24 September 2024
Cobre (ASX:CBE) has executed a letter of intent to negotiate exclusively with a subsidiary of mining giant BHP (ASX:BHP) for a material earn-in joint venture agreement over the Kitlanya West and East Copper projects in Botswana.
The proposed transaction underscores the company’s confidence in the potential for its projects to host tier one copper-silver deposits.
Cobre, which has a market capitalisation of $23.56 million, says a partnership with BHP would provide the exploration scale and expertise to maximise its chances of making new discoveries on its base margin exploration ground, while retaining ownership of its Ngami and Okavango Copper projects.
The proposed transaction follows on from Cobre’s participation in the BHP Xplor program, which provided funding for a recently completed seismic survey on the Kitlanya West Project.
BHP’s Xplor program at the Kitlanya West Project was designed to image potential large-scale fold trap-sites where tier one copper deposits may be hosted, identify structures that may provide pathways for copper mineralisation, complement and help resolve the basin architecture, and provide diamond drilling targets for the Tlou target.
CEO Adam Wooldridge says this transaction with BHP will be a major moment in time for Cobre.
“Participating in the BHP 2024 Xplor cohort has provided the opportunity to do a belt scale review of the Kalahari Copper Belt, culminating with the collection of seismic data over the prospective northern margin of the belt,” Wooldridge says.
“The proposed transaction with BHP would allow us to fully fund our follow-on exploration programs and focus on discovering the tier one deposits we believe may be hosted in our Kitlanya West and East projects.
“Independently, Cobre will continue advancing its 100% owned in-situ copper recovery development at Ngami — with a Scoping Study due in early October — along with further drilling at Cobre’s 100% owned Okavango Project. This combined strategy provides exposure to potential tier one discoveries, a development opportunity at Ngami and short-term discoveries on our Okavango Project.”
The transaction is subject to approval and executing formal binding documents. BHP is also required to complete due diligence investigations within the exclusivity period.
Kitlanya West is considered a ‘large-scale’ exploration project that offers district-scale discovery potential. It straddles the northern margin of the Kalahari Copper Belt, including an estimated 500km of prospective D’Kar/Ngwako Pan Formation contact with additional potential for gold-hinge and double-plunging fold trap-sites.
Meanwhile, Kitlanya East is a highly prospective copper-silver target that lies next to Sandfire Resources’ (ASX:SFR) Motheo Production Hub. It has been characterised by two drill-tested large-scale anticlinal structures with preserved lower D’Kar Formation stratigraphy providing potential host rocks for analogues to the T3 deposit.
Cobre is a copper explorer and developer focused on its Kalahari Copper Belt in Botswana.
Source: https://mining.com.au/bhp-cobre-team-up-for-copper-silver-hunt-in-botswana/
