Mongolian Metals Corporation ("MMC" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an exploration update for its 100% owned Khongor Copper & Gold District in the southwest Gobi Region of Mongolia, including the identification of several new targets, most notably Copper Hill, and strengthening exploration data for existing targets, Tourmaline Pipe, Dush Uul, Del Khaad, Gun Zag, Ulaan Tolgoi, and UST [Figure 1]. The ongoing exploration program in 2022 focused on prospect level detailed structural and geological mapping, geochemical sampling, and interpretation of geophysical, structural, alteration, and bedrock geology data sets in consultation with internationally renowned experts.
ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia, Feb. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Project Overview
MMC's 37,000 hectare Khongor license area is located in the Middle Devonian Trans Altai Terrane. Several of Mongolia's most important porphyry gold-copper and copper-molybdenum deposits were discovered in these Middle Devonian island arc terranes, including Oyu Tolgoi, Kharmagtai, Tsagaan and Suvarga. The Khongor License is adjacent to the Khundii Gold District, comprising multiple high-grade gold and base metal prospects, owned and developed by Erdene Resources.
To date, the Company has invested a total of approximately US$4m in exploration of the property over its 12 year exploration cycle. SRK (a leading international natural resources consultancy) was contracted as an exploration consultant and assisted MMC with the overall exploration of the site during the 2022 exploration season. New Meek (a leading Mongolian Exploration & Mining Consultancy) provided local support and expertise for the 2022 field season. The Khongor prospect is adjacent to and forms part of the same geological system as the Bayan Khundii license area in Southwest Mongolia, which is currently being developed by Erdene Resource Development Corporation (TSX: ERD).
2022 Exploration Campaign: Techniques & Results
MMC completed a systematic soil sampling campaign. A total of 2244 samples were collected at 100 m x 200 m spacing across the three prospective areas (Gun zag, UST, Tourmaline Pipe), alongside a targeted rock chip sampling campaign and geophysical surveys including ground magnetic surveys and IP surveys [Figure 2a, b, c].
The soil sample results are pending from the laboratory but the Rock Chip samples are presented in Figure 3 & Figure 4. Highlights include 18.75 ppm Au, 254 ppm Ag, 0.91 wt% Cu [Sample# 139474] and 12.7 ppm Au, 41.1 ppm Ag, 3.69 wt% Cu [Sample# 139457] from Copper Hill; 1.5 ppm Au, 118ppm Ag, 1.5 wt% Cu [Sample# 139483] from Del Khad, and 6.75 ppm Au, 135 ppm Ag, 0.54 wt% Cu [Sample# 139484] from Gun Zag.
Over the past few months, MMC has retained leading consultants to assist with the geologic interpretation of the Khongor District, both to identify targets for future drilling and to understand the structural controls on the broader hydrothermal alteration zone. This work informs the 2023 exploration and drilling campaign and resource modeling.
SRK: Anna Fonseca, MSc, PGeo, conducted a field-based integrated structural-alteration analysis of the Khongor license and adjacent areas to enhance the structural understanding and to classify the various zones according to their most likely crustal levels within a porphyry-epithermal metallogenic system.
New Meek: Jigjidsuren Batjargal MSc, Dedkhuu Tserendorj BSc, Javkhlan Mendbayar BSc conducted soil and rock chip sampling campaigns on the Khongor site and ground magnetic and IP surveys.
Major Target Areas
Copper Hill (Gunzag & Del Khad Area)
In the 2022 Q3, MMC discovered the Copper Hill new target zone, a 3 km long NE trending zone of Cu-Au mineralization. Outcrops define a zone of malachite-azurite-hematite-goethite altered quartz veins and stockwork and rock chip samples analyzed by ALS lab yielded up to 18.75 ppm Au (Sample# 139474), 3.69 wt% Cu (Sample# 139457), and 268 ppm Ag (Sample# 139465) [Figure 3 & 4]. The Copper Hill area defines a structurally controlled magnetic low zone [Figure 5].
The crystalline quartz textures, local in-situ supergene copper associated with copper sulfides, and the associated sericite alteration observed in the Copper Hill, Ulaan Tolgoi, Altan Tal, and Del Khaad vein systems are compatible with proximal base-metals rich sub-epithermal veins that occur lateral to or immediately above porphyry style mineralisation [Figure 4].
