2 October 2023

 

Bluejay Mining plc / Ticker: JAY / Market: AIM / Sector: Mining

 

Drilling intersects near surface high-grade mineralisation: 5.7m at 2.99% CuEq, including 2.1m at 6.31% CuEq at the Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Project, Finland

 

Bluejay Mining plc ('Bluejay' or the 'Company'), the AIM, FSE listed and OTCQB traded exploration and development company with projects in Greenland and Finland, is pleased to announce the results from the recent exploration programmes at the Hammaslahti Copper-Zinc-Gold-Silver ('Cu-Zn-Au-Ag') Project ('Hammaslahti' or the 'Project') located approximately 35 kilometres ('km') southeast of the city of Joensuu in Eastern Finland.

Highlights:

·    Drill Hole HAM0008 returned a significant intersection of 5.7 metres ('m') of mineralisation grading 2.99% copper-equivalent ('CuEq') or 7.41% zinc-equivalent ('ZnEq') (0.89% copper ('Cu'), 3.43% zinc ('Zn'), 0.37% lead ('Pb'), 29.6 grammes per tonne ('g/t') silver ('Ag') and 0.46 g/t gold ('Au')) from 95.9m depth down-hole.

o Including: 2.1m grading 6.31% CuEq or 15.63% ZnEq (2.04% Cu, 7.22% Zn, 0.5% Pb, 61.7 g/t Ag and 0.86 g/t Au) from 95.9m depth down-hole.

o This near-surface intercept is located up-plunge from all previous drilling on the East Lode ('E-lode') ore body, starting at a vertical depth of only 75m from surface. The hole represents the northern-most intersection of the E-lode drilled to date (Figure 1 & 2).

·    Drill Hole HAM0005, an in-fill drillhole between holes previously drilled by Bluejay drilled along the E-lode in 2014, has returned an intersection of 8.8m of mineralisation grading 1.20% CuEq or 2.97% ZnEq (0.43% Cu, 1.46% Zn, 0.18% Pb, 9.7 g/t Ag and 0.06 g/t Au) from 301.2m depth down-hole.

o Including: 4.1m grading 2.32% CuEq or 5.74% ZnEq (0.73% Cu, 3.07% Zn, 0.39% Pb, 18.9 ppm Ag and 0.10 g/t Au) from 302.9m depth down-hole.

·    Of the eight drill holes designed to test the E-lode ore body, all holes intersected sulphide mineralisation corresponding to the modelled mineralised structure.

·    The E-lode mineralisation remains open both up plunge towards north (where we anticipate it outcrops beneath till cover) and down plunge towards south as well as up and down dip of historic E-lode mineralisation intercepts.

o The E-lode is located approximately 200m east from underground infrastructure of the former Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Mine (the 'Mine') and is comparable in grade and style of mineralisation to the ore-lodes that were mined historically.

·    Based on results from detailed geophysical and geological reinterpretations, significant further potential for new sulphide mineralisation is present to the North of the E-lode ore body and the Hammaslahti Mine (Figure 4). This increases the Company's exploration search space immediately North of the former mine by at least 750m towards a modelled isoclinal fold hinge zone in addition to the eastern limbs of the regional folds.

o This represents a significant increase in search space for discovery of additional ore bodies. In comparison, the surface expression of the historical mined ore bodies covers a distance of c. 700m.

o Several distinct coincident gravity and magnetic anomalies have been identified in the newly defined search space. These anomalies could represent the near surface portions of previously unidentified sulphide mineralisation.

Thomas Levin, Chief Operating Officer of Bluejay subsidiary FinnAust Mining Finland Oy, commented on the results:

"Intercepting sulphide mineralisation with eight out of eight diamond drill holes targeting extensions of the E-lode mineralisation previously discovered by the Company is an excellent result. Especially when considering the pinching and swelling nature of the Hammaslahti ore bodies known from earlier drilling and the former mining operations.

"The plunge of the intersected E-lode ore body has remained consistent at 25-30 degrees towards south making the diamond drilling cost-effective with all holes hitting the target structure. The fact that the highest-grade massive sulphide ore lodes occur as ore shoots along the E-lode structure consequently results in lower grade mineralisation alternating with high-grade mineralisation, but I am delighted to report that the best intercept from the recent drilling confirmed the up-plunge extension of the E-lode towards surface with a high-grade sulphide mineralisation intercept at only 75m vertical depth in drill hole HAM0008. The E-lode mineralisation remains open up-plunge where we believe it to outcrop beneath a thin cover of glacial till.

"Recent modelling of historic magnetic, electromagnetic, and gravimetric data as well as geological data highlights the untested potential of the area north of the recent drilling on the E-lode. The geophysical data indicates a tight fold structure with an interpreted fold hinge located approximately 750m north of drill hole HAM0008 - the northernmost drill hole drilled on the E-lode to date. This is a significant increase in search space, when considering that the total distance between the surface expressions of the three historically mined ore bodies at the historic Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Mine site is approximately 700m.

