Salazar Resources has acquired the mineral title to the 1,175 hectare (“ha”) Correa-Jiron Concession 601062 (“El Potro”) in the mineral-rich Loja porphyry district, Ecuador for an initial payment of US$50,000. See here for a news release dated September 20, 2021.
“EL POTRO” CORREA JIRON 601062
El Potro lies in the southeast of Loja Province, southern Ecuador. Altitudes in the single contiguous concession area range from 3,000 m to 3,700 m and access is via gravel roads and mule track from the town of El Airo which is seven km to the west. The project area has been subject to small-scale artisanal mining activity since the Mining Concession was granted in 2010. El Potro has been held by a consortium of private holders since 2010 and the area has not been subject to any recorded systematic exploration.
Figure 1. Location of “El Potro” Correa Jiron 601062
Source: Salazar Resources LtdGeology
The area is crossed by a large system of transpressional faults, running north-northeast. A suite of Miocene Portacheula rocks is intruded into older (Jurassic) Chigüinday Très Lagunas units.
Preliminary mapping has identified porphyrytic intrusions, argillic and Ca-K alteration signatures, locally intense stockworks, and a siliceous lithocap. The main stockwork is hosted in porphyry, and exhibits intense quartz veining with visible magnetite and molybdenite. The lithocap is estimated to be 60 m thick and several hundred meters wide. Artisanal mining has concentrated on sulphide-rich portions of the lithocap. Guides to the area demonstrated the gold content by sampling, crushing, and panning.
Work in 2021
During due diligence, preliminary geological mapping on traverses was undertaken and 89 rock samples were collected. Assay results showed that 25 of the rock samples were below detection limit for gold, 13 samples were between 6 ppb and 100 ppb, and 49 were greater than 100 ppb. Table 1 highlights samples from nine areas with either gold above 0.1 ppm (g/t) or copper above 1000 ppm (0.1%).
Table 1. Highlights from Due Diligence sampling programme Sample
IDWidth
(m)Au
ppmMo
ppmCu
ppmAg
ppmNotes on alteration and mineralization M54311 0.20 0.3 2 81 1.6 Argillic, manganese oxides and hematite M54312 5.00 0.1 3 2010 51.9 Phyllic veinlets of quartz, oxidised pyrite M54315 4.00 0.0 4 2283 5.7 Phyllic, epi, cpy veinlets, py, malachite, traces of bornite M54318 8.00 0.8 <2 27 3.0 Intense argillic stockwork, drusy qtz, py, aspy, jarosite M54319 10.00 0.1 2 22 1.7 Intense argillic stockwork, drusy qtz, py, aspy, jarosite M54321 3.00 26.6 3 97 11.3 Intense oxidised stockwork, py, jarosite M54322 3.00 9.0 <2 95 5.1 Intense oxidised stockwork, py, jarosite M54323 1.00 0.8 <2 34 0.5 Argillic, intense oxidation, hematite M54379 2.00 0.0 61 1109 1.0 Quartz-sericite M54380 2.00 0.0 85 1966 0.9 Stockwork, qtz-mag-mo. Contact between porphyry / met Samples 54321 and 54322 show excellent gold grades, returning 3 m @ 26.6 g/t Au and 3 m @ 9.0 g/t Au in rock chips respectively. These samples were located at the site of artisanal activity, at the lower portion of an area of the lithocap (see photograph below).
Photograph 1. El Potro, samples M54321 and M54322
Samples 54312 and 54315 were located on a series of porphyry outcrops, both returning 0.2% copper over several meters of rock chip. Of particular interest is the silver content (51.9 g/t Ag) in sample 54312, and the fact that traces of bornite were visible in sample 54315. Samples 54379 and 54380 were taken on a stockwork zone within porphyry and showed evidence of elevated molybdenum in the system (see photograph below).
Photograph 2. El Potro, Sample M54380
Figure 2. El Potro, sample location map
Source: Salazar Resources Ltd
