Ivanhoe Mines and UK-based Pallas Resources have confirmed the presence of copper mineralization at Chu-Sarysu, visible on surface within the Merke license, located at the southern end of this sedimentary basin in Kazakhstan. sedimentary basin in Kazakhstan. Samples extracted revealed outcrops with copper content between 1% and 5%, including minerals such as malachite, azurite and chalcocite.
This area is part of a license package covering 16,000 km² that is considered highly prospective. The Merke region region includes a 36 kilometer stratigraphic trend, historically mapped historically mapped, where mineralization is associated with folded carbonate rocks and geological structures that channeled copper-rich fluids.
Drilling campaign kicks off in Glubokoe
Several hundred kilometers north of Merke, a diamond drilling campaign is already underway on the Glubokoe concession. The program calls for 15,000 meters of drilling during 2025. Its initial objective is to verify the continuity of three mineralized zones detected in a hole drilled in the 1980s, which showed copper-bearing intervals over 26 meters.
The planned drilling, between 800 and 1,000 meters deep, will integrate old and recent geophysical data to refine stratigraphic and structural models. This will be crucial to identify new targets in the rest of the licensing package.
Copper in Chu-Sarysu with high mining potential
The Chu-Sarysu basin is considered the third largest copper-bearing sedimentary basin in the world, with 27 million tons of copper known and an estimated additional 25 million tons to be discovered, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Despite its potential, the region has been underexplored over the past decades. The alliance between Ivanhoe and Pallas is intended to capitalize on Soviet-era geological data and drive exploration investment, taking advantage of competitive conditions and a favorable jurisdiction for mining activity.
A strategic alliance with defined objectives
The joint venture allows Ivanhoe Mines to finance up to $18.7 million in the first two years, with the possibility of acquiring up to an 80% interest in the seven projects involved.
This initiative is based on the experience accumulated by Ivanhoe in the discovery of large sedimentary sedimentary deposits in Africa in Africa and its interest in replicating this success in Central Asia.
Source and photo: Ivanhoe Mines
