/t is the eye-popping copper price Fitch’s BMI Commodity Insights thinks we’re going to see by 2033.

That would outstrip historical records by around US$6000/t, ushering a new copper-plated age for the mining industry.

At the time of writing the three-month LME copper contract was priced at US$9052.50.

BMI’s latest copper outlook note suggests we could see a seasonal end-of-year rally, but that’s actually nothing to get too excited about, because the copper price has surged on the final five trading days of the year, before falling on the last trading day of the year for the past nine years in a row.

But back to that supply lag, discovery rates have also slowed. According to analysis by S&P Global, just 14 deposits of 500,000t copper or more have been discovered in the past decade, just 3.5% of the total.

4.2Mt alone have been added by significant deposits discovered since 2019, with exploration spending still 34% below its 2012 peak last year – despite the recognised need for new copper discoveries to fuel the energy transition and growth of data centres.

By 2030, ANZ thinks copper demand will hit 38.1Mt, up from usage rates the International Copper Study Group thinks will add up to 27.8Mt in 2025, thanks to expanding wind and solar infrastructure in China.

All of that equates to a bullish copper outlook for a commodity that independent analysis suggests will outperform in the years ahead.

So, now that we’ve established the outlook, let’s have a squiz at some sub-$15m market cap juniors on the hunt for the next big copper discovery.

 

10 copper explorers under $15m

 

Alma Metals (ASX:ALM)

Market cap: $9.3m

The company owns 51% of the Briggs copper project joint venture in Queensland, having satisfied stage 2 earn-in requirements (namely completing a bunch of drilling) back in October.

The project boasts a 415Mt resource at 0.25% copper and 31ppm molybdenum, with more than 1Mt of contained copper.

Grades like those are more than economic in many porphyry copper mines being operated today in places like Canada and Peru, but Alma is also finding higher-grade pockets in drilling close to surface.

Plus, the project is just 60km from the deep-water port of Gladstone, Queensland and close to multiple high-power voltage power lines, a heavy haulage railway, gas pipelines and major roads.

The plan is to move to Stage 3 of the earn-in to increase to a 70% stake through additional project expenditure of $10m by June 30, 2031.

In the meantime, a resource update to increase confidence to the indicated category is in the works, which will set the scene for a scoping study.

 

Stavely Minerals (ASX:SVY)

Market cap: $10.8m

The company is looking for copper at its namesake Stavely project in Victoria, specifically around historic intercepts at the Junction prospect, which included 35m at 3.44% copper and 26g/t silver from 24m to end-of-hole.

Diamond drilling has recently returned results including:

• 14m at 3.24% Cu, 34.5g/t Ag from 34m, including 8m at 4.62% Cu and 49.5g/t Ag from 34m, and 2m at 6.47% Cu and 59.5g/t Ag from 36m;
• 48m at 1.60% Cu and 14.8g/t Ag from 2m including 8m at 2.53% Cu and 26.1g/t Ag from 34m;
• 40m at 1.59% Cu, 13.0g/t Ag from 10m including 6m at 3.79% Cu and 18.8g/t Ag from 24m; and
• 1m at 5.20% Cu and 34.2g/t Ag from 60m.

Diamond drilling is also underway at the Thursday’s Gossan prospect.

 

Culpeo Minerals (ASX:CPO)

Market cap: $4.8m

This year the company made a 454m at 0.93% copper equivalent discovery at its Lana Corina project and has recently acquired the Fortuna project, which hosts nine promising exploration targets.

Both projects are situated in the Coquimbo region of Chile and contain significant outcropping high-grade copper mineralisation which offers multiple walk-up drill targets.

There’s a bunch of world-class copper mines in the country – the largest producer in the world. Coquimbo alone boasts major mines such as the 350,000tpa Los Pelambres, owned by Antofagasta – about the same output as BHP’s (ASX:BHP) entire South Australian copper division.

Back in October, surface trenching at the El Quillay South prospect at Fortuna turned up thick intersections of copper including a best sample of 46m at 0.9% CuEq.

Drilling is going to kick off at the Vista Montana prospect, along with a litho-geochemistry survey at the La Florida prospect and reconnaissance exploration of high-priority areas within the Fortuna project.

 

Eagle Mountain Mining (ASX:EM2)

Market cap: $6m

Last month EM2 announced it had relinquish ownership of less than 20% of its acreage over the Oracle Ridge project in Arizona, USA, but still holds the tailings dam and private/patented claims critical for any future restart activities.

