Cotabambas Project

The Cotabambas project is a porphyry copper-gold-silver deposit, located 48 km south west of the city of Cusco, in the Apurimac region in Southern Peru.

The Cotabambas project is comprised of two clusters of mineralized areas:

  • Cluster 1 - located in the northeast area of the property has six mineralized porphyries covering an area of 3km x 6km, hosted by an igneous/volcanic environment; and
  • Cluster 2 - located in the central and southwest area of the property where the mineralized porphyries intrude the contact between the diorite batholite and limestones generating skarn mineralization.

To date, 98% of the exploration drilling is concentrated in Cluster 1 and the potential in the skarn zones has only recently began being drilled.

The geologic studies include three exploration campaigns, three mineral resource estimates by three independent engineering companies between 2007 to 2014, and a Preliminary Economic Assessment filed in April 2015 and updated in September 2015.

EXPLORATION CAMPAIGNS

Antofagasta Minerals, 1995 to 2002

In 1995, Anaconda Perú S.A., a Peruvian subsidiary of Antofagasta Plc (Antofagasta), carried out mapping, soil and rock geochemical sampling programs, and geophysical surveys over the Ccalla, Ccochapata, Azulccacca, and Guaclle exploration targets in Cluster 1 of the Project.

The first diamond drill testing and surface soil and rock geochemical and geophysical anomalies testing begin in July 1996. Intermittent drilling continued until April 2000. In this period a total of 24 drill holes totaling 8,538 m were completed, with numerous mineralized intervals intersected. The results were reported on internal company reports by Val d’Or (1996) and Perello et al. (2001).

Cordillera de las Minas, 2002 to 2006

Antofagasta and Companhia do Rio Vale Doce (CVRD) formed a joint venture company called Cordillera de las Minas (CDLM) in 2002, and transferred ownership of several groups of exploration concessions in southern Perú to CDLM.

From 2002 to 2006, CDLM carried out additional mapping, surface rock and soil geochemical sampling, induced polarization (IP) surveying, magnetometer surveying, and diamond drill testing of previously identified geological, geochemical, and geophysical anomalies. In total, nine drill holes totalling 3,252 m were drilled.

Panoro Minerals, 2007 to Present

In March 2007, Panoro acquired the Cotabambas project from CDLM.

From 2011 to present, Panoro completed additional mapping, surface rock and stream sediment geochemical sampling, IP surveying, and magnetometer surveying. The company focused firstly on Cluster 1 before expanding its programs to Cluster 2.  Panoro also conducted diamond drill testing of geological, geochemical, and geophysical anomalies in Ccalla and Azulccacca deposits. In total, 121 holes (63,198 m) to February 2014.

In 2017 Panoro completed a campaign of 30 drill holes (6,632.62 m) in the Breccia, Maria Jose, Cateo, Petra and David exploration targets located next to the mineral resources areas in Cluster 1. In 2018 Panoro completed a 6-hole campaign (2,172.60 m) at Maria Jose and Petra targets, and in parallel mapping and rock sampling in Guaclle and Chaupec exploration targets. In 2019 Panoro completed a campaign of 5 holes (992.70 m) in Chaupec target in Cluster 2.

The 2017 - 2019 exploration work has identified new Cu, Au, Ag mineralization with exploration potential in Maria Jose (hosted in volcanics), Petra-David (porphyry), Guaclle (Skarn) and Chaupec (Skarn) was discovered.

Table 1: Summary of Drilling Campaigns

YearNumber of HolesMeters
1995248,538
2002103,252
20072917,785
20128140,467
2013114,946
2017306,633
201862,173
20195993
Total19684,786


Figure 1: Cotabambas property showing exploration targets in the Clusters 1 and 2.
Note the mineral resources PEA pit in blue line in the south extreme of the Cluster 1.

MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATES

Mineral Resources Estimate by SRK 2007

In March 2007 the SRK Consulting technical report estimated mineral resource of 90 million tonnes within the Ccalla Porphyry with average copper grade of 0.77% and average gold grade of 0.42 g/t applying a cut-off grade of 0.4% copper. The technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

March 09, 2007 SRK Technical Report on the Mineral Exploration Properties

Mineral Resources Estimate by AMEC Peru S.A. 2012

In July 2012 the inferred mineral resource was updated to 404.1 Mt at 0.42% Cu, 0.23 g/t Au and 2.84 g/t Ag at a cut-off of 0.20 % Cueq within a Mineral Resource Pit Shell and under the NI 43-101 international standards. The technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

