Latitude 66 plans innovative RC program targeting Finnish gold/cobalt

Latitude 66 is gearing up for an innovative exploration initiative at its flagship Kuusamo Schist Belt (KSB) gold-cobalt project in Finland, with plans to deploy reverse circulation (RC) drilling for the first time in the region.

The company has locked in an agreement with a local contractor to trial the RC technique this March at its K6 prospects, which lie just 1km south of its existing 650,000-ounce gold and 5840-tonnes cobalt mineral resource. 

The move marks an innovative step for Latitude 66, as RC drilling is not widely used in Europe outside of mine development.

If successful, it could significantly cut the company’s costs and accelerate target testing across the broader KSB project area.

The company plans to target extensions of the existing deposit and its satellite prospects to expand a resource big enough to justify a standalone operation.

Back in Australia, Carnaby Resources has jagged shallow high-grade copper at the Burke and Wills prospect in Queensland, which it shares with Latitude 66. The prospect is part of the two companies’ Greater Duchess joint venture area.

The program jagged up to 4.9 per cent copper plus gold grading as high as 2.8 grams per tonne (g/t) from just 22 metres depth at Burke and Wills.

Ten holes were drilled to define the geometry of the deposit and to test for extensions of the upper section of the prospect in which Latitude holds a 17.5pc free-carried interest. Every hole intersected mineralisation.

Further drilling at Lady Fanny and Nil Desperandum - two more prospects in which Latitude owns a 17.5pc free-carried holding - also came up trumps.

Latitude says the results from all three prospects continue to demonstrate the massive upside for resource growth at the Greater Duchess project, which is just 70 kilometres south of Mt Isa. 

The jointly owned project is undergoing prefeasibility studies led by Carnaby and hosts a global resource of 281,000t copper equivalent. 

The study, expected to be received within months, has been given a recent big leg up with Carnaby’s acquisition of the nearby Trekelano copper-gold deposit from Chinova Resources, which holds 85,000t of copper equivalent grading at 1.6pc.

Carnaby also signed a binding offtake agreement with mining giant Glencore to toll 100pc of the fresh sulphide ore and concentrate at Greater Duchess. 

To fund the Trekelano acquisition, Carnaby raised $17 million in fresh equity, with Glencore subscribing to $3.3m worth of the new shares at 31 cents.

While the Carnaby joint venture has been kicking along, Latitude has also been finalising its much-anticipated KSB scoping study, which is on track for release later this quarter. 

With two high-impact developments on the horizon, Latitude’s dual focus on copper and gold is likely to capture the punters’ attention in the coming months as it moves closer to unlocking significant value across its global portfolio.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au