Drilling Program At The Moonlight-Superior Copper Project
TORONTO - US Copper Corp reported on the 15-hole shallow drill program last fall on its Moonlight deposit at the Moonlight-Superior Copper Project in North-East California. Mineralized drill hole intercepts were submitted for sequential copper assays, and acid soluble copper was identified in 14 of 15 holes, including one intercept of 205 feet ("ft") of 0.644% recoverable copper. Results confirmed a small oxide cap covers the large Moonlight sulfide deposit. This cap had been considered waste rock by previous operators. Soluble copper averaged 91% of total copper, and acid soluble copper greater than 0.2% occurs over an area of 2,000 ft by 1500 ft to an average depth of greater than 150 ft.
"Results from our exploration drill program at Moonlight confirm a near-surface copper oxide cap sits above the larger copper sulfide deposit below. These types of copper oxide deposits are found in the major copper mining districts of the world and can typically be economically extracted, usually through low-impact surface mining, and processed at lower cost than copper sulfide ores. Furthermore, acid leaching of oxide copper produces high grade copper cathodes, with grade A cathode typically selling for a premium," said Stephen Dunn, President and CEO. "With the recent addition of copper to the U.S. critical minerals list, we look forward to conducting a preliminary economic assessment to evaluate the viability of a copper oxide mining operation at the past-producing Engels deposit, towards advancing a secure and responsible domestic supply of U.S. mined copper.”