First Tellurium plans Deer Horn drilling campaign, British Columbia

First Tellurium Corp. [FTEL-CSE; FSTTF-OTC] reported that Dr. Lee Groat, consulting geologist and qualified person has stated that the property-wide mapping and sampling program at the company’s Deer Horn property in west-central British Columbia has reinforced a key porphyry alteration model and provided drill targets for the mid-September drill program.

As reported August 16, the mapping and sampling have already confirmed a crucial structural connection between the property’s Pond copper porphyry and gold-silver-tellurium systems.

“The location and orientation of both the Pond and Saddle porphyry zones align with well-established porphyry alteration zone models,” said Dr. Groat. “The alteration zones observed on surface indicate that a potassic zone lies in the subsurface at the Pond area. This is one of the key markers for a mineralized copper porphyry.”

Groat added: “All of this information reinforces the premise that Deer Horn supports a copper porphyry system in an area that has never been drilled. The initial drilling in September will give us further crucial information.”

The sampling team, consisting of graduate students from the University of British Columbia and the University of St. Andrews, collected 130 rock samples from the property. Of the 130 samples, 119 are in for assays and four are undergoing U-Pb zircon geochronology to help understand the age of the rocks and the sequence of geological events. Five samples are receiving thin-section petrographic analysis, and 10 are undergoing X-ray powder diffraction analysis.

“The X-ray diffraction is incredibly useful for sorting out mineralogy,” said Groat. “It will go a long way in helping us understand where we are in the porphyry model profile.”

The September drill program is planned to consist of one drill pad in the Pond zone and two drill pads in the Saddle-New vein area. The objective at the Pond Zone is to intersect disseminated mineralization, which would help locate the main ore zone in the subsurface. In the Saddle area, the objective is to intersect disseminated mineralization, multiple mineralized veins and the thrust fault.

“Obviously, we’re all very pleased with the information that’s emerging from Deer Horn,” said President and CEO Tyrone Docherty. “Knowing now that the porphyry and the main gold-silver-tellurium vein systems are connected turns this into a significant target covering a vast amount of ground. The Pond Zone and Main Vein system are five kilometers apart. This all adds to our information base for the bigger drill program to follow.”

The sampling, drilling and upcoming IP survey at Deer Horn are all designed to support a follow-up drill program, expected to test the extent of the mineralization between the Deer Horn and Pond showings and to study how the systems at Deer Horn and Pond are related. Further drilling at the Pond zone will help to understand the subsurface extent of the porphyry system and its associated mineralization.

First Tellurium’s unique business model is to generate revenue and value through mineral discovery, project development, project generation and cooperative access to untapped mineral regions in Indigenous territory with sustainable exploration.

The company’s Klondike tellurium-gold property in Colorado and polymetallic Deer Horn Project in British Columbia anchor a diversified search for metals, working in alliance with Indigenous peoples, NGOs, governments and leading metals buyers.