July 24, 2012 AMEC Technical Report on Mineral Resource Estimate

Mineral Resources Estimate by TETRA TECH 2014

In October 2013 Tetra Tech amended a NI 43-101 report containing a mineral resources estimate for the Cotabambas Project, including 117.1 million tonnes at 0.42% Cu, 0.23 g/t Au and 2.74 g/t Ag and 0.0013%Mo as Indicated category and 605.3 million tonnes at 0.31% Cu, 0.17 g/t Au, 2.33 g/t Ag and 0.0019% Mo as Inferred category, at a cut-off of 0.20% Cueq and within a Mineral Resource Pit Shell. The technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below

July 7, 2014 Tetra Tech Technical Report and Resource Estimate

In April 2015 Tetra Tech was engaged to re-code the existing resource model to sub categorise the transitional mineralisation for recoverable portions, as shown in Tables 2 and 3. The PEA technical report by Amec Peru S.A was filed in April 2015 which included the updated and current resource estimate shown in Table 2 and Table 3.

Table 2: Indicated Mineral Resources

ZoneSub-ZoneCut-Off %
Cueq
Mill. TonnesCu
(%)
Au
(g/t)
Ag
(g/t)
Mo
(%)
Hypogene-0.284.200.370.212.730.0018
Supergene-0.28.900.730.313.07 
Oxide Copper-GoldOxides Copper0.25.800.610.122.160.0001
Mixed0.214.100.380.242.630.0000
Oxide Copper-Gold0.23.900.700.413.380.0000
Oxide GoldOxide Goldna0.22 0.643.800
Total indicated0.2117.120.420.222.740.00130

Table 3: Inferred Mineral Resources

ZoneSub-ZoneCut-Off %
Cueq
Mill. TonnesCu
(%)
Au
(g/t)
Ag
(g/t)
Mo
(%)
Hypogene Sulphide 0.2521.000.290.182.410.0021
Supergene Sulphide 0.27.400.730.181.930.0007
Oxide Copper-GoldOxides Copper0.225.800.510.101.470.0005
Mixed0.244.600.350.161.920.0002
Oxide Copper-Gold0.23.500.640.422.780.0001
Oxide Gold na1.20-0.613.270
Total Inferred0.2603.500.310.182.330.0019

The PEA technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

April 9, 2015 AMEC & Tetra Tech Technical Report on Preliminary Economic Assessment

The reclassification of oxide material for leach amenability according to the Amec Foster Wheeler Peru S.A. study was undertaken by Tetra Tech. Inside the Oxide Copper-Gold Zone, sub-zones of Mixed, Oxides Copper and Oxide Copper-Gold were identified using information from sequential copper assay results. These results were announced in April 2015. The model was regularized and extra fields were calculated to report the resources with new categories for this specific zone, to guide future mining studies such as the PEA. The recoding of the oxide zone does not constitute a material change to the previous published Resource.


Figure 2: Typical cross section in Calla deposit showing the four mineral resources domains. See the resources pit in light blue line and the PEA Pit in purple line.

PRELIMINARY ECONOMIC ASSESSMENTS (PEA)

Preliminary Economic Assessment by AMEC, April 2015

The PEA was prepared by Amec Foster Wheeler Perú S.A. ("Amec Foster Wheeler") in accordance with the definitions on the Canadian National Instrument 43-101. The report includes Inferred and Indicated Mineral Resources estimated by Tetra Tech in April 2015. The report also includes hypogene and supergene sulphides and oxide copper and gold mineralization from the Ccalla and to a lesser extent the Azulccacca deposits.

Highlights results include:

  • Pre-tax NPV(7.5%) is US$ 981.7 million, IRR is 17.3% and payback of 3.6 years.
  • After-tax NPV(7.5%) is US$ 627.5 million, IRR is 14.4% and payback of 4.0 years.
  • Conventional open pit mining and flotation processing at a design throughput of 80,000 tonnes per day with a mine life of 19 years.
  • Average annual payable copper of 143.4 million pounds.
  • Average annual payable gold of 88.0 thousand ounces.
  • Average annual payable silver of 967.2 thousand ounces.
  • Average direct cash costs (C1) of US$1.26 per pound of copper, net of by-product credits.
  • Initial project capital costs of US$ 1.38 billion, including contingencies.
  • Good potential for discovery additional mineralization.

Project economics were estimated on the basis of long term consensus metal price forecasts derived from prices periodically published by a number of large banking and financial institutions and included copper at $3.25/lb, gold at $1300/oz and silver at $20.50/oz.

