Bell Copper discovers new copper porphyry at Big Sandy, Arizona
Bell Copper Corp. [BCU-TSXV; BCUFF-OTC] drilled into a new porphyry copper system at its 100%-owned Big Sandy Project, a large, truncated porphyry copper-molybdenum target in northwestern Arizona, approximately 30 km south of the company’s Perseverance Project.
Drilling through gravel cover has discovered a porphyry copper system of suspected Laramide age. Minerals observed in core include gossan veins (goethite, hematite and jarosite), native copper, chalcocite, covellite, sphalerite, galena, disseminated pyrite and quartz-molybdenite veinlets.
A downhole IP (induced polarization) survey at drill hole BS-1 will be performed. Meanwhile, core drilling at BS-1 continues.
After drilling a water well to support a multihole, potentially multi-rig, drilling campaign, Bell began core drilling BS-1 in early November, 2020. At a depth of 889 metres, BS-1 cut leached capping consisting of gossan veins in sericitized quartz monzonite porphyry of suspected Laramide age and Precambrian chloritized (green rocks) granite porphyry.
A weak supergene enrichment blanket in which chalcocite forms rims surrounding pyrite grains extends to the base of oxidation at 938 metres. Scattered small grains of native (metallic) copper were seen above the chalcocite-bearing interval.
The coexistence of chlorite, sericite, molybdenite, sphalerite and weak chalcocite in the same small volume of core leads Bell to believe that BS-1 has penetrated a porphyry copper system near the inner edge of the propylitic, or green rocks, environment. A copper-rich shell, if one is present, would be expected within a few hundred metres of BS-1.
The company will conduct two borehole studies in BS-1 in the coming weeks. These include an acoustic televiewer (ATV) log and downhole radial induced polarization (IP) survey. The combination of information from these studies will help Bell understand the tilt of the porphyry system, the principal vein and fault orientations, and the distribution of chargeable sulphides away from the drill hole. Such studies are expected to be useful in targeting shallower, more sulphide-rich parts of the systems with the upcoming drill holes.
Bell will use the results from the IP survey to determine which of four currently permitted sites will be best for drilling any chargeability anomalies that are detected.