Fresnillo plc is conducting international mining exploration in Peru and Chile with significant progress and plans to continue in 2024.
With this, the company is searching for and evaluating copper and gold deposits in countries outside its main base of operations in Mexico.
On the one hand, the Racaycocha copper-gold-molybdenum project in Peru stands out, where a potential resource of medium interest in the continuity of the deposit was quantified and new drilling was carried out at the end of the year, the assay results of which are pending.
In addition, two additional prospects were prepared to start drilling in 2024.
International mining exploration
Fresnillo plc is conducting a second parametric drilling campaign at the Yastai copper-gold project in Chile, which significantly expanded the mineralization defined in the first campaign, and acquired additional concessions that significantly increased the project’s potential, so subsequent drilling will be carried out on adjacent targets during 2024.
At Racaycocha, a potential resource of medium interest was quantified in 2023 in the Pucajirca zone, in the continuity of the deposit.
Two more prospects, Pucapampa and Santa Cruz, were also prepared with drilling plans for 2024.
At the Yastai copper-gold project in Chile, the second parametric drilling campaign was carried out with 9,850 meters, which significantly expanded the mineralization defined in the first campaign.
In particular, a new mineral property was secured in the adjacent portions, which expands the potential of this project and justifies the continuity of exploration work.
Preparations to drill several adjacent targets on the extensions of the deposit will be carried out during the first months of 2024 and exploration permits for probable new targets are expected to be obtained in the last months of the year.
Gold and silver
In Fresnillo plc‘s exploration, focused on its gold and silver mines and projects, drilling was down slightly by 2% compared to 2022, with a total of 933,185 meters drilled.
Of these, 92% were focused on brownfields targets within the operating mines and on peripheral targets.
The largest volume of drilling was in the Fresnillo district, with 45% of the total, followed by the San Julian and Herradura districts, with 19% and 17%, respectively.