Metallurgical testwork in 2014 was carried out at Certimin Laboratories in Lima, Peru in a program designed and supervised by Amec Foster Wheeler. The current mine plan includes mining of higher grade zones in the early life of mine where higher recoveries may be demonstrated with further test work. The treatment of oxide copper subzone is not included in the PEA. Metallurgical testing to date has shown that copper recoveries from this material in the flotation circuit are low but there is potential to expand the tonnage with more drilling, and the addition of such a circuit remains a future opportunity. The final flotation concentrate will contain copper, gold and silver, free of deleterious elements. After thickening and filtering, the concentrate will be transported by truck to the Matarani seaport in Arequipa, along existing road networks.

The subset of the Mineral Resources contained within the Azulccaca and Ccalla pits that is included in the PEA mine plan is 136.7 Mt averaging 0.35%Cu, 0.20 Au g/t, 2.5 Ag g/t classified as Indicated Mineral Resources, and 397.1 Mt averaging 0.28%Cu, 0.16 Au g/t, 2.21 Ag g/t classified as Inferred Mineral Resources. The mine plan supports a mine life of 19 years. The pit slope angle is 42 degrees OSA and strip ratio of waste/mill of 1.03. More details are presented in the PEA Technical Report.

Opportunities for Project Growth and Enhanced Economics:

  • Copper-Gold Oxide material that will be stockpiled for future opportunity.
  • Good potential to expand the known mineralization in Ccalla and Azulccaca deposits.
  • A gravity circuit inside the flotation flowsheet will be investigated with additional metallurgical testing to investigate the production of doré.
  • Potential to increase higher grade mill feed processed in the early mine life with additional studies to optimize the mine plan.
  • Potential to increase recoveries with additional metallurgical testing and to improve discrimination between metallurgical types within the deposit.
  • As detailed in a June 23, 2014 news release, eight other mineralized prospects have been identified in the general vicinity of the known deposits and represent Project upside potential to add to the known Mineral Resources with additional drilling and technical studies.

The PEA technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

April 9, 2015 AMEC & Tetra Tech Technical Report on Preliminary Economic Assessment

Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment by AMEC and Moose Mountain, September 2015

The results show strongly improved economics compared with PEA results announced on April 2015 as the result of an optimized mine plan and processing cut-off grade strategy along with associated improvements to waste rock and tailings management.

Highlights results include:

  • At the updated base case prices of copper at $3.00/lb, gold at $1,250/oz and silver at $18.50/oz:
    • Pretax economic metrics of:
      • NPV(7.5%) of $US 1,052.6 million, increased from $US 647.9 million;
      • IRR of 20.4%, increased from 14.2%; and
      • Payback of 3.2 years, decreased from 4.4 years.
    • After tax economic metrics of:
      • NPV(7.5%) of $US 683.9 million, increased from $US 379.4 million;
      • IRR of 16.7%, increased from 11.8%; and
      • Payback of 3.6 years, decreased from 4.8 years.
  • Decreased average direct cash costs (C1) to $US1.22 per pound of copper, decreased from $US1.26, net of by product credits.
  • Increased average annual payable metal of:
    • Copper 155.1 million pounds, increased from 143.3 million pounds;
    • Gold 95.1 thousand ounces, increased from 88.0 thousand ounces; and
    • Silver 1,018.4 million ounces, increased from 967.2 thousand ounces.
  • As a comparison only with the now superseded prices used in the April 2015 PEA: copper at $3.25/lb, gold at $1,300/oz and silver at $20.50/oz, after tax economic metrics of:
    • NPV(7.5%) of $US 961.6 million, increased from $US 627.5 million;
    • IRR of 19.9%, increased from 14.4%; and
    • Payback of 3.1 years, decreased from 4.0 years.

The improved project economics have been achieved mainly with mine planning improvements and optimization of cut-off grade strategy. There has been no change to the resource classification from the April 2015 PEA nor has there been a change to the proposed processing throughput of 80,000 tonnes per day. The more significant improvements are listed below:

  • The Updated PEA mine plan has 10% less mill feed tonnes at 7% higher copper grade, 6% higher gold grade and 4% higher silver grade than the April 2015 PEA. There are 10% more waste tonnes in the updated PEA than in the April 2015 PEA.
  • Replacement of crusher, conveyor, tunnel and stacker for Wasterock transport with truck haulage along surface roads resulting in reduced risk of operations disruptions from downtime of crusher, conveyor and stacker.
  • Tailings Dam construction reduced near end of mine life with reduction in mineral resources included in mine plan, resulting in reduced sustaining capital for tailings dam construction.

