IGO has earned a 51 per cent interest in the Copper Wolf joint venture (JV) project in Arizona, USA by meeting the stage one earn-in requirement.
The company had to spend $350,000 on exploration efforts by October 3 to secure the majority stake in the project.
IGO and Buxton Resources have now formed a 51 per cent/49 per cent JV at Copper Wolf, situated in one of the world’s most copper-endowed regions.
Multiple historical resource estimates indicate the presence of a large porphyry copper-molybdenum system, making it a highly promising target for future exploration and development.
However, despite its significant potential, the project has not seen any drilling since the early 1990s, with renewed exploration under the JV expected to leverage modern geophysical tools and knowledge that were unavailable during previous efforts.
Buxton’s recent exploration work, including a 2022 airborne magnetic survey, was the first geophysical study conducted on the site since the 1960s.
This survey provided valuable insights into the project’s potential, helping to identify the copper-molybdenum targeted previously in wide-spaced drilling in the 1990s.
IGO now has six months to decide whether to increase its stake by a further 19 per cent through an additional investment of $5.35 million, which would bring its stake to 70 per cent.
The Copper Wolf project spans approximately 30.5 square kilometres of tenements, with Buxton holding a 100 per cent interest in the subsurface estate.
The JV itself covers around 12.5 square kilometres, focusing on areas with significant supergene copper mineralisation.
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