The early findings from the Hog Heaven Project’s 2023 Exploration Program, which is now being run by Ivanhoe Electric Inc., have been released by Brixton Metals Corporation. Ivanhoe Electric Inc. has the opportunity to purchase up to 75% of the project under a legally binding earn-in JV Agreement by shelling out USD $40 million in project costs and USD 4.5 million to Brixton. Hog Heaven is a high-sulfidation, epithermal copper-silver-gold project in Montana, USA, with the potential to produce significant amounts of porphyry copper.
The Hog Heaven Cu-Ag-Au Project Location Map. Image Credit: Brixton Metals
Ivanhoe Electric’s program highlights include:
- The bottom 8 m of hole HHD-005 yielded 1.32% copper, 0.34 g/t gold, and 23.38 g/t silver from a depth of 901 meters, totaling 311 meters of 1.07 g/t AuEq with 22.89 g/t silver, 0.35 g/t gold, 0.06% copper, 0.55% zinc, and 0.36% lead.
- A deep porphyry copper source for the high-sulfidation epithermal mineralization is suggested by new data.
- Ivanhoe begins its Typhoon™ geophysical survey on the Hog Heaven Project.
The fact that drilling has intersected increasing copper as a proportion of mineralization with increasing depth, Cu-Mo stockwork, crosscutting relationships and mineralized breccia fragments are all very encouraging evidence for the existence of a copper porphyry at depth.
Christina Anstey, Vice President, Exploration, Brixton Metals Corporation
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Brixton Metals Corporation, Gary Thompson, stated, “We are delighted to see the exploration success that Ivanhoe Electric is having on the Hog Heaven Project and we look forward to seeing this project advance.”
2023 Hog Heaven Project Update
As part of its joint venture agreement with Brixton Metals, Ivanhoe Electric began drilling on the Hog Heaven Project in June 2023. To date, six holes totaling 6,129 m have been drilled as part of the program, and drilling is expected to continue with two drill rigs on site, subject to probable winter conditions.
From drill hole HHD-005, 311 m of 1.07 g/t gold equivalent were extracted from 162 to 473 m, comprising 22.89 g/t silver, 0.35 g/t gold, 0.06% copper, 0.55% zinc, and 0.36% lead.
The 2023 drill program was designed to look for prospective expansions of known silver, gold, and copper-rich high-sulfidation epithermal mineralization, as well as a potential copper porphyry source to the epithermal system. According to preliminary data from the 2023 drill program, epithermal mineralization extends far beyond the depths of previous and past mining activity.
Furthermore, fresh drill core evidence contains porphyry-style, early-quartz veins and breccia holding shards of quartz-stockwork porphyry clasts, indicating a possible connection to a deep copper porphyry system.
2023 Geophysical Survey at Hog Heaven
Ivanhoe began an induced-polarization and electromagnetic ground geophysical survey in late September 2023, utilizing its patented Typhoon™ electrical geophysical surveying transmitter technology. The survey’s purpose is to help find new regions of precious and base metal-bearing, semi-massive, and massive sulfide epithermal mineralization at depth.
About the Hog Heaven Cu-Ag-Au Project–Montana, USA
The Hog Heaven copper-silver-gold Project is a copper-silver-gold exploration project that has previously produced high-grade silver, gold, and copper. Anaconda Copper Mining and lessees produced 6.7Moz Ag, 3,000 oz Au, 23M lbs Pb, and 0.6M lbs Cu from 0.23Mt of direct-ship ore grading 29 opt Ag between 1913 and 1975.
The property is located in Flathead County, 55 miles south-southwest of Kalispell in northwestern Montana, USA. Previous operators conducted nearly 700 drill holes on the Main Mine and Ole Hill Targets.