The initial capital costs have increased from $US 1.38 billion to $US 1.53 billion principally due to the increased mine fleet size to accommodate the haulage of the low grade mineralization to the stockpile. The impacts on the financial metrics from this increase are offset by the:

  • Reduced capital cost due to the elimination of the crusher/tunnel/conveyor/stacker arrangement for wasterock;
  • Reduction in sustaining capital costs for the mine and tailings management; and most significantly,
  • Increased revenues earlier in the mine plan which has significantly improved payback.

The subset of the Mineral Resources contained within the Azulccaca and Ccalla open pits that are included in the updated PEA mine plan is shown in the table below.

Table 4: Subset of Mineral Resources Contained in the Update PEA Mine Plan

ClassificationIn-situ TonnesNSRIn-situ (undiluted) grades
(Million)($US/tonne)Cu (%)Au (g/t)Ag (g/t)
Indicated127.321.10.370.212.58
Inferred355.817.80.300.172.30

The updated PEA technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

September 22, 2015 AMEC & Moose Mountain Technical Report on Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment

Total waste in the mine plan is 604.2 million tonnes for an average LOM strip ratio of 1.25. The mine plan uses a variable cut-off grade strategy to increase the mill feed grade in the earlier parts of the schedule by stockpiling marginal economic material. The stockpiled material is processed towards the end of the mine life. The mine plan supports a mine life of 17 years.

Opportunities for Project Growth and Enhanced Economics:

  • Copper-Gold Oxide mineralization for potential future processing.
  • Good potential to expand the resource with additional drilling in Ccalla and Azulccaca.
  • The potential for a gravity circuit and on-site production of doré with additional met testwork
  • Potential to increase recoveries with additional metallurgical testing.
  • Higher grades of molybdenum have been intersected below and lateral to the current PEA pit limits and with continued exploration success.
  • As detailed in a June 23, 2014 news release, eight other mineralized prospects have been identified in the general vicinity of the known deposits and represent excellent upside potential to add to the known Mineral Resources with additional drilling.

Further work for a Pre-Feasibility Study of the Copper-Gold Oxides mineralization leading the project to a first stage of SX/EW Heap Leaching operation is recommended and will include drilling, engineering and marketing studies, hydrological and geotechnical analysis, as well as various baseline environmental and archeological studies. In addition, exploration work will be conducted over the Skarn targets of Chaupec and Guaclle looking for new high grade copper targets.

Prior to October 2012, the Cotabambas project contained a small, inferred resource with less than 10,000 m of total exploration completed. Since then and through a very tough period in the exploration business, the project resource has grown significantly.  Investment into drilling campaigns and now the PEA has demonstrated the potential positive economics for the project. The PEA provides a positive snapshot of the current technical and economic metrics of the project and identifies potential for growth and optimization. Outside the current mineral resources deposit the Cotabambas project contains eight other exploration targets and most of them in skarn type mineralization, including high grade zones.


Photo 1. Infrastructure facilities for Cotabambas project in the PEA 2015. View from north to south.


Mineral Resources Estimate by AGP 2024

In February 2024 AGP Mining Consultants amended a NI 43-101 report updating the mineral resources estimate, including 507.3 million tonnes at 0.34%Cu, 0.20 g/t Au, 2.42 g/t Ag and 0.0021%Mo, and 0.43%CuEq grade as Indicated category and 496.0 million tonnes at 0.27% Cu, 0.17 g/t Au, 2.53 g/t Ag and 0.0027%Mo, and 0.36%CuEq grade as Inferred category.

A higher grade component within the optimized pit constraint, demonstrating the potential for a high grade starter pit for the project start up.

Highlights

  • A Higher Grade Component of Indicated resource delineated:
    • 129.0 million tonnes at 0.70% Cu, 0.44 g/t Au, 4.12 g/t Ag and 0.0014%Mo, and 0.91% CuEq grade, at a cut-off of 0.5% CuEq;
      • The higher grade component is present within the optimized pit constraint. Tables 5 and 6 show the Mineral Resources at a 0.5% CuEq cut-off grade.
  • Indicated mineral resources has increased by 333%
    • Increased from 117.1 million tonnes to 507.4 million tonnes; and
    • constitutes 51% of total resources
  • Inferred mineral resources has reduced by 18%
    • Decreased from 605.3 million tonnes to 496.0 million tonnes; and
    • constitutes 49% of total resources
  • Contained Metals have increased:
    • 6.7 billion pounds Copper, 29% increase;
    • 6.0 million ounces Gold, 43% increase;
    • 79.8 million ounces Silver, 43% increase; and
    • 53.7 million pounds Molybdenum, 85% increase
  • Waste:Mineral ratio reduced
    • from 2:1 to 0.65:1 for the Base Case
  • Resource remains open to northeast and southwest and at depth
  • Multiple new exploration targets identified into the Cotabambas property.
  • Strong Community relations demonstrated over more than a decade.
  • Current environmental permit allows an additional 450 drilling platforms.

