Hercules Metals (TSXV:BIG) has provided an exploration update, detailing ongoing drilling activities and geological developments at its Hercules Project in Idaho. The company continues to encounter porphyry alteration and mineralization over large areas, focusing on key structures influencing porphyry emplacement and hypogene enrichment.

Chris Paul, CEO and Director of the Company, commented in a press release: “Having drilled over 1 kilometer of strike along the Leviathan Porphyry this year has given us a much better understanding of certain key structural controls, which better guides our targeting of hypogene enrichment. Blind drilling has its logistical challenges, but new information is gained from each hole, which allows us to increase efficiency moving forward. Drilling is now vectoring toward the potential feeder structures for the hypogene enrichment event, which added copper and silver to the shallowest part of the system, beneath the unconformity.”

The BN Fault, one of the critical structures under investigation, has posed challenges due to its reactivation in the Jurassic period, complicating drilling efforts. A preliminary model of the BN Fault has been developed to guide drilling away from its vicinity. As a result, drilling has shifted to a separate NE-SW structure, which shows minimal post-mineral damage and appears to control mineralization effectively.

A third drill rig is currently testing reconnaissance targets with favorable geophysical signatures that have not been previously drilled. Many targets remain to be tested within what seems to be an extensive and long-lived hydrothermal system.

A major regional structure, known as Tom’s Fault, trends NW-SE across the property and may play a significant role in porphyry emplacement. The intersection of these regional NW-SE structures with NE-SW structures will likely influence future exploration targeting.

In 2024, drill holes HER-24-08, -11, and -12 have been positioned to the northeast along the inferred structural control. However, drill holes HER-24-09 and -09b, which tested this concept to the southwest, were terminated due to challenging conditions linked to the BN Fault. Similarly, HER-24-06 had to be stopped at 640 meters due to the same fault, despite being in mineralization. Plans are in place to re-test this chargeability anomaly to depth with the arrival of a deep RC rig.

HER-24-10 is currently drilling a new chargeability anomaly west of the main Leviathan target and has reached 350 meters, encountering a different Jurassic cover sequence compared to other holes.

On the corporate front, Hercules Metals granted 500,000 incentive stock options to a contractor, effective July 30, 2024. These options, vesting in stages over twelve months, are exercisable for five years at $0.62 per common share, under the company’s omnibus incentive plan approved by shareholders.

Highlights from the results are as follows:

• A total of 4,600m have been drilled in 6 completed, 3 abandoned and 3 in progress drill holes ranging up to 722m in depth (Figure 1).
• A potential trend of elevated hypogene copper-silver enrichment appears to be emerging, currently being tested in two directions:
  • Two drill rigs stepping to the northeast and southwest from the 2023 discovery area to test the potential trend of elevated copper-silver, immediately below the Triassic-Jurassic unconformity.
  • A third drill rig is reconnaissance drilling compelling new targets across the property.
• A large fault zone, referred to as the “BN Fault,” had impacted drilling progress in holes HER-24-01, -05, -06, -07, -09, and -09b. However, the inferred geometry of the BN Fault has now been mapped in 3D, which enables future drill holes to focus on areas with more favourable ground conditions away from the fault.

• The Company is planning to enhance productivity by adding a deep RC drill rig with an effective depth capacity of ~1,200m. Roads are being widened to allow access for a larger rig which has indicated availability in early September.

• New mapping, shown on Figure 1, has enhanced the understanding of structural patterns and alteration zonation across the project. Triassic exposure in the east shows alteration increasing from propylitic to phyllic towards the northwest. Specular hematite, associated with the hypogene copper-silver enrichment, dips shallow beneath the unconformity (conglomerate).