South Pacific Metals Corp. has announced receipt of multi-element rock chip assay results from samples of mineralised structures at the Ontenu NE prospect within its Osena Project.
The project lies within a major NE-SW corridor known as the Kainantu Transfer Zone, which also hosts the large Kainantu Gold-Copper mine, operated by K92 Mining Ltd.
“Ontenu NE has produced some great copper assays to complement the previously released high-grade gold results,” said Timo Jauristo, CEO of the Company.”The gold-base-metal association in veins and faults is characteristic of intermediate sulfidation epithermal deposits, similar to those being mined by K92 Mining to the north. As previously announced, we have recently commenced drilling in the southern part of the Ontenu NE area. These new copper results highlight the high potential of the entire Ontenu NE area, and we look forward to drill testing all the structures that have been discovered.”
The Ontenu NE prospect is part of the wider 5 x 3km epithermal footprint of the Ontenu Prospect. Ontenu NE is a 2 sq km zone with multiple structures outlined by surface mapping and soil geochemical anomalies, up to 1200m strike length.
The soil anomalies are currently open to the northwest.
At the Onki Creek Fault zone area, the structures are Au-Cu-Ag dominant and are primarily hosted in diorite intrusives. The main fault zone has a true width of approximately 3m, strikes NNE-SSW and dips 70o to the WNW.
The fault zone is characterised by silica-clay altered breccia with variable and at times abundant sulphide, including pyrite and chalcopyrite. Samples from the zone have returned 8.6 g/t gold, 32 g/t silver & 0.2 % copper from a 1m wide channel sample and 0.41 g/t gold, 214 g/t silver & 21.2 % copper from a 0.25m zone of massive sulphide on a splay structure adjoining the fault.
Several other near-vertical splay faults from the main Onki Creek Fault, strike N-S to NNW-SSE and are mapped at between 20 and 70cm wide and have returned rock chip sampling grades of 1.21 g/t gold, 131 g/t silver & 12.4 % copper and 0.32 g/t gold, 310 g/t silver & 18.1 % copper.
The splay faults are inferred to be linked to a second series of NNE-SSW striking structures, which have returned grades of up to 1.48 g/t gold and 0.14% copper. Proximal to the Onki Creek Fault, the splays occur within a zone of multiple mineralised structures over at least 19m.
Overall, the distance from the Onki Creek Fault to the other NNE striking faults is approximately 90m, currently interpreted to be a large dilational jog structure and locus for mineralisation.
Covering 738 km² of strategic ground, the Osena Project is located southwest of and adjacent to K92’s tenements that host the Kainantu Gold Mine. Priority prospects include Ontenu, a large-scale cluster of intrusive gold-copper epithermal and porphyry and targets extending over 5 km x 3 km.
The Ontenu Prospect is one of many occurring within a mineralised corridor that extends more than 40 km northeast across the Kainantu District.
South Pacific Metals Corp is an emerging gold-copper exploration company operating in the heart of Papua New Guinea’s proven gold and copper production corridors.
With an expansive 3,100 km² land package and four transformative gold-copper projects contiguous with major producers K92 Mining, PanAust and neighbouring Barrick/Zijin, new leadership and experienced in-country teams are prioritising thoughtful and rigorous technical programs focused on boots-on-the-ground exploration to prioritise discovery across its portfolio projects: Anga, Osena, Kili Teke, and May River.
Immediately flanking K92 Mining’s active drilling and gold-producing operations to the northeast and southwest, SPMC’s Anga and Osena Projects are located within the high-grade Kainantu Gold District – each having the potential to host similar-style lode-gold and porphyry copper-gold mineralisation as that present within K92’s tenements.
Kili Teke is an advanced exploration project situated just 40 km from the world-class Porgera Gold Mine, hosting an existing Inferred Mineral Resource with multiple opportunities for expansion and further discovery.
The May River Project is located adjacent to the world-renowned Frieda River copper-gold project, with historical drilling indicating potential for a significant, untapped gold mineralised system. SPMC common shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, the OTCQB Marketplace and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