The technical report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report in included below.

February 26, 2024 Technical Report on the Cotabambas Copper Gold Project


Mineral Resource Estimate

AGP Mining Consulting discloses a new resource estimate for the Cotabambas copper and gold deposit, prepared in accordance with the CIM Best Practices and disclosed in accordance with NI 43-101. The mineral resource estimate utilized all drill and assay results available to June 23, 2023, including 73,938 meters of drilling by Panoro distributed in 148 drillholes and 9,923 meters of drilling from legacy campaigns distributed in 27 drillholes. The mineral resource estimate includes hypogene and supergene sulphides and mixed/oxide copper-gold and oxide gold mineralization contained within a single conceptual pit shell that has been modelled to include that portion of the mineral resource block model having a reasonable prospect for economic extraction.

The wireframes for the Cotabambas deposit were developed based on mineralization to constrain the interpreted mineralized domains. Latite dikes were clipped from the principal mineralized domains and separated into latite oxide and latite sulfide domains.

The mineral resource estimate in the Indicated and Inferred Categories are summarized in Tables 1 and 2 below. See links to following Figures for illustration:

  • Plan 1 - North Pit, South Pit and Expansion Targets’ Plan
  • Section 1a - North Pit Lithology
  • Section 1b - North Pit Block Model
  • Section 2a - South Pit Lithology
  • Section 2b - South Pit Block Model


Mineral Resource Statement

Table 1: Mineral Resource in Indicated Category Classified by Mineralization Type

Zone

Cut-Off
Grade
% CuEq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

Leach

0.15

17.0

0.19

0.22

1.80

0.0017

0.28

71

0.12

0.98

0.64

Oxide Cu*

0.15

24.7

0.31

0.22

2.26

0.0014

0.41

169

0.17

1.79

0.76

Oxide Cu-Au*

0.15

17.3

0.43

0.15

1.79

0.0015

0.50

164

0.08

1.00

0.57

Mixed

0.15

32.3

0.46

0.22

2.29

0.0014

0.58

330

0.23

2.38

1.00

Supergene

0.15

3.6

1.36

0.34

3.51

0.0015

1.53

109

0.04

0.41

0.12

Hypogene

0.15

412.5

0.32

0.20

2.48

0.0023

0.42

2,910

2.65

32.89

20.92

Total

0.15

507.3

0.33

0.20

2.42

0.0021

0.43

3,753

3.29

39.45

24.02

Note: Base case in bold. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Summation errors may occur due to rounding. Open pit mineral resources are reported within optimized constraining shell. Reported open pit cut-off grade is 0.15%CuEq. Breakeven open pit cut-off grade is 0.07% CuEq. Mineral Resources have an effective date of November 20, 2023.  The Qualified Person responsible for this resource statement is Paul Daigle, P.Geo. (APGO, 1592). . Copper equivalent ( CuEq) is calculated using the equations: Oxide: CuEq = Cu + 0.4126*Au + 0.0038*Ag + 0.000*Mo; Mixed: CuEq = Cu + 0.5819*Au + 0.0063*Ag + 0.0003*Mo; Supergene: CuEq = Cu + 0.4498*Au + 0.0054*Ag + 0.0002*Mo; and Hypogene: CuEq = Cu + 0.4373*Au+0.0053*Ag+0.0002*Mo, based on the differentials of long range metal prices net of selling costs and metallurgical recoveries for gold and copper and silver. Metal prices for the CuEq formulas are: US$ 4.25/lb Cu, US$ 1,850 /Oz Au; US$ 23.00 /Oz Ag; and US$ 20.00 /lb Mo. Metal recoveries for the CuEq formulas are for Oxide: 0.0% Cu, 65% Au, 48% Ag, and 0.0% Mo; for Mixed: 60% Cu, 55% Au, 48% Ag, 40% Mo; for Supergene: 87.5% Cu, 62% Au, 60.4% Ag, 40% Mo; and for Hypogene: 90% Cu, 62% Au, 60.4% Ag and 40% Mo. Capping of grades varied between 0.50 %Cu and 3.7%Cu, 0.33 g/t Au and 2.3 g/t Au, and between 0.029%Mo and 0.060%Mo; on 6m composites by domain. The density varies between 2.20 g/cm3 and 2.66 g/cm3. Mineralization would be mined from open pit and treated using conventional flotation. Rounding in accordance with reporting guidelines may result in summation differences. *Oxide Cu - amenable to leaching; Oxide Cu-Au amenable to blending with sulphides (Au >0.25 g/t).


