Arras Minerals Corp. (“Arras” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that it has been granted the Tay exploration license (“Tay”). The license covers 118 square kilometers in northeastern Kazakhstan and is located within the Bozshakol-Chingiz magmatic arc, an under-explored emerging porphyry province. Tay is located 28 kilometers (“km”) to the north of the Bozshakol open pit copper-gold mine which is operated by Kaz Minerals. Tay is 100% owned by Arras and is not included in the Teck-Arras Strategic Exploration Alliance announced on December 7, 2023.
Tay Project Highlights
- 6.5 km x 2.1 km East-West trending coherent Soviet-era Induced Polarization (“IP”) chargeability anomaly comparable to the Soviet-era chargeability high of the Bozshakol open pit copper-gold mine.
- A buried target with no systematic modern exploration
- Located 28 km north of the Kaz Minerals Bozshakol mine, a significant copper-gold operation with over one billion tonnes of reserves, producing 100,000+ tonnes of copper annually.
- Strategically situated with outstanding accessibility and local infrastructure, including nearby high voltage power lines, railway, and roads.
Tim Barry, CEO of Arras Minerals stated, “It's rare to find such a promising porphyry prospect in proximity to a major operational open-pit copper-gold mine like Bozshakol, located 28 kilometers south. The historical Soviet-era IP anomaly at Tay mirrors the scale and strength of the anomaly at the Bozshakol deposit which was also completed during the same era. Tay's geology is buried beneath recent sediments, and is categorized as a “blind” target, and as far as we know remains unexplored. The typical sediment cover in this region is relatively shallow from 10 to 40 meters. The full size and scale of the Tay IP anomaly is unknown, but it is quite clear it continues to the west. We remain impressed by the straightforward access, and the potential for exploration discoveries in Kazakhstan, which when coupled with the uncomplicated permitting processes, and the outstanding infrastructure, facilitate rapid and cost-efficient exploration.”
The Tay Project: Is located 28 km north from Kaz Mineral’s Bozshakol Mine, and 85 km from Arras’ operational base in the city of Ekibastuz, northeastern Kazakhstan. The property covers 118 square km in northeastern Kazakhstan and is located within the Bozshakol-Chingiz magmatic arc, an under-explored, emerging porphyry province.
A paved four-lane highway to within 35 km of the property boundary, with access provided via by several good quality roads run through the license. High-voltage power lines, heavy rail, and local towns all lie within a 45 km radius of the project.
The Tay project is located within the Bozshakol-Chingiz metallogenic belt that includes the Bozshakol Mine, as well as the Beskauga copper-gold-silver porphyry deposit currently under option by Arras, as well Arras’s 100% owned Elemes project, an emerging copper-gold porphyry prospect.
Geology: A review of the Soviet-era geology maps indicate that the geology at Tay is dominated by volcano-sedimentary and sedimentary rocks cut by several major fault zones, intruded by a series intrusives stocks. It is thought that the historic chargeability anomaly is related to a porphyry-Cu-Au deposit that is covered by 20-30m of quaternary cover. The company is planning to conduct a property -wide airborne magnetic survey and top of bedrock drilling programs to better understand the property geology in 2024.