Viscaria
EMX acquired the Viscaria copper-iron royalty, as well as other assets, from Freeport-McMoRan Exploration Corporation in 2010. EMX has a 1% NSR royalty on Viscaria production and initially will pay half of the royalties, up to a maximum of US$12 million, to Outokumpu Oyj. This yields an effective 0.5% NSR royalty until the payment cap is reached, at which point EMX will retain a full 1% NSR royalty payment.
The Viscaria copper-iron project occurs in the world-class Kiruna IOCG mining district, and is situated within two kilometers of LKAB’s Kirunvaara iron mine. Mineralization occurs as three north-northeast trending stacked subvertical horizons containing copper (the A and B zones) and iron (D zone) that are hosted in Precambrian rocks of the Kiruna Greenstone Group.
Historic production from the deposit includes 12.5 Mt at 2.3% Cu from 1983 until 1997.
Viscaria is currently being advanced by Copperstone Resources AB (NASDAQ: OMX First North). Copperstone released an updated resource estimate for Viscaria in November 2022, shown in the table below. They plan to reopen the mine in 2026 (see Copperstone news release dated January 29, 2024).
Zone |
Category |
Mton |
Cu % |
Cu (kton) |
Fe MAG % |
Fe MAG (Mton) |
Zn % |
Zn (kton) |
Au (g/t) |
Au (t) |
Ag (g/t) |
Ag (t) |
Co (ppm) |
Co (Kton) |
A Zone 0.25% Cu cut off |
Measured |
15.8 |
1.52 |
239.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicated |
5.6 |
1.09 |
60.4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inferred |
3.6 |
0.8 |
30.3 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
24.9 |
1.32 |
329.7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
B Zone 0.25% Cu cut off |
Measured |
0.1 |
1.17 |
1.5 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicated |
19.7 |
0.65 |
128.1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inferred |
11.4 |
0.77 |
87.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
31.2 |
0.70 |
217.4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
D Zone Copper Domain 0.4% Cu cut off |
Measured |
7.8 |
1.15 |
89.7 |
25.0 |
2.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicated |
8.1 |
1.13 |
92.1 |
23.7 |
1.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inferred |
4.8 |
1.15 |
55.8 |
21.2 |
1.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
20.8 |
1.14 |
237.7 |
23.6 |
4.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
D Zone Iron Ore Domain 0.4% Cu cut off |
Measured |
7.7 |
0.21 |
16.2 |
25.6 |
2.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicated |
5.5 |
0.21 |
11.6 |
25.4 |
1.4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inferred |
2.8 |
0.18 |
5.1 |
25.4 |
0.7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
16.0 |
0.21 |
32.9 |
25.5 |
4.1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total A, B, D zones |
93.0 |
|
817.7 |
|
9.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tailings Dam 0.06% Cu cut off |
Measured |
12.5 |
0.27 |
34.0 |
|
|
0.2 |
30.3 |
0.06 |
0.8 |
0.9 |
11.0 |
145.0 |
1.8 |
Indicated |
0.2 |
0.17 |
0.3 |
|
|
0.2 |
0.3 |
0.05 |
0.0 |
0.5 |
0.1 |
146.0 |
0.0 |
|
Total |
12.7 |
0.27 |
34.2 |
|
|
|
30.7 |
|
0.8 |
|
11.1 |
|
1.8 |
|
Total Viscaria |
105.7 |
|
851.9 |
|
9.0 |
|
30.7 |
|
0.8 |
|
11.1 |
|
1.8 |
The mineral resource estimates for Viscaria (A, B and D Zones), which was prepared in accordance with the PERC Code, an acceptable foreign code under NI 43-101, is referenced from Copperstone Resources AB news release titled “Successful mineral resource upgrade at Copperstone’s Viscaria Mine” dated November 18, 2022.
The mineral resource estimate for Viscaria (tailings facility), which was prepared in accordance with the PERC Code, an acceptable foreign code under NI 43-101, is referenced from Copperstone Resources AB report titled “Mineral Resource Estimate, Viscaria Tailings Facility” and dated February 3, 2022. Accessed March 1, 2024 from https://copperstone.se/app/uploads/2022/10/Viscaria-Tailings-PERC-2017-Feb-3-2022.pdf.
EMX’s royalty does not cover all estimated mineral resources for the Viscaria tailings facility. EMX’s Qualified Person under NI 43-101 has made an estimate that the royalty covers approximately 33% of the mineral resource footprint for the tailings facility.
Note: The nearby mines and deposits in the region provide context for EMX’s Project, which occurs in a similar geologic setting, but this is not necessarily indicative that the project hosts similar tonnages or grades of mineralization.
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