Table 2: Mineral Resource in Inferred Category Classified by Mineralization Type

Zone

Cut-Off
Grade
% Cueq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

Leach

0.15

5.1

0.15

0.10

1.72

0.0016

0.19

17

0.02

0.28

0.18

Oxide Cu*

0.15

12.6

0.24

0.12

1.82

0.0015

0.30

67

0.05

0.74

0.42

Oxide Cu-Au*

0.15

8.7

0.37

0.10

1.59

0.0018

0.42

71

0.03

0.44

0.34

Mixed

0.15

7.1

0.18

0.15

4.57

0.0013

0.29

29

0.04

1.04

0.20

Supergene

0.15

1.90

0.82

0.46

3.95

0.0018

1.05

35

0.03

0.24

0.08

Hypogene

0.15

460.6

0.27

0.17

2.54

0.0028

0.36

2,742

2.52

37.61

28.43

Total

0.15

496.0

0.27

0.17

2.53

0.0027

0.36

2,961

2.69

40.86

29.49

Note: Base case in bold. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Summation errors may occur due to rounding. Open pit mineral resources are reported within optimized constraining shell. Reported open pit cut-off grade is 0.15%CuEq. Breakeven Open pit cut-off grade is 0.07% CuEq. Mineral Resources have an effective date of November 20, 2023. The Qualified Person responsible for this resource statement is Paul Daigle, P.Geo. (APGO, 1592). Copper equivalent ( CuEq) is calculated using the equations: Oxide: CuEq = Cu + 0.4126*Au + 0.0038*Ag + 0.000*Mo; Mixed: CuEq = Cu + 0.5819*Au + 0.0063*Ag + 0.0003*Mo; Supergene: CuEq = Cu + 0.4498*Au + 0.0054*Ag + 0.0002*Mo; and Hypogene: CuEq = Cu + 0.4373*Au+0.0053*Ag+0.0002*Mo, based on the differentials of long range metal prices net of selling costs and metallurgical recoveries for gold and copper and silver. Metal prices for the CuEq formulas are: US$ 4.25/lb Cu, US$ 1,850 /Oz Au; US$ 23.00 /Oz Ag; and US$ 20.00 /lb Mo. Metal recoveries for the CuEq formulas are for Oxide: 0.0% Cu, 65% Au, 48% Ag, and 0.0% Mo; for Mixed: 60% Cu, 55% Au, 48% Ag, 40% Mo; for Supergene: 87.5% Cu, 62% Au, 60.4% Ag, 40% Mo; and for Hypogene: 90% Cu, 62% Au, 60.4% Ag and 40% Mo. Capping of grades varied between 0.50 %Cu and 3.7%Cu, 0.33 g/t Au and 2.3 g/t Au, and between 0.029%Mo and 0.060%Mo; on 6m composites by domain. The density varies between 2.20 g/cm3 and 2.66 g/cm3. Mineralization would be mined from open pit and treated using conventional flotation. Rounding in accordance with reporting guidelines may result in summation differences. *Oxide Cu - amenable to leaching; Oxide Cu-Au amenable to blending with sulphides (Au >0.25 g/t).


Grade Sensitivity

Table 3: Sensitivity of Indicated Mineral Resource to Cut-off Grade

Cut-Off
Grade
% Cueq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

0.07

648.3

0.28

0.16

2.18

0.0021

0.36

4,023

3.39

45.37

29.42

0.10

579.5

0.30

0.18

2.29

0.0022

0.39

3,882

3.41

42.62

27.47

0.15

507.3

0.34

0.20

2.42

0.0021

0.43

3,753

3.29

39.45

24.02

0.20

417.7

0.38

0.23

2.61

0.0020

0.49

3,468

3.09

35.00

18.13

0.30

254.0

0.49

0.32

3.14

0.0017

0.65

2,745

2.60

25.62

9.50

0.40

166.9

0.61

0.39

3.72

0.0014

0.81

2,250

2.10

19.97

5.15

0.50

129.0

0.70

0.44

4.12

0.0014

0.91

1,985

1.83

17.09

3.96

Note: Base case in bold. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Summation errors may occur due to rounding.

The previous mineral resources (Tetra Tech, 2014) contained 46.3 Million tonnes averaging 0.70%Cu, 0.38 Au g/t, 3.82 Ag g/t and 0.0002%Mo at 0.50%CuEq cut-off.  At similar grades, the new resource demonstrates a 296% increase in high-grade resource, including higher gold and silver grades, reflecting the high precious metals content in the South pit.


