Koryx completes Haib drilling
Koryx Copper is targeting November for the release of a pre-feasibility study (PFS) on its Haib copper project in southern Namibia after completing about 48 000 metres of drilling.
The drilling programme was aimed at converting a substantial portion of Haib’s Inferred Mineral Resource into the higher-confidence Indicated category ahead of the study’s resource cut-off.
Koryx senior geologist Russell Cranswick said the company had initially planned to complete 50 000 metres by late July, but finished with about 48 000 metres.
“At the peak of the programme, we had 15 drill rigs operating, seven of them on double shifts,” Cranswick said in an interview with VSA Capital.
“We really went in for the kill. We want to convert as much of our inferred into indicated category.”
The drilling is feeding into the PFS, which is expected to provide a more detailed assessment of the capital requirements, mine configuration and economics of developing Haib, one of Namibia’s largest undeveloped copper deposits.
“We expect to release the PFS sort of in November, if I’m not mistaken,” Cranswick said.
Haib has more than 2 million tonnes of contained copper in the Indicated category, according to figures cited by Cranswick from Koryx’s March preliminary economic assessment, with a further roughly 1.4 million tonnes in the Inferred category.
The latest drilling campaign is intended to improve resource confidence and provide the technical data required to advance the project towards a potential development decision.
Haib is an ancient porphyry copper system in the //Karas Region, near Namibia’s border with South Africa and about eight kilometres north of the Orange River.
The deposit is approximately 1.88 billion years old, with disseminated copper mineralisation associated with granitoid intrusions.
Its large scale has long been recognised, but relatively low grades, challenging terrain and the capital required to develop a large-scale operation have historically constrained the project.
Koryx is now reassessing Haib using modern exploration, mining and processing approaches, with the PFS expected to provide a clearer indication of whether the project can support a commercial operation.
Water infrastructure is also being assessed as part of the development studies. Cranswick said current engineering work envisages a storage dam that would be filled by pumping during periods of high flow in the Orange River.
“We’ll have a water storage dam that will only pump during high flow periods,” he said, adding that the company was mindful of concerns among farmers and downstream water users.
Koryx plans to continue exploration beyond the PFS, including deeper drilling in selected areas where mineralisation appears to extend at depth and testing its lateral continuity.
The company also plans to revisit regional targets along strike from the main deposit, including geochemical anomalies and areas where previous operators conducted limited drilling.