The company is now focused on exploring its Silver Mountain and Wedgetail projects – Wedgetail basically being a rebranded area surrounding Oracle Ridge.

At Silver Mountain, the company has received drill permits over the Scarlet area, targeting host large-scale porphyry-style mineralisation.

Notably, Silver Mountain is on the Laramide Arc, a northwest-southeast trending geological feature that hosts world-class porphyry copper mines such as Freeport-McMoRan’s Bagdad and Rio Tinto’s Resolution deposit. Surface samples has already returned high-grade assays including 64g/t gold, 445g/t silver and 15% lead across a 0.5m vein.

The company has also identified the potential sale of existing tailings from Wedgetail following a study by technology provider Auxilium Technology Group, which found they are benign and can be made into various marketable products.

This opens a unique and non-dilutive funding pathway for EM2, with the ~1Mt of tailings’ high carbonate content make them suitable for use as an additive or filler for a variety of cemented products, including drywall boards, high strength concrete, mortar and road base.

A Phase 3 study has started to produce enough test material for potential customers to assess its suitability for their needs and establish product pricing.

 

Helix Resources (ASX:HLX)

Market cap: $13m

Earlier this year, HLX found prospective ‘Tritton-style copper-gold’ at the Collerina copper trend, part of its Eastern Group Tenements near Nyngan in NSW.

It’s got a whopping chunk of land that covers 1570km2 directly south and along strike of Aeris Resources’ (ASX:AIS) Tritton processing facility and several operating copper-gold mines.

Some 600 augur sample assays confirmed both copper and gold mineralisation and the explorer said it was continuing infill and extension augur sampling, AC drilling and detailed assessment of the anomaly to delineate future targets.

“The results demonstrate this is a major prospective zone and the signatures we are observing in the data are consistent with signatures for Tritton-style copper gold deposits,” Helix MD Kylie Prendergast said back in August.

The company also recently made a deal with Legacy Minerals Holdings (ASX:LGM) to farm-in for an 80% interest in their Central Cobar tenement by spending $2.8m.

 

Pan Asia Metals (ASX:PAM)

Market cap: $11.7m

Another explorer with a Chilean copper play, PAM recently reported up to 8.9% copper (and 50ppm silver) from rock chip sampling at its Rosario copper project – which is about 10km north of the El Salvador copper mine, which has been in operation since 1959.

Notably, greater than 50% of rock chips have copper values in excess of 0.10%, with an average grade of 2.06% copper and 12ppm silver. And 33% of rock chips have copper values in excess of 0.75%, with an average grade of 3.15% copper and 18ppm silver.

The company said the results are compelling and demonstrate the large scale nature of highly elevated copper across much of the Rosario project area.

“With grades up to 8.9% copper and 33/100 averaging 3.15% copper with a 0.75% copper cutoff, the rock chip results are compelling and support the work conducted by previous explorers,” PAM MD Paul Lock said in early December.

“The program yielded many rock chip samples with elevated copper values inherently associated with observed green (malachite) and blue (chrysocolla) secondary copper minerals as well as local copper sulphides.

“The recently reported expansion of PAM’s holdings at Rosario, with an additional ~61km2 in applications, positions PAM to capture extensions of the high grade trends at Rosario.”

Drill targets will be prioritised following collation of geochemical and IP results, with around 2,000m planned in early 2025.

PAM also recently entered into a binding capital commitment agreement (facility) with New York-based Global Emerging Markets Group for a four-year, $35m equity investment commitment which will provide the company with a reliable source of equity funding to see it through to a resource and pre-feasibilty study at the project.

 

Noronex (ASX:NRX)

Market cap: $5.4m

This copper junior has ASX giant South32 (ASX:S32) on board to find it some Kalahari copper belt discoveries in Namibia via a $15m earn-in and JV deal.

It owns one of the larger deposits in the Kalahari copper belt, the 10Mt at 1.3% Cu Witvlei project which is down the road a ways from Sandfire’s Motheo and the now Chinese-owned Khoemacau mine, together producing around 90,000t of copper a year and rising.

The company is currently exploring the Fiesta project, where a 5,000m drilling program is underway (funded by S32).

First assays from the first four RC holes have already returned up to 1.23% copper and 138g/t silver.

