VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Ongoing exploration drilling on the Lower Zone at Canadian base metals miner Nevsun Resources’ Timok copper/gold project, in Serbia, has expanded the footprint by about 350 m by 750 m and continues to confirm the high grade, continuity and thickness of the mineralisation, the company announced on Monday.

The TSX- and NYSE-listed miner said that the Lower Zone assays reported are part of the ongoing C$20-million drilling programme with its joint venture partner Freeport-McMoRan Exploration. It added that recent drilling has intersected no fewer than 14 porphyry copper mineralisations with grades of greater than 1% copper.

This includes 1.08% copper (Cu) and 0.27 g/t gold (Au) over 747.4 m in hole TC170168 (1.27% Cu equivalent), which also includes 2.27% Cu and 0.59 g/t Au over 90 m (2.68% Cu equivalent); 1.21% Cu and 0.21 g/t Au over 546 m (1.36% Cu equivalent); and 1.14% Cu and 0.2 g/t Au over 411.7 m (1.28% Cu equivalent) in hole TC170175, including 1.85% Cu and 0.3 g/t Au over 78 m (2.06% Cu equivalent).

Nevsun advised that the intersections are estimated to be between 50% to 60% of the true width.

“The programme is expected to be complete in early 2018 and is designed to further define the large footprint of the Timok Lower Zone mineralisation. The results released today continue to demonstrate the potential of the Lower Zone mineralisation with numerous intervals of greater than 1% copper. The latest drilling has further extended the porphyry deposit to the nort-west, and now identifies mineralisation over a roughly 1 000 m by 1 500 m footprint,” commented CEO Peter Kukielski.

Nevsun added that the copper equivalent grade is calculated as 1 g/t Au equals 0.7% Cu.

Further, the holes are near vertical and are intersecting a mineralised zone that is plunging to the north-west at about 50˚.

Nevsun recently reported ‘extremely’ strong economics for its proposed Timok Upper Zone project.

The results of a preliminary economic assessment, completed by Vancouver-based SRK, has outlined a $630-million project that will produce 2.1-billion pounds of copper over a 15-year mine life.