Pacific Ridge Exploration drills 110.0 metres of 0.97% Copper Equivalent at Kliyul copper-gold project, British Columbia
Pacific Ridge Exploration Ltd. [TSXV-PEX; OTCQB-PEXZF; FSE-PQWN] reported results from the final three diamond drill holes, KLI-23-067 to KLI-23-069, of the 2023 drilling program at the Kliyul copper-gold porphyry project with drill hole KLI-23-068 intersecting 110.0 metres of 0.97% copper equivalent (CuEq) or 1.44 g/t gold equivalent (AuEq) (0.27% copper, 1.03 g/t gold, and 1.55 g/t silver) within 455.8 metres of 0.43% CuEq or 0.63 g/t AuEq (0.17% copper, 0.37 g/t gold, and 0.93 g/t silver). Owned 100% by the company, Kliyul is located in the prolific Quesnel Terrane in northcentral British Columbia close to existing infrastructure.
Highlights: All three drill holes intersected significant porphyry copper-gold mineralization. Drill hole KLI-23-068 returned 110.0 metres of 0.97% CuEq or 1.44 g/t AuEq (0.27% copper, 1.03 g/t gold, and 1.55 g/t silver) within 455.8 metres of 0.43% CuEq or 0.63 g/t AuEq (0.17% copper, 0.37 g/t gold, and 0.93 g/t silver). This is the best mineralized interval of the 2023 drill program at Kliyul.
Drill hole KLI-23-067 returned 57.4 metres of 0.41% CuEq or 0.60 g/t AuEq (0.22% copper, 0.26 g/t gold, and 1.22 g/t silver) within 309.2 metres of 0.32% CuEq or 0.48 g/t AuEq (0.18% copper, 0.20 g/t gold, and 1.00 g/t silver).
Drill hole KLI-23-069, the last hole of the 2023 drilling program, returned 45.0 metres of 0.58% CuEq or 0.86 g/t AuEq (0.38% copper, 0.28 g/t gold, and 2.20 g/t silver) within 570.0 metres of 0.27% CuEq or 0.40 g/t AuEq (0.14% copper, 0.18 g/t gold, and 0.99 g/t silver). The 45 metre interval, at 584 metres downhole depth, is the deepest mineralized interval ever encountered at Kliyul and provides a down-plunge vector for a higher-grade porphyry centre at the Kliyul Main Zone (KMZ).
The 2023 drilling expanded the known extents of KMZ mineralization to ~760 metres east-west, ~600 metres north-south, and ~650 metres vertical depth. KMZ remains open in every direction.
“The last three holes from the 2023 drill program were among the best ever reported from Kliyul and will help us target a higher-grade porphyry centre in 2024,” said Blaine Monaghan, President and CEO of Pacific Ridge. “Overall, the 2023 drill program at Kliyul was very successful. We more than doubled the known extents of KMZ mineralization, returned some of the best intervals ever reported from Kliyul, and now have a vector to help us target a higher-grade porphyry centre this year.”
The porphyry system is not confined to the central KMZ fault block and extends into adjacent fault blocks (KMZ West, KMZ East, and KMZ North) and the amount of fault offset is minimal (few 100 m or less).
Pacific Ridge completed a total of 19 diamond drill holes (KLI-23-051 to KLI-23-069) totaling 10,284 metres at Kliyul in 2023, the largest ever exploration program at the Project. The company completed 8,965 metres in 16 drill holes testing an area measuring approximately 1,300 m east-west, 600 metres north-south, and up to 650 metres vertical depth at KMZ. Pacific Ridge also drilled three holes totaling 1,319 metres testing three interpreted porphyry centres (Ginger, Ginger South, and Parish Hill).
With the results announced in this news release, there are no pending assay results from the 2023 Kliyul drill program. Pacific Ridge’s 2024 exploration plans for the project will be announced by the end of this quarter.
The Kliyul copper-gold project is over 90 km2 in size and is located in the prolific Quesnel Terrane close to existing infrastructure. Kliyul hosts a number of compelling exploration targets, including the Kliyul Main Zone (KMZ) which has been the company’s focus since acquiring the Project in 2020. Pacific Ridge has completed more than 17,500 metres of diamond drilling and has expanded the known extents of KMZ mineralization to 760 metres east-west, up to 600 metres north-south, and up to 650 metres vertical depth. KMZ remains open in every direction.
Pacific Ridge’s flagship asset is its Kliyul copper-gold project. In addition to Kliyul, the company’s project portfolio includes the RDP copper-gold project (optioned to Antofagasta Minerals S.A.), the Chuchi copper-gold project, the Onjo copper-gold project, and the Redton copper-gold project, all located in British Columbia. Pacific Ridge would like to acknowledge that its B.C. projects are located in the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Gitxsan Nation, McLeod Lake Indian Band, Nak’azdli Whut’en, Takla Nation, and Tsay Keh Dene Nation.