Condor-Teck copper project in Peru receives environmental approval

Condor Resources (TSXV: CN) says its Cobreorco project in central Peru has passed an “important” permitting milestone following the approval of its environmental impact statement, moving the project closer to the drilling stage.

The permitting process is being carried out by Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/TECK.B; NYSE: TECK), which entered the project in late 2023 through an option and joint venture agreement with Condor.

Under that agreement, Teck can earn a 55% interest in Cobreorco over three years following the permit issuance by spending $4 million on exploration and paying another $500,000 in cash. The Canadian miner would also take over technical, social and environmental programs at Cobreorco.

Upon exercising this option, the companies will then form a joint venture, after Teck can increase its stake in the project further to 75% by spending an additional $6 million in exploration and making another cash payment of $600,000.

“We are very pleased to have reached this important milestone with Teck,” Condor CEO Chris Buncic said in a news release. “Projects of this scale and quality are exceedingly rare, and we are only at the beginning of what we believe will be an exciting journey with our partner.”

The EIS approval from the Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines represents the first key step to obtain surface drilling permits for the project. Dialogue with two local communities remains ongoing to complete the process.

Shares of Condor Resources gained 10% to C$0.11 by midday Friday, taking its market capitalization to C$16.5 million ($12.1 million).

Porphyry-skarn system

The Cobreorco property, located in the province of Andahuaylas, is host to several porphyry and skarn-related copper and gold deposits that are exposed in outcrops and small-scale artisanal workings within a 2-sq.-km area.

Condor entered the project in 2018 by winning a sealed bid auction to the first 1.7 sq. km of the property. Over the subsequent years, it accumulated more land through staking, bringing the project area to a total of 50 sq. km.

In the meantime, the company has conducted several sampling programs on the property. An analysis showed that a third of the channels tested contained more than 1,000 ppm copper, and nearly half contained at least 100 ppb gold.

A drone-supported magnetic survey was done in 2020, and the initial review of the data suggests the presence of two potential intrusive systems that correlate with exposed surface copper-gold porphyry and skarn outcrops.

The results of the magnetic survey sampling and analysis demonstrate a substantial target of 2.5 km in lateral extent and potentially very shallow, similar in geometry to the Tintaya mine owned by Glencore about 300 km to the southeast, Condor said.

Condor’s geologists also compared the mineralization to that at Las Bambas, the large copper porphyry with skarn overprinting 50 km to the east.