Maiden drilling at Bornite Hills reveals visual copper mineralisation
Copper system remains open along strike and at depth for further exploration
Assays due in October; results to guide follow-up exploration programs
Special Report: White Cliff Minerals has opened a fresh copper exploration front at its Rae project in northern Canada, with first-ever drilling at Bornite Hills tracing mineralisation beneath a historical surface showing.
White Cliff Minerals (ASX:WCN) reported broad zones of bornite-dominant mineralisation, including semi-massive bornite, and a second intersection containing bornite and chalcopyrite in veins and breccias.
Bornite is a copper-iron sulphide mineral that contains about 63% copper by weight, making it one of the richer naturally occurring copper minerals.
The observations so far have been limited to visual assessments, with samples dispatched for laboratory testing and official assays expected in October.
WCN managing director Troy Whittaker said Bornite Hills is an important new discovery, particularly because the recent drilling represents the first holes ever drilled at the target.
“We have intersected broad bornite-dominant mineralisation, including intervals of semi-massive bornite, more than 60 metres below a historical surface occurrence that returned 3.66m at 46.99% copper,” he said.
“The mineralised structure remains largely untested across approximately 725m of prospective strike and at depth.
“Bornite Hills is approximately 32 kilometres from Danvers and adds another compelling copper discovery across Rae.”
Whittaker also said the company now has a clear follow-up target at Bornite Hills, while new airborne magnetic, gravity and radiometric survey data will help map the wider structural and sedimentary system, and prioritise the strongest targets for 2027 drilling.
The Rae copper project plan. Pic: WCN
Pipeline of copper targets
Bornite Hills sits on a subsidiary structure of the Herb Dixon Fault Zone, a major regional pathway interpreted to have carried copper-bearing fluids.
The structure cuts basalt and contains quartz-carbonate veins and breccias, or broken rock cemented by later minerals.
Banded veins and complex breccia textures point to repeated episodes of fluid flow and mineralisation.
White Cliff says approximately 725m of prospective strike remains largely untested, with the system also open at depth.
Historical trenching returned 3.66m at 46.99% copper, providing the original surface target.
Elsewhere at Rae, WCN has drilled eight additional diamond holes to test a separate sediment-hosted copper target along the boundary between the Rae Group and the underlying Husky Creek Formation.
The company reports copper occurrences across a footprint of more than 10km², with reported assays including 1.14m at 0.35% copper from 238.1m and 4.46m at 0.19% from 204.7m, helping identify a regional copper-bearing horizon for further exploration targeting.
White Cliff has commissioned Sander Geophysics to survey more than 70km of the geological contact using magnetic, gravity and radiometric measurements. Combined with earlier geophysics and drilling, the data will help rank targets for 2027.
The survey will also cover the Thor and Rocket prospects, where White Cliff plans to apply lessons from the Danvers project exploration model.
More from WCN
Copper demand puts new targets in focus
Copper’s ability to conduct electricity and heat makes it central to wiring, motors, generators and cooling equipment. Expanding electricity networks and electrification therefore require more of the metal.
The International Energy Agency’s 2026 outlook warned that the current project pipeline could leave copper supply about 25% short of projected requirements by 2035.
Falling ore grades, higher project costs, scarce discoveries and lengthy development timelines constrain the supply response.
Prices have reflected that tension, alongside shifting trade expectations.
Reuters reported three-month London Metal Exchange copper prices at US$14,065/t on September 14, following a retreat from record levels as inventories rose and uncertainty over US tariffs unsettled the market.
The International Copper Association Australia’s September 18 brief put its base-case outlook for the following month at US$13,600-14,400/t.
That forecast highlights the potential for further volatility even against a supportive longer-term demand backdrop.
Rae sits within an active regional copper search. Somerset Minerals’ Coppermine project includes Coronation immediately south of Danvers and Ardbeg south of White Cliff’s Thor and Rocket targets.
Further afield in Nunavut, American West Metals and Aston Bay are advancing the Storm project on Somerset Island, which is progressing to the prefeasibility and permitting work stages.
For White Cliff, Hancock Prospecting’s conditional $8.77m placement commitment offers a funding pathway to accelerate Rae exploration.
The company is also currently running two diamond rigs at the Danvers project, targeting infill and step-out drilling.
At the Rae project’s Bornite Hills prospect, October assays will provide the first laboratory measure of copper grades to guide the next round of exploration.