Once the program has wrapped up the rig will move on to test some promising targets in a completely undrilled geological belt at the Damara project, defined by a recent gravity survey.

Basement margins host major copper deposits in the Central African copper belt in Zambia and Congo, with the company of the belief that this geology could potentially also deliver new discoveries in the Kalahari copper belt.

Pic: Kalahari Copper Belt with Noronex tenement holding showing the Humpback-Damara licences subject to the new South32 earn-in agreement. Source: NRX

 

CuFe (ASX:CUF)

Market cap: $9.3m

The company hosts a combined 7.3Mt at its 1.7% Cu Gecko and Orlando copper-gold deposits in the NT.

And back in October, CuFe, Emmerson Resources (ASX:ERM) and Tennant Minerals (ASX:TMS) formed a strategic alliance to collaborate on their copper, gold and critical metals development opportunities in the Tennant Creek Region of the Northern Territory.

The aim is to investigate the potential for development of a single, multi-user processing facility for copper, gold and critical metals for their mineral resources and recent high-grade exploration discoveries in the region.

Basically, it would provide a shorter – and more economic – path to production should any of the companies make a discovery.

“We are pleased to have signed a strategic alliance agreement to investigate the potential for a single multi-user processing facility for copper, gold and critical metals for our mineral resources and others recent high-grade exploration discoveries in the Tennant Creek region of the Northern Territory,” CuFe executive director Mark Hancock said at the time.

“With the historical high-grade Orlando and Gecko deposits, which produced over 127,500t of copper and 232,000oz of gold, the remaining mineral resources form the backbone of the alliance, while the ability to also leverage from the recent high-grade discoveries by Tennant Minerals and Emmerson in the region provides a unique development opportunity.”

Map: Tennant Creek district showing the location of CuFe’s, Tennant Minerals’ and 100% Emmerson’s projects and area covered by Emmerson’s exploration JV (EEJV) with TCMG. Source: CUF

 

Anax Metals (ASX:ANX)

Market cap: $8.7m

Anglo American-backed Anax Metals holds an 80% interest in the previously producing Whim Creek copper project in WA where it’s targeting a low capex development thanks to a bunch of existing infrastructure.

Develop Global (ASX:DVP) holds the balance of the project, where previous studies on a restart of Whim Creek have indicated pre-production capital costs of A$71 million for an eight-year operation producing 55,000tpa of concentrate at AISC of A$3.28/lb, based on a reserve of 4.6Mt at 1.36% copper and 2.3% zinc.

Based on a copper price of US$9223/t, the project returned an NPV of $270 million and an IRR of 55%, with life-of-mine free cashflow forecast at $410 million.

At US$9900/t, the pre-tax NPV increases to $357 million with an IRR of 74%, while free cashflow would be around $520 million.

Whim Creek could become a Pilbara base metals hub. Anax is also working with Develop, GreenTech Metals (ASX:GRE) and Artemis Resources (ASX:ARV) with a view to process ore from their respective deposits nearby.

In September the company flagged that a review of historical exploration had identified several high-potential volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) drill targets at the Evelyn deposit – with RC drilling planned in the near-term.

 

AusQuest (ASX:AQD)

Market cap: $10.5m

This explorer has been around since 2003, and is in its eighth year as an exploration partner of choice under a strategic alliance agreement (SAA) with S32.

Under the SAA, South32 provides up to $US4.5 million in funding to earn up to a 70% interest in exploration projects (plus 10% on completing a pre-feasibility study) worked up by AusQuest, which receives a 15% fee.

South32 doesn’t take up what’s on offer under the SAA all the time and should it withdraw from a project, AusQuest assumes 100% ownership.

Implicit in all that is that the exploration projects forwarded to South32 to consider must have multi-billion dollar discovery potential.

There are currently five exploration projects managed by AusQuest which sit under the SAA umbrella including the Coober Pedy copper-gold project in South Australia’s iron-oxide copper-gold (IOCG) province  – home to BHP’s Olympic Dam, Carrapateena and Prominent Hill mines.

The plan is to conduct a large-scale induced polarisation survey next year to identify possible sulphide mineralisation ahead of drilling the best targets.

The company also holds the Cangallo project in Peru where copper-gold porphyries and manto copper targets will be drilled in the new year, with eight holes for ~2,500m planned.

