True North sharpens copper exploration strategy in Queensland

True North Copper has identified a bevy of big iron-oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) targets across its Chumvale province in northwest Queensland, bolstering its long-term discovery plan in one of Australia’s most copper-fertile regions.

The company say the 50-square-kilometre project is now a standout part of its Discover pillar within its broader “DEVELOP, GROW, DISCOVER” strategy to chase significant standalone copper discoveries in Cloncurry as it develops into a producing Australian copper play nearby.

The consolidated Chumvale region now includes the Rocklands and Orphan Shear corridors, six kilometres west of True North’s Great Australia mine.

The company says the ground shows compelling copper indicators from coincident magnetic and electromagnetic geophysics, along with copper whiffs at surface and hints of IOCG mineralisation. In short, the signatures appear to mirror those of nearby deposits such as Mt Colin and Rocklands.

Additional key geological features, including host rocks such as Mitakoodi quartzite, the Corella formation, and overhanging jasperlite seem to underpin the prospectivity. The same units host some 11.3 million tonnes of copper mineralisation at Rocklands.

Crustal-scale north-south and northwest cross-cutting structures, plus areas of magnetic disturbance or depletion, have also signalled high-temperature alteration typical of these copper-gold systems.

With historic soil sampling across much of Chumvale revealing an extensive 3km-long copper anomaly up to 600 metres wide at surface, the target matches almost perfectly with the footprint of copper mineralisation from the company’s southern Tiger prospect, linking up all the way to Rocklands in the north.

True North says shallow historical drilling also hit sniffs of copper-gold along the corridor at its Chumvale South, Big Oak, Gum Creek and Marimo prospects, where the best intercepts was a 12m hit running 0.63 per cent copper and 0.08 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 18m.

At Marimo to the south, the geology features a north-northwest crustal-scale fault corridor that hosts a cluster of prospects, similar to copper ore finds from shallow workings and open pits.

Sparse past drilling at Marimo shows strong sulphide copper potential, with holes at the company’s Poseidon prospect returning a promising 16m at 1.98 per cent copper from surface and a 4m hit at 1.02 per cent copper with 0.16g/t gold from 94m.

Northwest faults truncate the zone, boosting the odds for Rocklands-style copper-gold discovery.

Management believes the multiple targets and recent reviews outline a robust pipeline of exploration prospects, underscoring its district-scale setup at Cloncurry.

True North has now earmarked a rock-chip sampling program to kick off the new year at Marimo and Chumvale to advance the assets alongside new magnetic data and 3D geological models. This work will then pave the way for a reverse circulation drilling program, echoing the approach that unlocked the company’s recent Aquila discovery at its Mt Oxide project nearby.

Chumvale has all the hallmarks of a district-scale setting, and consolidating the ground across its key corridors gives TNC a meaningful footprint in one of the region’s most compelling IOCG search spaces. It represents the type of disciplined pursuit that underpins our long-term strategy; the pursuit of large, stand-alone IOCG systems that could, if present, rival the scale of Ernest Henry or Rocklands.

Moving forward, the company says its development plan for Cloncurry will be focused on near-term cash flow to expand its Mt Oxide resources through drilling. At the same time, it will actively explore its tier-one regional targets at Chumvale, Marimo and the Salebury iron-oxide-copper-gold system.

Chumvale sits in a storied district, with the broader Cloncurry area home to a plethora of old copper operations, many of which are approaching the end of their mine lives.

True North says that much of its tenement package has seen little modern exploration, leaving ample untapped potential for discovery in a perfect copper-gold commodity mix.

At its quickly expanding Mt Oxide project, the company believes there are three defined trends of copper-cobalt mineralisation across its Aquila, Apollo and Acanthis deposits.

Notably, it says Apollo and Acanthis each display comparable or stronger geophysical anomalies to those at its recently uncovered Aquila copper-cobalt discovery.

Aquila is almost within a slingshot of the company’s Vero copper-silver-cobalt resource at Mt Oxide, which boasts 15.03 million tonnes grading an impressive 1.46 per cent copper for 220,000t of the red metal and 10.59g/t silver, totalling more than 5 million silver equivalent ounces. It also has a handy 9.15Mt cobalt resource at a grade of 0.23 per cent attached.

True North is gearing up for a busy 2026, with fresh exploration programs locked in at the Chumvale, Marimo and Salebury targets. The company believes it can deliver the next big Queensland copper hit as it works toward self-funding itself in a record-high copper market.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@wanews.com.au