Cobre Ltd (ASX:CBE) has kicked off an initial 2,000-metre diamond drilling program at the Okavango Copper Project (OCP) in the Kalahari Copper Belt (KCB) of Botswana, testing for copper-silver mineralisation.
The company will target three main areas, determined to be prospective by a combination of nearby deposits, high-resolution magnetic, radiometric and electromagnetic geophysical surveys and a 6-hole diamond drilling program.
Cobre has selected an area along strike from two neighbouring deposit clusters, MMG’s Zone 5 group (166 million tonnes at 2.0% copper and 26 g/t silver) and Boseto group (126 million tonnes at 1.3% copper and 17 g/t silver).
The company will also target a region of elevated copper intersected in previous drilling and the margins of a basement high selected with ground gravity and drill data.
Compelling location and geology
“We’re excited to be drilling at OCP again,” Cobre CEO Adam Wooldridge said about the drilling program.
“The geology on this project has always been compelling and its location has become that much more strategic with MMG entering the KCB.
“The objective of the current program will be to prove that anomalous copper-silver mineralisation continues into OCP, demonstrating potential for new discoveries in proximity to the Zone 5 production hub.
“This phase of work forms part of the company’s strategy to advance immediate targets while progressing its in-situ copper recovery development opportunity at the Ngami Copper Project and exploring for tier 1 targets as part of the 2024 BHP (ASX:BHP) Xplor program.”
MMG Ltd recently acquired the nearby Khoemacau Copper Mine and exploration tenements for US$1.9 billion, directly along strike from the OCP.
Cobre expects its drilling program to run for the next two months with results reported on receipt.