Table 4: Sensitivity of Inferred Mineral Resource to Cut-off Grade

Cut-Off
Grade
% Cueq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

0.07

1,101.2

0.16

0.10

1.87

0.0023

0.22

3,841

3.45

66.10

55.87

0.10

760.4

0.21

0.13

2.13

0.0026

0.28

3,492

3.12

52.15

43.54

0.15

496.0

0.27

0.17

2.53

0.0027

0.36

2,961

2.69

40.35

29.65

0.20

362.9

0.32

0.21

2.86

0.0028

0.42

2,569

2.40

33.33

22.47

0.30

202.1

0.42

0.28

3.68

0.0029

0.56

1,869

1.82

23.88

12.86

0.40

118.1

0.54

0.37

4.73

0.0026

0.72

1,403

1.39

17.95

6.83

0.50

93.1

0.59

0.41

5.31

0.0025

0.80

1,217

1.23

15.90

5.23

Note: Base case in bold. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Summation errors may occur due to rounding.


Higher Grade Component of Mineral Resources

Table 5: Indicated Mineral Resources at a 0.5 %CuEq Cut-off Grade by Mineralization Domain within optimized pit constraint

Zone

Cut-Off
Grade
% CuEq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

Leach

0.5

1.4

0.48

0.33

2.50

0.0014

0.62

15

0.02

0.11

0.04

Oxide Cu

0.5

6.1

0.62

0.32

3.36

0.0012

0.77

83

0.06

0.65

0.16

Oxide Cu-Au

0.5

6.4

0.66

0.15

1.80

0.0015

0.74

93

0.03

0.37

0.21

Mixed

0.5

16.8

0.66

0.30

2.79

0.0014

0.82

245

0.16

1.51

0.50

Supergene

0.5

3.6

1.36

0.34

3.51

0.0015

1.53

109

0.04

0.41

0.12

Hypogene

0.5

94.7

0.69

0.50

4.61

0.0014

0.93

1,440

1.52

14.03

2.92

Total

0.5

129.0

0.70

0.44

4.12

0.0014

0.91

1,985

1.83

17.09

3.96

Note: Summation errors may occur due to rounding. Higher Grade Mineral Resources are included within the Indicated Mineral Resources listed in Table 2.


Table 6: Inferred Mineral Resources at a 0.5 %CuEq Cut-off Grade by Mineralization Domain within optimized pit constraint

Zone

Cut-Off
Grade
% CuEq

Million
Tonnes

Cu
(%)

Au
(g/t)

Ag
(g/t)

Mo
(%)

CuEq
(%)

Cu
(Mlb)

Au
(Moz)

Ag
(Moz)

Mo
(Mlb)

Leach

0.5

0.06

0.44

0.30

2.58

0.0015

0.58

1

0.001

0.01

0.002

Cu

0.5

1.0

0.53

0.15

2.24

0.0016

0.60

12

0.005

0.07

0.04

Oxide Cu-Au

0.5

1.8

0.57

0.10

1.53

0.0018

0.61

23

0.01

0.09

0.07

Mixed

0.5

0.4

0.44

0.25

2.77

0.0011

0.57

4

0.003

0.04

0.01

Supergene

0.5

1.9

0.82

0.46

3.97

0.0018

1.05

35

0.03

0.24

0.08

Hypogene

0.5

87.8

0.59

0.42

5.47

0.0026

0.80

1,143

1.19

15.45

5.04

Total

0.5

93.1

0.59

0.41

5.31

0.0025

0.80

1,217

1.23

15.90

5.23

Note: Summation errors may occur due to rounding. Higher Grade Mineral Resources are included within the Inferred Mineral Resources listed in Table 4.


Reasonable Prospects for Eventual Economic Extraction

Table 7: Optimized Pit Parameters for the Cotabambas Deposit

Parameters

Units

Oxide, Leach
Domain

Mix
Domain

Supergene
Domain

Hypogene
Domains

Metal Prices

 

 

 

 

 

Copper

$US/lb

4.25

4.25

4.25

4.25

Gold

$US/oz

1850

1850

1850

1850

Silver

$US/oz

23

23

23

23

Molybdenum

$US/lb

20

20

20

20

Metal Recoveries

 

 

 

 

 

Copper

%

-

60

87.5

90

Gold

%

65

55

62

62

Silver

%

48

48

60.4

60.4

               Molybdenum

%

-

40

40

40

Other Costs

 

 

 

 

 

               Mining Cost

$US/t

2.00

2.00

2.00

2.00

Processing Cost

$US/t

4.79

4.79

4.79

4.79

               G&A Cost

$US/t

0.41

0.41

0.41

0.41

Pit Slope

 

 

 

 

 