"Future drilling will focus on the possible down plunge and up plunge extensions of the E-lode targeting higher grade ore shoots, but even more importantly on the possible structural repetitions of the ore bodies at shallow levels. Several distinct coincident gravity and magnetic anomalies have been identified close to a fold closure along strike from the historic Mine and the E-lode, and these targets are of very high priority for future drilling since they might represent shallow portions of previously unknown mineralisation".

Joshua Hughes, Vice President Exploration of Bluejay, added:  

"As we have made clear over the last 12 months, Bluejay is focused on judiciously allocating capital to projects within our portfolio that have the greatest potential to yield value to the Company and our shareholders in the shortest possible timeframes.

"Hammaslahti is a previously producing polymetallic base metal mine in a low-risk jurisdiction and we are of the firm belief that there is potential to expand the existing ore lodes as well as identify new near-mine mineralised structures based upon existing geophysical datasets and structural interpretations for the area.

"Whilst we did not intersect massive sulphides in every hole in 2023, we did hit the mineralised E-lode target structure in all. Future in-fill drilling will allow us to locate the remobilised, high-grade massive sulphide ore shoots along the E-lode structure. It is worth noting that the accuracy to which our exploration team intersected the structure, relative to the expected depths, validates the robustness of our 3D geological and structural modelling for the E-lode. This is a critical step as we work towards the goal of developing a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate ('MRE') for the Project and in our future targeting of high-grade ore shoots along this structure. It is also pleasing to see our best intercept this year was in the shallowest and northernmost drillhole (HAM0008) of the 2023 Programme.

"Our immediate focus will therefore be on continuing to drill test targets north of the Mine targeting shallow mineralisation that may have the potential to be open-pittable in any future mining scenarios. The timing of this continued drilling and associated surface exploration is subject to the outcome of our advanced discussions with several strategic investors and possible joint venture partners. We look forward to providing further updates in due course.

"Whilst our focus in 2023 has been on near-mine targets, the wider potential of our Hammaslahti Project should not be overlooked. It's well established from volcanogenic massive sulphide ('VMS') belts around the world that these types of deposits are 'sociable beasts' - they almost always occur in clusters, not as isolated deposits. Therefore, the greenfield potential of the wider Hammaslahti-Tohmajärvi metallogenic belt is intriguing, given that only the one deposit has been discovered in the belt to date. Limited historical surface exploration has uncovered numerous ore-grade mineralised samples within our licences, that support the presence of further VMS deposits waiting to be discovered along the belt, likely concealed by a thin veneer of glacial till."

Figure 1: Plan map showing the location of the 2023 drillholes (HAM0001 to -09, black bold lines) at the Hammaslahti Project. The current identified surface expression of new E-lode ore body, which was drilled during the Programme, north of the former Hammaslahti Mine, is outlined in red. The E-lode ore body remains open both up plunge towards north where it is anticipated to outcrop beneath till cover and down plunge towards south as well as up and down dip of historic E-lode mineralisation intercepts. The surface expression of historical S-, N- and Z-lode ore bodies are indicated as darker red filled bodies with outline of the open pits in yellow. Earlier drilling by Bluejay has confirmed down-plunge extensions of the mined ore bodies S-lode and Z-lode (indicated by blue outline). These extensions, as well as N-lode ore body (not yet drilled by Bluejay), remains open down-plunge. Thin black lines indicate pre-2023 drill holes. Finland's national Highway 6 also outlined. Scale bar: 750m.

 

Planned follow up programme: 

Bluejay's management continue to maintain the view that the Project has the potential to provide meaningful value to shareholders within a short timeframe and remain committed to delineating a maiden MRE for the Project as well as continuing to test new near-mine targets.

The planned follow up programme at the Hammaslahti Project, timing subject to funding, includes:

·   Continued detailed 3D geological modelling and a new detailed low-cost ground magnetic survey (at 10m line spacing) covering the area north of where the E-lode is modelled to be outcropping under till cover.

·   The E-lode remains open both up and down plunge as well as up and down dip, and the next step will be to drill test the area where the mineralisation has been modelled to outcrop under till cover.

o  The up-plunge targets are believed to outcrop under thin till cover and require only a few shallow drill holes. This is a priority for the Company and can be tested at minimal cost.

o  Additional resource delineation drilling testing the down-plunge and up/down dip extensions of the mineralised structure are planned and will be required ahead of a maiden MRE.   

·   The newly extended search space north of the historic Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Mine site (the 'Mine') and the E-lode with several coincident gravity and magnetic anomalies (Figure 4) represent a significant new upside for the Project. These anomalies could represent the near surface portions of previously unidentified sulphide mineralisation north of and parallel to ore lode structures below the E-lode below the historically mined Z-, N- and S-lodes mineralisation. These are planned to be tested by shallow drilling during a next phase of drilling.

o  The gravity anomalies, located in favourable structural positions within the hinge zones of regional folds (Figure 4) interpreted from electromagnetic (Slingram) and magnetic data, are considered highly prospective targets for drilling as they may represent focus for accumulation of remobilised sulphides.