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Alma Metals, Culpeo Minerals, Eagle Mountain Mining, Pan Asia Metals and CuFE are Stockhead advertisers, they  did not sponsor this article.

Special Report

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 3:00PM

Alma commits to stage-3 earn-in at the Briggs copper project where it can increase its interest to 70% through additional project expenditure. Pic: Getty Images

• Alma Metals has now satisfised stage-2 earn-in requirements at Briggs
• The company holds a 51% JV interest with potential to increase to 70%
• Infill drilling is ongoing at Briggs for inclusion in a resource update later this year

 

Special Report: Alma’s drilling efforts at the 415Mt Briggs copper project has proven successful as it completes Stage-2 earn-in requirements and commits to Stage-3.

 

The Briggs copper project boasts more than 1Mt of contained copper, just 60km from the deep-water port of Gladstone, QLD and close to multiple high-power voltage power lines, a heavy haulage railway, gas pipelines and major roads.

This infrastructure, coupled with a local skilled workforce and straightforward land ownership offer substantial benefits to the project’s economics.

Briggs currently contains 415Mt of ore at 0.25% copper and 31ppm molybdenum. Grades like those are more than economic in many porphyry copper mines being operated today in places like Canada and Peru.

But Alma is also finding higher grade pockets in drilling close to surface.

Drilling earlier this month uncovered a 276m intersection at 0.45% copper, driving progress toward a resource update and laying the groundwork for a scoping study later this year.

 

Stage-3 earn-in with Canterbury Resources 

ALM has informed JV partner Canterbury Resources (ASX:CBY) of its commitment to Stage 3 of the earn-in, where Alma can increase its interest to 70% through additional project expenditure of $10 million by June 30, 2031.

Upon ALM reaching a 70% interest, each party must fund its proportional share of future expenditure or dilute as per industry standard terms.

In June, the explorer commenced a core drilling program focused on testing and infill drilling in the southwest part of the large geochemical anomaly at the Briggs Central inferred resource.

This program will reduce drill spacing to 80m over a significant portion of the Briggs Central resource, enabling an updated mineral resource estimate that could potentially include indicated resources to support a scoping study later this year.

Growing tonnage and grade

“This milestone reflects our firm belief in the unique opportunity Briggs presents to develop a major copper project,” ALM managing director Frazer Tabeart said.

“Our ongoing drilling success continues to support our thesis of growing both tonnage and grade, further strengthening the project’s potential.

“As we continue to consolidate our ownership of Briggs, it’s important to note, this progress has been made possible with the support of many stakeholders, particularly our shareholders, our JV partner and the local landowners.”

Infill drilling continues at Briggs, targeting near-surface, higher-grade copper mineralisation to support a resource update and potentially a scoping study by year-end.

This article was developed in collaboration with Alma Metals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

SPECIAL REPORT

October 2, 2024

• Alma Metals flags more high-grade copper at Briggs project
• Company looking to update to indicated resources ahead of initiation of scoping study
• Further assays are expected in 3-4 weeks

Special Report: Alma Metals has reported more near-surface high grade results from core drilling at its Briggs copper project in Queensland, where over 1Mt of contained copper has been defined in inferred resources to date.

These latest assays were from the same section as the previous project best 24BRD0026 which intersected 276m @ 0.45% Cu from surface, and have highlighted wide intervals of higher copper grades from near surface, including:

• 159.3m at 0.40% copper and 21ppm molybdenum from 8.1m in hole 24BRD0028, including:
• 96.4m at 0.57% copper and 19ppm molybdenum from 20.5m, including
• 68m at 0.70% copper and 19ppm molybdenum from 28m ; and
• 82.3m at 0.26% copper and 31ppm molybdenum from 10.0m in hole 24BRD0027.

“These results continue to demonstrate the presence of significantly higher-grade copper zones close to surface within the Briggs resource, aligning with our strategy to define a higher overall resource grade,” Alma Metals (ASX:ALM) managing director Frazer Tabeart said.

Alma has hit high grades close to surface, boding well for early production plans in future mining scenarios. Pic: ALM

This drilling program is focused on testing and infill drilling the south-west part of the large geochemical anomaly, with the aim of supporting a revised resource estimate to potential indicated resources, which may in turn support a near-term scoping study.

The drilling was also aimed at testing for higher grades in the top 200m (from surface), reinforced by the most recent previous assay result of 276m at 0.45% copper from surface.

 

Aiming for higher resource grades

Assays for the next batch of two holes are expected in 3-4 weeks’ time, and drilling is expected to continue until late next quarter.

Samples from the drilling program will also provide material for metallurgical testwork, which will contribute to the scoping study for Briggs.

Briggs currently contains 415Mt of ore at 0.25% copper and 31ppm molybdenum. Grades like those are more than economic in many porphyry copper mines being operated today in places like Chile and Peru.

READ: Australian copper enters new era where scale is king

But if Alma can confirm the presence of higher grades closer to surface it can front-load earnings and really put the project at the head of the table when it comes to large Aussie copper development stories.

Tabeart added “These types of wide intervals at greater than 0.4% copper are a promising indication that Briggs may develop into a substantial porphyry copper project.”

Briggs contains pockets of high-grade copper where its potential is evident to the naked eye. Pic: ALM

Recent cap raising extends drilling

Funds from the company’s recent capital raising of $0.75m will be used to extend the current drilling program with a focus on better defining these higher-grade areas.

“With the continued support of our shareholders, we are now well positioned to extend follow-up drilling, targeting similar high-grade zones within and around the edges of the resource,” Tabeart said.

“This will further boost resource confidence and provide material for metallurgical testing as we advance the project.”

Importantly, under the joint venture agreement with Canterbury Resources, completion of the current drilling program will meet the expenditure requirements to complete Stage 2 of the Earn-In, and for the company’s interest to increase to 51%.

This article was developed in collaboration with Alma Metals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

JOSH CHIAT

September 24, 2024

• While the old adage says ‘grade is king’, that’s not always the case when it comes to copper
• Most copper is produced from low grade but large scale porphyries, largely in South America
• But Australia has the potential to host several of these deposits as future shortages have analysts predicting a sharp run up in copper prices

 

You’ve no doubt heard the phrase ‘grade is king’, and that’s been the case for a long time when it comes to Australian copper deposits.

Australia pales in comparison to world leaders like Chile and Peru when it comes to production of the red metal, a rare blind spot in a market known for its outright dominance in supplying a swag of metals including iron ore, gold and lithium.

By and large the most successful domestic operations have been high-grade volcanogenic massive sulphide discoveries like Sandfire Resources’ (ASX:SFR) DeGrussa, 29Metals’ (ASX:29M) Golden Grove and Metals Acquisition’s (ASX:MAC) CSA mine in Cobar.

Or they’ve been iron-oxide copper-gold deposits like BHP’s (ASX:BHP) 350,000tpa Copper South Australia assets (including the massive copper, gold and uranium deposit Olympic Dam) or Evolution Mining’s (ASX:EVN) Ernest Henry in Queensland.

But Sandfire’s DeGrussa is a case study for the double-edged sword that is high grade copper mines.

Discovered in a blind drill hole in 2009 and brought to market in 2012 grading upwards of 5% Cu, DeGrussa was enormously profitable and low cost to operate, living a grand life over a decade.

But mines like DeGrussa have obvious pitfalls. Given their relatively short mine lives, they rely on constant exploration success to remain viable, either underneath and adjacent to the deposit or at nearby satellites.

Sandfire, with the help of Kerry Harmanis’ Talisman Mining (ASX:TLM), found just one short-lived add-on called Monty and by the end of DeGrussa’s life had to resort to ‘Hail Mary’ drill holes in the hope of replicating its previous success, never a surefire exploration tactic. A hybrid solar power plant, the first of its kind when installed in 2016, was ripped up and decommissioned just eight years later.

Given the challenges the world faces finding the amount of copper it needs to supply technologies critical to the transition to renewable energy, these kinds of mines can’t be relied on to predictably fill the supply gap.

 

Porphyry giants

By contrast, the vast bulk of the world’s largest copper mines are actually porphyry in nature, which are lower in grade – often cutting off at grades as low as 0.2% Cu, a fifth of DeGrussa’s.

But they’re high in tonnage and dependable, often having lives that run into the decades and generations on opening, with resource growth from existing deposits historically exceeding that from new discoveries, demonstrating their potential to be expanded over time.

Generally they’re mined in large open pits or via bulk underground methods like block caving, where economies of scale make up for deficits in grade.

Though some exceptional orebodies run higher the average grade delivered by major producers of all kinds of copper are down from 1.2% to 0.72% in the past decade and reserve grades globally sit at an average of 0.4%.

 

That’s a function of them ageing and becoming harder to find, but also advancements in mining and processing technology that have opened up previously uneconomic resources. On the most extreme end of the spectrum, Boliden’s long-running Aitik mine in Sweden mines grades of less than 0.2% copper and 0.1g/t gold despite operating through often inhospitable winters.

The idea of pursuing scale over grade is also being seen in M&A, with BHP’s (ASX:BHP) C$4.1bn deal to acquire half of the Filo Del Sol and Josemaria JVs with Lundin Mining netting two assets in Argentina with grades of around 0.3% Cu.

Australian copper monsters

Two of Australia’s top copper producers are also in that vein.

Newmont Corporation (ASX:NEM) last year acquired Newcrest in a multi-billion dollar merger, largely for the purposes of procuring its enormous Cadia-Ridgeway mine in New South Wales near the country town of Orange.

Predominately known as a gold mine, Cadia delivered 597,000oz at costs of just US$45/oz in FY23. But it’s also Australia’s second biggest copper producer behind Olympic Dam, producing almost 100,000t in FY23.

Its head grades run at ~0.8g/t gold and ~0.4% copper, but the massive sprawl of the orebodies at Cadia and the adjacent Ridgeway mean it can be relied on to produce at a consistent level well into the middle of this decade.

Among the other copper porphyries in operation in Australia is the Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN) run Northparkes mine, also in New South Wales, which is expected to produce 23,000-27,000t copper and 40,000-50,000oz gold in FY25.

Its 30-year mine life and massive resource was sufficiently exciting for EVN to pay US$475 million for an 80% stake, highlighting the premium big miners are willing to spend for low grade assets with long mine lives and growth potential.

It comes amid broader positivity for copper, which is expected to see large shortages emerge due to rising demand for poles and wires to service renewables, electric vehicles, urbanisation and AI.

At the same time, major producers Chile and Peru have stagnated and long approval timeframes could see prices surge as supply struggles to catch up, with Bank of America the latest independent analyst last week to lift its price target for the metal beyond US$10,000/t for 2025.

On Friday the three month LME copper contract was priced at US$9476.50/t, up ~11% since the start of 2024.

With all that in mind, we’ve scoured the market for a few companies with the potential to develop Australia’s next large porphyry copper mine.

 

Alma Metals (ASX:ALM)

Alma will start a scoping study later this year on the Briggs deposit in Queensland, having just collected $750,000 in a raising to extend a drill program where excitement has ratcheted up after the explorer hit a project best intersection of 276m at 0.45% copper from surface.

That included a 49m section towards the top of the hole at over 1% copper.

Continued results like those would deliver the potential to build on an already significant inferred resource, last collated in July last year at 415Mt at 0.25% copper and 31ppm molybdenum, using a 0.2% cutoff grade.

It makes Briggs one of the few deposits in Australia to exceed 1Mt of copper metal, with 28.31Mlb of molybdenum metal also stored in the deposit, sitting in the top 10 undeveloped copper deposits in the country.

Excluding the inferred resource, Briggs also has an exploration target of 480-880Mt at 0.2-0.3% copper and 25-40ppm moly, giving a sense of the scale potential of the Briggs, Mannersley and Fig Tree Hill prospects.

Located just 50km from the deepwater port of Gladstone, Alma has earned an initial 30% JV interest in Briggs from project owner Canterbury Resources (ASX:CBY), and has already committed to the second stage of the three stage earn in.

If it spends $3m on exploration by June 30, 2026, $10 million capped Alma can claim a 51% majority holding, with the possibility to eventually control 70% of the project.

 

Alkane Resources (ASX:ALK)

Alkane set the market alight in 2019 when it announced the discovery of the Boda porphyry in New South Wales.

Currently a junior gold producer at its small but mighty Tomingley operation, ALK pivoted into the copper developer world with the find.

Along with the nearby Kaiser deposit, it controls open pit and underground resources of 796Mt at 0.33g/t gold and 0.18% copper for 8.28Moz Au and 1.46Mt Cu, or 14.7Moz gold equivalent at prices of US$1950/oz gold and US$8500/t copper.

It’s early days, but a scoping study in July this year focused on a large scale 20Mtpa milling operation showed the combined orebodies could generate $5.7 billion in undiscounted free cash flow over an initial 17-year life at a gold price of $3500/oz and copper price of $15,000/t.

The project would produce 35,600t of copper and 159,300oz gold annually over its first five years, with costs over the life of mine estimated at $630/oz with copper by-product credits.

An estimated pre-tax NPV7 of $1.808bn and IRR of 24% looked positive, though in its current form ALK would be chasing $1.78bn to fund the development.

Likely for that reason, $257 million capped ALK is keen to get a strategic partner on board, while it is also looking at options in future studies to extract the ore via bulk underground mining methods like sub-level caving rather than the long hole open stoping employed at the higher grade Tomingley.

 

Caravel Minerals (ASX:CVV)

Located not on the eastern sea-board but in WA’s wheatbelt near the farming town of Calingiri, Caravel controls around 3Mt of copper metal at the project of the same name.

150km north-east of Perth, the pitch is the project will produce 65,000t of copper a year over more than 25 years, with additional credits from precious metals and molybdenum.

Caravel placed an initial capex bill of $1.2 billion on the project as a two stage development in a July 2022 pre-feasibility study.

A later update focused on a single 27Mtpa processing train with anticipated all in sustaining costs of US$2.37/lb, with a further update following a metallurgical review increasing plant capacity to 30Mtpa in April 2023 cutting AISC to US$2.07/lb with copper production of 71,000t over its first five years.

Capital investment will be higher at $1.7bn.

Now led by former Fortescue (ASX:FMG) executive Don Hyma, $79 million capped Caravel is continuing to work through a definitive feasibility study.

 

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Alma Metals is a Stockhead advertiser, it did not sponsor this article.

Special Report

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 8:30AM

• Infill drilling has returned the best copper intersection to date at Briggs
• Enhanced copper grades include a 276m intersection at 0.45% copper from surface
• Further assay results are expected in 4-6 weeks

 

Special Report: Initial assay results from infill drilling at Alma Metals’ Briggs copper project has highlighted significantly enhanced copper grades close to surface.

 

Alma Metals’ (ASX:ALM) flagship Briggs porphyry copper deposit has an inferred resource of 415Mt at 0.25% copper and 31 parts per million molybdenum, and is just 60km from Queensland’s deep-water port of Gladstone.

Core drilling kicked off in June, targeting an upgrade in resource confidence to the indicated category, which is deemed sufficient to support the initiation of a scoping study later this year.

Drilling is focused on testing and infill drilling the southwest part of the large geochemical anomaly at the Briggs Central inferred resource.

The explorer also recently completed a strategic tenement expansion, finalising the acquisition of two further exploration permits previously owned by Tropex Metals.

Stand out drilling results

Initial results have delivered the best drill intersection to date at Briggs, hitting 276m at 0.46% copper as well as 24ppm molybdenum from surface.

This included 49m at 1.01% copper and 17ppm molybdenum from 3m.

ALM says hole 24BRD0026 was testing for near-surface, higher-grade copper mineralisation as part of an infill drilling program to identify potential areas for higher-grade starter pit operations.

Drilling is also targeting an upgrade in resource confidence sufficient to support the initiation of a scoping study later this year.

Under the JV agreement with Canterbury Resources, completion of the current drilling program will meet the expenditure requirements to complete Stage 2 of the earn-in, and for ALM’s interest to increase to 51%.

Wide zone starting at surface earmarked for follow-up

“These results demonstrate that significantly higher copper grades are present within the Briggs resource and give us confidence in our strategy to define a higher overall resource grade,” ALM managing director Frazer Tabeart said.

“The wide zone of high-grade starting at surface is particularly important and will be a focus for follow-up drilling.

“While this is part of a longer campaign, it sets a strong foundation for the continued exploration and development of the Briggs copper project.”

Strongly silicified and altered Briggs granodiorite with micro-UST textures and extensive copper sulphides. Pic: Alma Metals

What happens next?

ALM says the copper grades are particularly strong in the top 52m of the first hole (24BRD0026) with results indicating the entire hole was mineralised from surface.

Copper mineralisation is present in the form of copper oxides and malachite from surface to 29.25m and in the form of chalcopyrite and secondary chalcocite between 29.25m and 39m downhole depth before passing into chalcopyrite below 39m down-hole depth in strongly silicified and mineralised granodiorite.

The economic significance of oxide copper mineralisation will be evaluated as further drilling is undertaken.

