Drillhole Rehabilitation Program Completed At Van Dyke Copper Project

Drillhole Rehabilitation Program Completed At Van Dyke Copper Project

CALGARY – Copper Fox Metals Inc. through its wholly owned subsidiary Desert Fox Copper Inc., reported on the drillhole rehabilitation and geotechnical study of the Gila Conglomerate on its Van Dyke in-situ copper recovery (“ISCR”) project located in the Globe-Miami Mining District, Gila County, Arizona.

The drillhole rehabilitation program initially selected six historical drillholes to determine if these holes could be used to establish hydrogeological monitoring and water sampling stations. Of the six holes initially selected, only one historical hole was selected for installation of hydrogeological monitoring equipment due to geotechnical difficulties encountered during the program. Upgrading of hydrogeological monitoring equipment in three drillholes completed in 2014 was also completed.

The geotechnical program is collecting physical data on the Gila Conglomerate to support an updated mine plan to access the Van Dyke deposit. Successful completion of rehabilitating one drillhole for the installation of hydrogeological and water sampling equipment. Installation of the vibrating wire piezometers (“VWP”) and recording equipment is contingent on analytical results from the water samples collected in this drillhole. Receipt of the analytical results is expected soon.

The VWP’s and data recorders in three drillholes completed in 2014 were upgraded. Recording of data from these monitoring stations is expected to come online this month. The core logging and sampling portion of the geotechnical study is finished and laboratory testing of the samples from the Gila Conglomerate is progressing.

Elmer B. Stewart, President and CEO, said, “On completion of the drillhole rehabilitation work, the project has entered a new phase as it continues to advance the Van Dyke project. The collection of additional hydrogeological data to augment the historical hydrogeological database and monitoring changes in the chemistry of the formational water of the Gila Conglomerate over time are important steps in the preparation of an updated hydrogeological model for the Van Dyke project. The hydrogeological model is a major parameter that is required should the project enter the permitting stage”.

A significant component of advancing an ISCR project in Arizona to the permitting stage is the preparation of a robust hydrogeological model for review by regulatory authorities. The current work establishes four hydrogeological monitoring stations and one water sampling station to monitor changes in water quality over time.

All available drill cores of Gila Conglomerate have been logged and the selected samples are currently undergoing laboratory tests to determine specific geotechnical parameters. The data from this study will be used to determine if changes to the mine plan contemplated in the 2020 Preliminary Economic Assessment are required. The geotechnical program also includes a data gap evaluation for the available geotechnical and hydrogeological data, to determine if additional data is needed to support a Prefeasibility Study. The geotechnical program is expected to be completed in May 2024.