·   A lithogeochemical and petrological study by Dr Denis Schlatter EurGeol (Helvetica Exploration Services GmbH) is ongoing to better constrain controls on the mineralisation and provide additional vectors to guide future exploration.

Background:

Bluejay own 100% of the Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Project through its wholly owned subsidiary FinnAust Mining Finland Oy ('FinnAust'). Bluejay's exploration permits at Hammaslahti, totalling 39.3 square kilometres ('sq km'), cover the majority of the highly prospective, greenfield Hammaslahti-Tohmajärvi Metallogenic Belt (the 'Belt') in Eastern Finland. The Project is located approximately 35 km southeast of the city of Joensuu and benefits from excellent near-mine infrastructure for exploration and future development.

The Company's licences cover the historic Hammaslahti Cu-Zn-Au-Ag Mine which was operated from 1971 to 1986 producing a total of 7 million tonnes grading 1.16% Cu, 1.55% Zn, 0.59 g/t Au and 5.2 g/t Ag (Geological Survey of Finland, 2023). The Mine was operated by the Finnish state mining company, Outokumpu Oy from 1971 to 1986. The open-pit and underground Hammaslahti Mine, also held by Bluejay, produced a total of 7 million tonnes grading 1.16% Cu, 1.55% Zn, 0.59 g/t Au and 5.2 g/t Ag. The polymetallic mineralisation at Hammaslahti is interpreted to be a partially re-mobilised VMS type deposit.

The Company completed Phase 1 of a diamond drilling programme in May-June (preliminary results were reported in Bluejay press release dated: 24 July 2023) and a short follow-up Phase 2 drilling programme was completed in August (collectively the 'Programme').

Nine diamond drill holes for a total of 2244.4m were completed at Hammaslahti during the Programme (Figure 1 and 2, Table 1), eight of which targeted extensions of the E-lode ore body which was discovered by the Company during previous exploration drilling testing near-mine targets adjacent to the former Hammaslahti Mine. One hole was designed to test a geophysical target located north-east of the former Mine. Prior to the diamond drilling completed in May-June and August 2023 no follow up drilling had been conducted on the E-lode ore body.

Earlier deep drilling by Bluejay, below the level at which underground mining ceased due to internal policies of the historical operator Outokumpu Oy, has confirmed the extension of the previously mined Z- and S-lode ore bodies (Z-lode mined to level -130m, S-lode mined to level -480m, N-lode which was mined down to level -390m - no deep drilling to confirm extension has been undertaken on this ore body; see Figure 1 and 2). All historical ore lodes remain open down plunge to the South.

All historic ore bodies at the Hammaslahti Mine are located close to the same contact between black schist and strongly hydrothermally altered rocks. The E-lode ore body is so far the only significant mineralisation found east of the former mine on the other side of a regional fold structure. New geophysical and geological reinterpretations, carried out in parallel with the Programme, have identified a significant further potential for new sulphide mineralisation North of the E-lode ore body and the Hammaslahti Mine site (Figure 4). This increases the Company's exploration search space immediately North of the former mine by at least 750m towards a modelled isoclinal fold hinge zone, in addition to the eastern limbs of the regional folds.

The wider 35km long Hammaslahti-Tohmajärvi Metallogenic Belt represent a very prospective setting for new discoveries of additional VMS deposits. The majority of the Belt south of the Hammaslahti Mine is underexplored with almost no drilling, detailed geophysical or geochemical surveys conducted in the area despite the presence of numerous high-grade mineralised outcrops and boulders discovered in these parts of the Belt during historical exploration (see Figure 5).

Table 1: Drill collar information for the reported drill holes (drilled during May-June and August 2023) on near-mine targets at the Hammaslahti Project.

 

 

Table 2: Mineralised intercepts from the recent drill holes drilled on the E-lode at the Hammaslahti Project.

Table notes: Equivalent values represent the combination of multiple metals of economic value converted to an equivalent single metal grade, here reported for copper and zinc. Copper Equivalent ("CuEq") grades reported for the Hammaslahti drill holes were calculated using the following formula: CuEq % = copper (%) + (zinc (%) x 0.4038) + (lead (%) x 0.2445) + (silver (g/t) x 0.0093) + (gold (g/t) x 0.7689). Zinc Equivalent ("ZnEq") grades reported for the Hammaslahti drill holes were calculated using the following formula: ZnEq % = zinc (%) + (copper (%) x 2.4762) + (lead (%) x 0.6054) + (silver (g/t) x 0.0229) + (gold (g/t) x 1.9040). Assumptions used for the Copper and Zinc equivalent calculations were the current spot metal prices (as of 27 September 2023) of US$3.64/lb copper, US$1.47/lb zinc, US$0.89/lb Pb, US$23.10/oz Ag, US$1919.1/oz Au and metallurgical recoveries were assumed to be 100%.