Vantage Metals hits target contact in Botswana copper drilling

Chanoga drilling reaches its first geological target

Vantage Metals Limited (ASX:VAN) has achieved the first major objective of its maiden drilling campaign in Botswana, intersecting the Ngwako Pan-D’Kar contact at the Chanoga Prospect. The stratigraphic boundary is regarded by the company as the principal geological control associated with copper-silver mineralisation across the Kalahari Copper Belt.

“Oblique section looking N through enhanced magnetic inversion model across PL773, PL299 (under application) and PL2743 with interpreted geology and basin architecture.”

“Chanoga Prospect Cross Section - first fence of holes drilled across the D’Kar-Ngwako Pan contact position at the Kalahari Copper Project, Botswana.”

Caption and image © Vantage Metals Limited. From “Quarterly Activities/Appendix 5B Cash Flow Report”, 29 Oct 2026.

The contact was cut in hole CHD005R on the first completed drill fence, providing a geological calibration point for the company’s geophysical interpretation. Trace chalcopyrite and bornite were observed across several intervals, including 8.51 metres in arkose and a 1.81-metre interval where bornite was recorded. The company defines “trace” as less than 1% visual abundance, and has cautioned that these observations are not a substitute for laboratory assays, expected in four to six weeks.

The result builds on the placeholder

“Diamond drilling rig at the Chanoga Prospect, KCP.”

With drilling continuing through at least November, hole CHD007 is testing the down-dip extent of the anomalous zone. Vantage says geological observations from CHD005R, downhole data and rock-property measurements will be combined with magnetic datasets to refine the three-dimensional model and guide follow-up drilling along strike and down-dip.

Soil anomalies widen the Botswana target set

Vantage has also reported anomalous copper and silver results from ionic soil sampling across PL0773 and PL2743. The company says the anomalies are significant because the targets sit beneath Kalahari Desert sands, which can make conventional surface geochemistry more difficult to interpret.

“Enhanced image of the regional airborne Magnetics with licences and provisional interpretation.”

Caption and image © Vantage Metals Limited. From “Quarterly Activities/Appendix 5B Cash Flow Report”, 29 Oct 2026.

A coherent anomaly in the southeast of PL2743 coincides with a high-priority segment of the interpreted Ngwako Pan-D’Kar contact. Sampling has now been expanded over extensions of that contact, while additional airborne electromagnetic interpretation has identified further targets for upcoming drilling. The broader Kalahari Copper Project covers about 2,500 square kilometres and lies within 100 kilometres of MMG’s Khoemacau copper operations.

Cash runway remains the immediate constraint

The exploration results arrive with a sharper financial consideration. Vantage ended September with A$723,000 in cash and no debt, after net operating cash outflows of A$2.397 million during the quarter. On the company’s own calculation, that represented approximately 0.3 quarters of funding, with no unused finance facilities available.

After quarter end, Minerals 260 exercised its option to acquire the Bullabulling Project, delivering a final A$500,000 cash consideration on top of an earlier A$150,000 option fee. Vantage said it is evaluating capital-management and funding alternatives, but did not specify the structure or timing of any future funding. The gap between an encouraging exploration program and a short reported cash runway is therefore likely to remain central to the story.

Argentina drilling produces a more mixed signal

In Argentina, the final results from the 2025-26 Toro Central drilling program did not replicate the exceptional high-grade silver, copper and zinc interval previously reported. Vantage says it is continuing to study the structural controls on the distribution of high-grade mineralisation at the Toro-Malambo-Tambo project, following the earlier high-grade Argentina discovery.

The company also completed a board refresh during the quarter, appointing mining engineer Amanda Mueller as a non-executive director and Rachel Kogiopoulos as chief financial officer. Those changes are secondary to the exploration timetable, however: the next material markers are likely to be the CHD005R assays, results from the continuing Chanoga campaign and evidence that the newly defined targets can justify further drilling before additional capital is required.