               Overall Slope Angle

degrees

47

47

47

47

Dilution

 

 

 

 

 

               Mine Dilution

%

3

3

3

3

               Ore Loss

%

3

3

3

3


Exploration Potential

The Cotabambas Project has a number of areas with significant exploration potential:

  • Local scale. The stated Mineral Resources at 0.15% CuEq cut-off are a pit-constrained subset of the mineralization block model, where substantial mineralization with higher grades targets extends in different directions. See Plan 1:

    i) NE pit target: the high grades at the North Pit (>1.0 %CuEq) make up a corridor of 250m width by 800m length in the northeast direction, which is displaced by an east-west fault. To the north of this fault the area is covered by colluvium representing a promising potential for future drilling and its 2km continuity may connect with the Maria Jose target.

    ii) SW pit target: the high grades into the South pit (>1.0 %CuEq) make up a structural corridor of 150m width by 350m length, elongated in southwest direction and open for additional drilling. The geology at surface is composed of a mix of quartz monzonite and latite dikes in the same direction, outcropping along 1.5km.

    iii) Intermedium Zone target: located in the area between the North and South pits at the convergence of two main faulting systems in North-South and East-West direction. This structural complexity displaces the mineralization down to the north side and indicates a favorable direction to continue drilling the high-grade body.

    iv) Ccalla East target: this is another porphyry located between 150m to 450m next to the East side of the mineral resources of the North pit, intersected by some drillholes hide some 150m below the diorite host rock outcroppings. The hole CB-68 intersected 194m of hypogene sulfides averaging 0.60%Cu, 0.24 Au g/t and 4.10 Ag g/t. The mineral of this target remains outside of the limits of the new mineral resources pit shell and may represent a split of the Intermedium zone target.

    v) NW pit target: located between 400m to 1.5km to the Northwest of the North Pit, grouping the areas of Petra/David drilled in 2017-2018 and the Guaclle Skarn drilled in 2023, accumulating 2,760m of drilling in this target. In Petra-David there are a swarm of quartz-monzonite porphyry dikes with drill intersections up to 79m of copper oxides averaging 0.32%Cu, 0.08 Au g/t, and in Guaclle Skarn two holes intersecting hypogene sulfides of 28m length grading 1.50%Cu, 5,79 Ag g/t and 70m length averaging 0.47%Cu, 2.46 Ag g/t.

    vi) Deep Continuity: under the conceptual pit shell constraining the new mineral resources the high grade blocks continue open at depth, following the contact between the porphyry stock and the diorite host rock, but mainly inside the porphyry domain; representing attractive potential to grow the current resources with additional drilling.
  • District scale. All the targets described in the “Local Scale” make up a cluster of 3km width by 6 km length, where two other targets are incorporated to the north, Buenavista and the Maria Jose Targets (see Plan 1). The mineralization in both targets were identified at surface with mapping and sampling.  At Maria Jose geophysics and 5,119m of drilling in 2017-2018 identified intersections in hypogene sulfides of 195m averaging 0.34%Cu, 0.06 Au g/t, 1.60 Ag g/t and 128m grading 0.41%Cu, 0.06 Au g/t, 2.0 Ag g/t, both related with porphyry feeders. Also identified were a swarm of porphyry dikes generating 5 mineral bodies varying from 11 to 19m width and grading between 0.41%Cu to 1.03%Cu. The Maria Jose target is located 1.5km to the North-Northeast side of the mineral resources pit shell and is conform by two mineralized porphyry feeders and a swarm of mineralized dikes intruding the andesite host rock.
     
  • Property scale. Elsewhere on the property, stream sediment geochemistry and surface mapping have identified six new exploration targets with anomalous levels of copper, gold, molybdenum, lead and/or zinc. The most important were identified over the ridges in the southern areas of the property, such as the porphyry/skarn-style mineralization of Jean Louis, Chaupec and Tamburo targets (See Plan 2). Jean Louis Skarn prospect was mapped in 2014 over an area of 2.8km by 1.6km, based on surface mapping, 433 rock samples and 46 Km of IP/Mag/SP. The Chaupec Skarn was mapped in 2016-2018 over an area of 1km by 3km, based on mapping, 1,997 rock samples, 64km IP, 88km Mag, and 46 km SP. Tamburo target is a new high-grade Skarn body of 60mx30m size exposed in underground workings and remains open in different directions, requires detailed exploration.
     

The Mineral Resources Technical Report is posted on SEDAR and a link to the report is included below.

February 26, 2024 Technical Report on the Cotabambas Copper Gold Project


Luis Vela, P. Geo., Vice President of Exploration for Panoro and a "qualified person" under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information.



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