This article was developed in collaboration with White Cliff Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
Maiden drilling at Bornite Hills reveals visual copper mineralisation
Copper system remains open along strike and at depth for further exploration
Assays due in October; results to guide follow-up exploration programs
Special Report: White Cliff Minerals has opened a fresh copper exploration front at its Rae project in northern Canada, with first-ever drilling at Bornite Hills tracing mineralisation beneath a historical surface showing.
White Cliff Minerals (ASX:WCN) reported broad zones of bornite-dominant mineralisation, including semi-massive bornite, and a second intersection containing bornite and chalcopyrite in veins and breccias.
Bornite is a copper-iron sulphide mineral that contains about 63% copper by weight, making it one of the richer naturally occurring copper minerals.
The observations so far have been limited to visual assessments, with samples dispatched for laboratory testing and official assays expected in October.
WCN managing director Troy Whittaker said Bornite Hills is an important new discovery, particularly because the recent drilling represents the first holes ever drilled at the target.
“We have intersected broad bornite-dominant mineralisation, including intervals of semi-massive bornite, more than 60 metres below a historical surface occurrence that returned 3.66m at 46.99% copper,” he said.
“The mineralised structure remains largely untested across approximately 725m of prospective strike and at depth.
“Bornite Hills is approximately 32 kilometres from Danvers and adds another compelling copper discovery across Rae.”
Whittaker also said the company now has a clear follow-up target at Bornite Hills, while new airborne magnetic, gravity and radiometric survey data will help map the wider structural and sedimentary system, and prioritise the strongest targets for 2027 drilling.
Pipeline of copper targets
Bornite Hills sits on a subsidiary structure of the Herb Dixon Fault Zone, a major regional pathway interpreted to have carried copper-bearing fluids.
The structure cuts basalt and contains quartz-carbonate veins and breccias, or broken rock cemented by later minerals.
Banded veins and complex breccia textures point to repeated episodes of fluid flow and mineralisation.
White Cliff says approximately 725m of prospective strike remains largely untested, with the system also open at depth.
Historical trenching returned 3.66m at 46.99% copper, providing the original surface target.
Elsewhere at Rae, WCN has drilled eight additional diamond holes to test a separate sediment-hosted copper target along the boundary between the Rae Group and the underlying Husky Creek Formation.
The company reports copper occurrences across a footprint of more than 10km², with reported assays including 1.14m at 0.35% copper from 238.1m and 4.46m at 0.19% from 204.7m, helping identify a regional copper-bearing horizon for further exploration targeting.
White Cliff has commissioned Sander Geophysics to survey more than 70km of the geological contact using magnetic, gravity and radiometric measurements. Combined with earlier geophysics and drilling, the data will help rank targets for 2027.
The survey will also cover the Thor and Rocket prospects, where White Cliff plans to apply lessons from the Danvers project exploration model.
More from WCN
Copper demand puts new targets in focus
Copper’s ability to conduct electricity and heat makes it central to wiring, motors, generators and cooling equipment. Expanding electricity networks and electrification therefore require more of the metal.
The International Energy Agency’s 2026 outlook warned that the current project pipeline could leave copper supply about 25% short of projected requirements by 2035.
Falling ore grades, higher project costs, scarce discoveries and lengthy development timelines constrain the supply response.
Prices have reflected that tension, alongside shifting trade expectations.
Reuters reported three-month London Metal Exchange copper prices at US$14,065/t on September 14, following a retreat from record levels as inventories rose and uncertainty over US tariffs unsettled the market.
The International Copper Association Australia’s September 18 brief put its base-case outlook for the following month at US$13,600-14,400/t.
That forecast highlights the potential for further volatility even against a supportive longer-term demand backdrop.
Rae sits within an active regional copper search. Somerset Minerals’ Coppermine project includes Coronation immediately south of Danvers and Ardbeg south of White Cliff’s Thor and Rocket targets.
Further afield in Nunavut, American West Metals and Aston Bay are advancing the Storm project on Somerset Island, which is progressing to the prefeasibility and permitting work stages.
For White Cliff, Hancock Prospecting’s conditional $8.77m placement commitment offers a funding pathway to accelerate Rae exploration.
The company is also currently running two diamond rigs at the Danvers project, targeting infill and step-out drilling.
At the Rae project’s Bornite Hills prospect, October assays will provide the first laboratory measure of copper grades to guide the next round of exploration.
This article was developed in collaboration with White Cliff Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.