Helix Resources Ltd (ASX:HLX) has a reverse circulation (RC) drill spinning in a new campaign at the Bijoux copper prospect as it seeks to make new copper and copper-gold discoveries in the Cobar-Nyngan area of central NSW.
The program which begins today is part of Helix’s ongoing, aggressive target generation and testing work in the in the southern Rochford Trend of the prolific copper region.
It follows a positive re-rating of the historic Bijoux prospect at which auger samples and assay data have defined a large-scale, 1.9 x 1.2 kilometres, copper anomaly.
“Modern, methodical, thorough approach”
Helix’s executive technical director Dr Kylie Prendergast said: “It is a cliché, but much of our ground is underexplored.
"Helix is taking a ‘modern, methodical, thorough’ approach to regional scale sampling, mapping and geophysical work to generate new targets aimed at new copper discoveries.
About Bijoux
Bijoux is a high-tenor copper anomaly (max 730ppm) with significant ‘pathfinder’ element associations such as bismuth, silver and molybdenite.
The geological features, structural trend and multi-element associations share many features with the Canbelego Main Lode deposit which hosts 1.83 million tonnes at 1.73% copper for ~32,000 tonnes of copper.
Rochford Trend copper geochemical anomalies.
"Our recent auger sampling work along the Rochford Trend, such as at Bijoux with the multi-element analyses and geological mapping has enhanced this anomaly in terms of copper tenor and larger scale,” Prendergast said.
"In fact – it has many similarities to the anomaly associated with the Canbelego Main Lode mineral resource which hosts 32,000 tonnes of copper.
"We are very fortunate to have drill rigs reasonably available to us to regularly test the targets we are generating and we are very pleased to be starting this program at Bijoux today. I look forward to sharing results as assays become available.“
RC drilling
The proposed RC drilling will comprise an initial eight priority-1 RC holes drilled to a depth of approximately 200 metres.
The initial holes will test the best sections of the copper anomaly and confirm previous drill intercepts.
Up to seven additional RC holes of 200 metres depth may be drilled to infill or extend any significant mineralisation and/or alteration noted in the priority-1 holes, for a program total of 15 holes and 3000 metres.
The drilling is expected to last for 4 to 6 weeks with initial assay results expected to start to flow from mid-late December 2023.
In prolific region
The Rochford Trend is a 30-kilometre trend with copper and VTEM anomalies extending from Little Boppy through Black Range in the northwest to south of Bijoux in the southeast. The company has collected more than 2,800 geochemical samples from the Rochford Trend since October 2022.
In addition, laboratory results for 400 auger samples from the Rochford Trend that were previously analysed by pXRF, including the initial auger drilling at Bijoux, have been received.
These latest results were combined and ‘statistically’ levelled with the historical (pre-2022) results to identify anomalies using both the primary target economic metals such as copper, gold, zinc as well as pathfinder elements such as arsenic, bismuth and tungsten – amongst many others.