Assays for the remaining holes on this section are expected in 4-6 weeks’ time, and drilling is expected to continue into next quarter.

Samples from the drilling program will also provide material for metallurgical test work, which will contribute to the scoping study for Briggs.

Christian Edwards

Thu, 8 Aug 2024 8:30AM

MoneyTalks is Stockhead’s regular drill down into what stocks investors are looking at right now. We tap our extensive list of experts to hear what’s hot, their top picks, and what they’re looking out for.

Today we hear from James Whelan, MD of Barclay Pearce Capital Asset Management and William Smith, BPC AM Advisor.

Even as prices crashed from above US$11,000/t in May to below US$9,000/t last week, James Whelan and Will Smith reckon copper demand will rise in concert with contracting global supply.

And as if on cue, Bloomberg reported that China’s giant, dormant copper market had started showing signs of life.

After a months-long slump in demand which quieted the less committed among the copper bulls and saw prices collapse from earlier record highs, analysts and traders in China say that buyers in the world’s biggest copper market are starting to dip in again.

And while the general consensus is prices might not break out in the near term, Dr Copper will be operating as soon as the global market meets Mr Deficit. It’s all about the long game, says the team at BPC.

In mid July, Whelan put it this way.

“Buy copper.

“Buy copper companies.“

But which ASX copper companies? They’re glad you asked.

Alma Metals (ASX:ALM)

Whelan: One I’ve been in and around for a little while now. I’ve mentioned them on TV a few times and the key to their predicted success is the Briggs Copper Project: a lot of low-grade copper, close to the surface, close to the Gladstone Port in sunny Queensland. It has, for now, an inferred resource of 415Mt of Copper at a grade of 0.25%. I have a good feeling this is a low bid.

“Quantity, depth, convenience.”

Smith: They’re post raise (for now) with $2.6m being done in April. If it’ s a “spark” you’re looking for then the recent drilling update in mid-July showed confidence in a resource upgrade with initial assay results due at the end of August. Then scoping study and pre-feasibility study so news all the way through to the first quarter of 2025.

Whelan: If you’re in the “we believe in the copper story and want the least complicated/highest possible upside” camp then this is the one to look at.

 

Alma to raise $2.77m to grow its Briggs porphyry copper resource ahead of pivotal scoping study

• Company to raise $2.77m for core drilling at Briggs project
• The Central and Southern Porphyry areas will be targeted
• Drilling to upgrade resource confidence ahead of a scoping study

Special Report: Explorer Alma Metals is raising $2.77m for further resource extension and infill drilling at its 245km2 Briggs, Mannersley and Fig Tree Hill copper project in Central QLD.

Alma Metals’ (ASX:ALM) flagship Briggs porphyry copper deposit currently has an inferred resource of 415Mt @ 0.25% copper and 31 parts per million (ppm) molybdenum – one of the largest copper and moly deposits in Australia.

READ MORE: Flying under the radar: Moly’s all the rave and Taiton Resources has a pure play project

Funds for copper exploration
ALM is raising $1,774,500 through a share placement through the issue of 221,812,500 shares at 0.8c per share, as well as a further $1m through a share purchase plan for eligible shareholders for a total of $2.77m.

Final assays back from the previous drill program confirmed surface soil geochemical sampling was effective in mapping out higher copper grades in the top ~200m of the deposit and targeting the areas of higher resource grade.

Notable intercepts included:

51m @ 0.59% copper and 90ppm molybdenum from surface including 32.8m @ 0.78% copper and 72ppm molybdenum from 16.2mm in hole 23BRD0021
188.5m @ 0.30% Cu and 46ppm molybdenum from 8.5m, including 58.5m @ 0.36% Cu and 34ppm molybdenum from 8.5m in hole 23BRD0019
161m @ 0.29% copper and 71ppm molybdenum from 22m and 42m @ 0.26% copper and 46ppm molybdenum from 194m in hole 23BRD0023
The raised funds aim to evaluate the intrusive contact zone targeting an upgrade in resource confidence to support a scoping study later this year.

ALM will infill drill test potential higher-grade zones around the southwest margin of the 365Mt Central Porphyry at Briggs, which the explorer reckons will likely upgrade part of the resource to the higher confidence indicated category and provide material for metallurgical testwork as a precursor to the scoping study.

Additional drilling is also planned to test the Southern Porphyry target, aimed at increasing the overall resource inventory.