LONDON (Alliance News) - Rockfire Resources PLC said Monday a historical estimate of its Copperhead project in Queensland, Australia has shown 56,000 tonnes of copper at the site.
A "detailed appraisal" of past exploration at Copperhead in 1972 estimates 35 million tonnes at 0.16% copper for 56,000 tonnes of copper. A core sampling in 1988 lifted the average core grade to 0.5% copper.
Shares in Rockfire Resources were up 15% at 1.99 pence each Monday.
Rockfire Resources said the estimation was calculated prior to the introduction of the JORC code and was an internal estimate of Carpentaria Exploration Co Pty Ltd.
The company said it is planning drilling to "verify and expand" the historical drilling results and establish a mineral resource.
According to Rockfire Resources, its wholly-owned Copperhead is included in the Global Mineral Resource Assessment by the US Geological Society's "Porphyry Copper Assessment of Eastern Australia" 2014 technical paper.
"This report was prepared to highlight the most important porphyry copper deposits known to exist on the eastern seabord of Australia," the company explained.
Chief Executive Officer David Price said: "It is exciting to have an historical mineral estimate by such a reputable company as Carpentaria Exploration. Bear in mind that many world-class gold and copper deposits were discovered in the 1970's - before the dawn of the JORC Code. The inclusion of Copperhead in the United States Geological Survey's 'Global Mineral Resource Assessment' is testimony to the project's potential. The estimation of this historical mineral content provides a great baseline minimum target from which the project can expand."
Rockfire Resources (ROCK)