The geology of the Copper Hill prospect consists of a series of syenite, monzodiorite, and granosyenite intrusions that are covered by volcanic strata, including volcaniclastic siltstone. These lithologies have been crosscut by 1- 20 m wide dykes of syenite and aplite, predominantly in the west and southwest portions of the Copper Hill intrusion.
Tourmaline Pipe
Tourmaline Pipe area as an area north of the Tourmaline Pipe trenching and drilling completed in 2021. This magnetic low anomaly is in a relatively untested area, with limited exploration data collected to-date but further exploration planned for 2023 [Figure 6]. Tourmaline Pipe stockwork is interpreted to be a sericite-quartz-pyrite alteration halo exposed on surface above potassic alteration associated to porphyry mineralisation. Veins and vein stockwork zones in the Tourmaline Pipe zones have predominantly NE-SW to ENE-WSW orientations. Prominent N-S-trending magnetic low anomalies in Tourmaline Pipe and their intersections with mapped silicification and veining zones constitute good greenfields stage exploration targets that are analogous to Erdene Resource Development Corporation's ("Erdene") adjacent Dark Horse Zone N-S-trending magnetic lows, which are particularly well endowed at the intersections with NE-SW to ENE-WSE-trending structures.
Veins and breccias exposed on the surface in Erdene's Dark Horse and in Tourmaline Pipe zones have open space fill texture and tourmaline association that is characteristic of porphyry or epithermal deposits.
However, the quartz-sericite-pyrite altered Tourmaline Pipe stockwork exposed on a road bed and drill core from Erdene's Dark Horse zone reveal textures and alteration mineralogy that are more characteristic of higher temperature, porphyry-style mineralisation than of epithermal environments.
Dush Uul
Typical porphyry lithocap alteration minerals were identified by infrared spectral analyses of outcrop samples of Dush Uul. Porphyry lithocap alteration zones form above porphyry and epithermal styles of mineralisation. The identification of pyrophyllite and sericite as the main lithocap minerals indicates that the outcrops expose the lowest portions on the lithocap.
2023 Exploration & Next Steps
The exploration campaign for 2023 begins with desktop target generation utilising the geochemical and geophysical data collected during the 2022 field campaign, the historic geochemical database and existing structural models. Geochemical analysis will include Univariate data reduction and single-element distribution mapping, multivariate data reduction, alteration vectoring analysis, magma fertility analysis, alteration signature mapping, porphyry/epithermal pathfinder element analysis.
Alongside this detailed review will be a license-wide remote sensing study using all available Landsat 8 Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM), Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), and Sentinel 2 images. This will define the priority follow-up targets areas and ongoing exploration techniques for the Spring 2023 field season. The remote sensing study will be supported by ground-based hyperspectral analyses by specialised porphyry alteration geologists during the 2023 field season.
About MMC
MMC is a privately held Mongolian mining company with a portfolio of exploration and mining licenses representing significant deposits of copper, gold, molybdenum, coal and quartz across four provinces of Mongolia. The company also benefits from strong ongoing access to further license acquisition opportunities. MMC was founded in April 2008 and has to date acquired four mining licenses in Mongolia. Further information is available at http://www.mining-mongolia.com. Important information may be distributed directly from the website and investors should regularly consult this directly.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain information regarding MMC contained herein may constitute forward looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include, amongst other things, statements regarding grades, targets, estimates and assumptions in respect of mineral reserves and mineral resources and anticipated grade, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although MMC believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. MMC cautions that actual performance will be affected by a number of factors, most of which are beyond its control, and that future events and results may vary substantially from what MMC currently foresees. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration results, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. The forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Investors are cautioned that forward‐looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward‐looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. The information contained herein is stated as of the current date and is subject to change after that date. The Company does not assume the obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
NO REGULATORY AUTHORITY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE CONTENTS OF THIS RELEASE
Media Contact
Lee Cashell, MONGOLIAN METALS CORPORATION, 44 07557234995, [email protected]
SOURCE MONGOLIAN METALS CORPORATION
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