NGM to explore for copper in the Philippines

NGM Resources has expanded its global spread of resource projects, with an...

  NGM Resources has expanded its global spread of resource projects, with an option and joint venture agreement to explore for copper in the Philippines.The agreement with Jabal Development Mining Inc involves a 5,000-hectare Exploration Permit Application in North Cotabato Province, Mindanao, Philippines. Through the arrangement, NGM has the right to earn an 82% interest in the project by completing a bankable feasibility study. This represents a further expansion for NGM, which also has uranium exploration projects in Queensland and Niger, as well as nickel targets in Madagascar. NGM CEO, Dr Russell Penney said the permit area showed strong geological potential. “The region has not been explored using modern techniques, and NGM intends on putting in place a comprehensive exploration program to identify targets,” Dr Penney said. “The Philippines has a long mining history, has a Government supportive of foreign investment in mining and it is host to some of the world’s largest porphyry copper deposits,” he said.Numerous outcrops of copper-stained mafic rocks and massive sulphides have been recorded in the area by previous visitors. The area lies immediately south of the North Cotabato Fault zone, a major crustal scale suture defining the margin of a volcanic arc. NGM said it understands that no previous modern exploration has conducted in the project area. The company said it believes that stream sediment and soil geochemistry and airborne and ground geophysics will be appropriate exploration tools leading to drilling. The style of copper mineralisation and host rocks suggest potential for a volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits.