South32 may soon hold an 80 per cent interest in Hammer Metals’ Isa Valley copper project in north-west Queensland.
The companies recently signed an earn-in agreement over the project, which gives South32 the option to form a joint venture.
“The Hammer team enthusiastically welcomes another high-quality partner that shares our vision and belief that the Hammer’s tenure in the Mount Isa district holds significant potential to yield further new Tier 1 base metal discoveries,” Hammer managing director Daniel Thomas said.
“This earn-in will cover ground that Hammer applied for in 2021 along the highly prospective Mount Isa fault.”
The fault covers around 320 square kilometres of Hammer’s broader Mount Isa project.
Thomas said the area is considered highly prospective for Mount Isa-style sedimentary lead-zinc-copper mineralisation similar in style to the Mount Isa and George Fisher-Hilton deposits.
South32 has made an initial minimum commitment to complete an ionic-leach soil sampling program in the coming months.
The company may also commit to a 900m drilling program as well as expenditure of up to an additional $3 million to earn a 70 per cent interest in the project.
South32 has the right to increase its interest in the Project from 70 per cent to 80 per cent by electing to free-carry Hammer to the completion of a pre-feasibility study, and own and operate the exploration program.
“We look forward to working with South32 and leveraging their knowledge in exploring for large-scale base metal deposits,” Thomas said.
“The ability for Hammer to attract another quality partner such as South32 supports our approach in identifying early-stage exploration targets and prospect generation across our broader land-holding in north-west Queensland.”
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