Tertiary fluorspar project disappoints as it continues other work

Tertiary Minerals updated the market on its exploration projects in Nevada on Wednesday, reporting that at the Peg Leg copper-silver-lead-zinc project’s main target, it had exposed skarn copper-zinc-silver mineralisation in limestone adjacent to granite contact.

The AIM-traded firm said the trenching programme there was complete, with four trenches finished at intervals along a 230 metre length of the granite contact to better expose outcropping mineralisation, assaying up to 59 grams of silver per tonne, 1.4% copper, 2.4% lead and 1.8% zinc in previously-reported sampling.

Multiple skarn zones were exposed in the trenches, with the sampling of the trenches completed and those samples being submitted to the laboratory for analysis.

A drone magnetic survey would be undertaken in the coming week, targeting magnetic skarn.

At the Paymaster zinc-silver project’s main target, the board described it as a skarn style zinc-silver mineralisation analogous to the large Taylor zinc-lead-silver Deposit in Arizona, owned by South 32.

A drone photogrammetric survey had been completed, with a drone magnetic survey to be finished in the coming week, and a soil sampling programme commissioned.

At the Pyramid gold project, the board said a soil sampling programme had been commissioned to extend and confirm historic gold-in-soil anomalies for drill targeting.

On the Mt Tobin silver prospect, the board described the min target as a large area of hydrothermal alteration 60 metres wide and 1,200 metres long, with associated silver values from recent company sampling up to 101 grams of silver per tonne.

A drone photogrammetric and magnetic survey was now complete, and a soil sampling programme had been commissioned to define drill targets.

At the Lucky copper prospect, a notice level permit had been submitted to drill test the sediment-hosted, intrusion-related disseminated copper target.

Tertiary said the drilling would seek to confirm and extend results from a 1951 drill hole, which ended in mineralisation and intersected 20.4 metres at 0.65% copper to the bottom of the hole, at 77.7 metres depth.

Finally, on the MB fluorspar project, the company said its metallurgical test work was unsuccessful, and the lease agreement had been terminated following a project review.

“I am pleased to be reporting that, despite the challenges of Covid-19, exploration work is progressing on a range of targets across several of our precious metal and base metal projects in Nevada,” said executive chairman Patrick Cheetham.

“The decision to terminate the lease agreement over the MB fluorspar project reflects extensive but unsuccessful efforts to develop a viable processing route for production of an acid-grade fluorspar concentrate, and a firm belief that the escalating holding costs are better applied to the continued exploration of the company's expanding gold and base metals project portfolio.

“We look forward to reporting the results of this work and the start of drilling operations.”

At 1308 BST, shares in Tertiary Minerals were down 11.11% at 0.24p.