Fireweed surges to historic high on Macpass zinc hits

[Redator]

Fireweed Metals’ (TSXV: FWZ) shares jumped to an all-time high this week on drill results at its Macpass project in Yukon that extended a zone of high-grade zinc mineralization in massive sulphides in a 115-metre step-out hole. 

Highlight hole TS25-001D1 in the Tom deposit cut 54.8 metres grading 18.2% zinc, 13.9% lead and 161 grams silver per tonne from 892 metres depth, including 40.4 metres at 22.4% zinc, 17.7% lead and 208.2 grams silver, the company reported on Tuesday. Another interval in that hole cut 12.8 metres grading 24.9% zinc, 32% lead and 371 grams silver.

“It’s only one hole, but the most recent result from Tom South provides a high-grade target that could represent a feeder zone to the system,” Haywood Capital Markets analyst Pierre Vaillancourt said in a note on Friday. “This mineralization is…characterized by higher lead and zinc grades along with chalcopyrite, and is open up dip and down dip.”

Company shares surged 6.6% to C$3.06 apiece on Thursday before rising to C$3.07 each on Friday morning in Toronto, for a market capitalization of C$642.6 million.

The Tom results come from a six-rig drill program this year at Macpass, which is one the largest undeveloped zinc deposits in Canada, according to its resource update from last year. Fireweed’s adjacent Mactung project itself ranks as the world’s largest high-grade undeveloped tungsten project. Both projects are in eastern Yukon near and on the border with the Northwest Territories.

‘Historically significant’

“The impressive width and grade of the intersection at Tom South demonstrates that the zone thickens and remains open down-dip, positioning this hole amongst the most significant in the project’s history,” Fireweed President and CEO Ian Gibbs said in a release.

“Continued success in intersecting massive sulphide mineralization in wide step-outs reinforces Tom’s potential for substantial high-grade resource growth, a major value driver at Macpass, and underscores the massive exploration potential across the district.”

The step-out intersection at Tom South extends beyond the limits of the resource outlined in last September’s estimate, and shows that the zone has significant thickness and high-grades towards the down-dip, Fireweed said.

Meanwhile, drilling in laminated sulphide mineralization at Tom West returned such highlights as 87.5 metres grading 5.5% zinc, 0.21% lead and 1.6 grams silver from 246 metres depth in hole TS25-002D1, including 19.5 metres at 8.85% zinc, 0.27% lead, and 1.8 gram silver.

Macpass hosts 56 million indicated tonnes grading 5.49% zinc, 1.58% lead and 24.2 grams silver per tonne, for 6.7 billion lb. zinc, 1.9 billion lb. lead and 43.5 million oz. silver. Inferred resources come to about 48.5 million tonnes at 5.15% zinc, 2.08% lead and 25.3 grams silver, for 5.5 billion lb. zinc, 2.2 billion lb. lead and 39.4 oz. silver.

Macpass has an estimated after-tax net present value (at an 8% discount) of C$448 million at capital costs of C$404 million and an 18-year mine life, according to a preliminary economic assessment from 2018.