Centaurus Metals has reported significant high-grade copper intersections alongside extensive iron ore mineralisation at its Boi Novo Project in Brazil, underscoring the site’s growing potential. Ongoing drilling and metallurgical testing aim to unlock further value from this strategically located asset.
- 36.7m at 1.58% copper including 9.2m at 2.73% copper at Nelore Prospect
- 24.5m at 0.96% copper from surface in oxide zone
- Broad iron ore zones over 6km strike with assays up to 41.2m at 39.4% iron
- Metallurgical testwork underway to assess high-grade iron concentrate potential
- Project located near major infrastructure including Vale and BHP facilities
Copper Discoveries Deepen at Nelore Prospect
Centaurus Metals Limited has delivered encouraging exploration results from its 100%-owned Boi Novo Copper-Gold Project in Brazil’s prolific Carajás Mineral Province. Recent drilling has confirmed the continuity of high-grade copper mineralisation within breccia pipes at the Nelore Prospect, with standout intercepts including 36.7 metres grading 1.58% copper from 219.5 metres depth, featuring a higher-grade core of 9.2 metres at 2.73% copper. These results extend the known mineralisation down-plunge and along strike, highlighting the prospect’s robust potential.
Notably, the drilling also intersected a 24.5-metre oxide copper zone from surface, grading 0.96% copper, which could offer near-term processing advantages. The copper mineralisation is structurally controlled, associated with chalcopyrite-rich sulphide breccias adjacent to a granitic dyke, a setting that suggests further extensions remain to be tested at depth and along strike.
Iron Ore Emerges as a New Opportunity
Beyond copper, the Boi Novo drilling program has unexpectedly revealed extensive itabirite iron ore mineralisation across a strike length exceeding 6 kilometres. Assays from multiple drill holes returned broad intersections of iron-rich bands, with grades reaching up to 39.4% iron over 41.2 metres from surface. Although iron was not the initial exploration target, these findings open a compelling new dimension for the project.
Centaurus has already initiated metallurgical testwork at the Fundação Gorceix laboratory in Brazil to evaluate the potential to produce a high-grade iron concentrate exceeding 65% iron content. This could significantly enhance the project’s value proposition, especially given the proximity to established infrastructure.
Strategic Location and Infrastructure Advantages
The Boi Novo Project benefits from a highly favourable logistical position, situated just 35 kilometres from Vale’s copper-gold concentrate load-out facility at Parauapebas and less than 20 kilometres from BHP’s Antas Norte copper flotation plant. This proximity to major processing hubs could facilitate future development and reduce capital expenditure requirements.
Centaurus continues to advance its exploration with ongoing diamond drilling, electromagnetic surveys, and structural analysis to delineate further copper targets and test the extent of iron mineralisation. The company’s systematic approach integrates modern geophysical techniques, including Fixed Loop and Down Hole Electro-Magnetic surveys, to refine drill targeting.
Outlook and Next Steps
While the copper results reinforce Boi Novo’s status as a promising IOCG-style deposit, the discovery of significant iron ore mineralisation adds a valuable new facet to the project’s development potential. The upcoming metallurgical results and planned exploration target estimates will be critical in shaping the next phase of resource definition and feasibility studies.
Centaurus’ Managing Director, Darren Gordon, emphasised the dual commodity opportunity and the strategic advantages of the project’s location, signaling a potentially transformative stage for Boi Novo as it moves closer to unlocking its full resource potential.
Bottom Line?
With copper continuity confirmed and iron ore potential emerging, Boi Novo’s next drill results and metallurgical tests will be pivotal.
Questions in the middle?
- Will metallurgical testing confirm the ability to produce a high-grade iron concentrate economically?
- How extensive and continuous is the copper mineralisation below the granitic dyke and along strike?
- What are the timelines and capital requirements for advancing Boi Novo towards resource estimation and development?