Q and A With Montero Mining’s CEO and President Dr Tony Harwood

Creating value by staking the Avispa copper project in Chile

 

1.      Montero Mining recently kicked off its Phase 1 field exploration programme on its Avispa property in Chile’s Atacama Desert. Please take us through the different exploration phases.

 

The property has previously seen exploration by BHP and other miners, with wide-spaced drilling of part of the exploration concessions. These companies did not share their exploration data with government, so we effectively had to start researching all available public information on the property.

 

An extensive amount of data has been accumulated by the Chilean government, research groups, and local and international universities and geological surveys. We have now acquired and compiled data relevant to the Avispa area, assessed this and highlighted target areas for further Phase 1 exploration work.

 

Phase 1 exploration work will involve detailed mapping and geochemical sampling in specific areas. In addition, our geologists will be sampling previous drilling sites where previous operators left surface stockpiles of subsurface drilled rock. These samples will be described and assayed to gain a better understanding of the subsurface geology and geochemistry, which will help us to vector to potential subsurface copper-molybdenum mineralization.

 

The important exploration indicators are geology and structure. Porphyry mineral deposits are characterized by zones of alteration and geochemical signature in surrounding rocks, and this is the case at Avispa. Major porphyry copper-molybdenum deposits are also associated with major crustal structures and, in the Avispa area, Paleocene- and Eocene-aged intrusive rocks. An understanding of the depth of the target mineralized intrusive rocks beneath the overlying recent gravels and sediments is also important for economic reasons, should we make a discovery. The outcome of Phase 1 of exploration will be to develop drill targets for a Phase 2 drilling and target evaluation program.

 

 

2.      The property, situated among massive operating copper-molybdenum mines, is well positioned. What sets it apart in this region?

 

Avispa is located relatively close to large mines operated by major mining companies, including the Chuquicamata copper mine owned by Codelco, Spence copper-molybdenum mine operated by BHP and Sierra Gorda copper-molybdenum now owned by KGHM Polska Miedz (KGHM), a Polish miner, and South32. Previous drilling by majors at Avispa bodes well for its prospectivity and the property is surrounded by excellent road, rail, power and water infrastructure. Avispa is surrounded by the concessions of major mining companies that are aggressively exploring for copper, owing to the high copper prices seen in the last year. The fact that wide-spaced drilling took place by a major copper company on the Avispa property is a strong indication of the area’s exploration potential.

 

 

3.      Montero advanced Avispa’s exploration program because the copper market has a positive outlook. How does your copper project support your business strategy?

 

The company’s strategy is to create value for our shareholders using our skill sets in mineral exploration. The low cost of acquisition by staking Avispa in a highly prospective part of Chile was not an opportunity that we could miss. As stated recently, we follow a prospect-generation strategy whereby we will de-risk the project and carry out limited exploration while seeking a partner to advance the project through the drill phase. This will provide Montero shareholders with exposure to the copper space with its predicted long-term demand.

 

 

4.       Your board of directors and exploration team have made substantial discoveries of gold, copper, iron ore, rare earths and lithium around the world. Why are you currently focusing on developing projects in Chile?

 

There is great potential for discovering major deposits of gold, silver and copper in Chile. Chile is also a Tier 1 global investment destination for mining and exploration companies, and most of the major miners are exploring and/or mining in Chile. The country has very good exploration and mining geologists, highly skilled consultants and a highly developed mining service sector.

 

 

5.      What are the next milestones?

 

We are working hard in Chile. Our field team has been mapping and sampling at both our Isabella and Avispa properties. This work is relatively inexpensive, but it takes time to compile mapping information and obtain assay results. Our next significant milestones are the mapping and sampling results from Isabella west and the structural and geochemical study results from Avispa.

 

 

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