Fitzroy Minerals Inc. (TSXV: FTZ, OTCQX: FTZFF, FSE: C3Y) has reported channel sample results averaging 2.96% copper from the historical Buen Retiro open pit at its 100%-owned Buen Retiro Copper Project in Chile. The company is advancing toward resource definition and a heap leach development plan, with three diamond drill rigs currently on site and a reverse circulation rig to be added next week.
Twenty-one one-metre channel samples collected from locations throughout the historical pit returned an average grade of 2.96% Cu, with a maximum of 10.68% Cu. Historical drill hole BRT-DDH-013, drilled by Ptolemy Mining Ltd in 2024, intersected 7 metres at 2.78% Cu from 130 metres and 30 metres at 3.52% Cu from 141 metres downhole, located approximately 30 to 55 metres below the current pit floor. These results highlight the potential for additional copper mineralization beyond the historical oxide-only mining.
Drill hole BRT-DDH099, located 70 metres south of the historical open pit, intersected 113 metres of tenorite (CuO) mineralization from 3.5 metres downhole. The intercept is estimated to average approximately 1.0% Cu and has been submitted for over-limit analysis. The company plans to incorporate fresh data into the Project Development Plan to support the submission of the Environmental Permit Application in October 2026.
"Channel sample results averaging around 3.0% Cu and historical drill results of 30 metres at 3.52% Cu showcase the type of copper mineralization that Fitzroy is targeting in the Pit Area," said Merlin Marr-Johnson, President and CEO of Fitzroy. "Historical production focused on Cu-oxide material only, and our analysis of historical drill data shows that a meaningful amount of mixed and transition copper material was left behind, that can be recovered with our planned chloride-leach process."
Metallurgical test work is ongoing, with initial mini-column results expected in July. The company has drilled 10,048 metres at Buen Retiro in 2026, exceeding the original plan of 7,000 metres due to continued intersections of shallow mineralized material. A further 5,000-metre drilling program is underway in the historical pit area. The Pre-Feasibility Study remains on track for completion in Q1 2027.
The company is mitigating assay result delays from ALS Global laboratories by sending samples from the pit area to SGS Laboratories in Santiago, Chile, which offers shorter turnaround times. Fitzroy geologists are also using visual grade estimates to request over-limit analysis for samples estimated above 0.9% Cu, saving approximately two weeks of time.
Fitzroy Minerals is focused on copper mineral assets in the Americas, with properties including the Buen Retiro Copper Project in Chile, the Caballos Copper and Polimet Gold-Copper-Silver projects in Chile, the Taquetren Gold Project in Argentina, and the Caribou Project in British Columbia, Canada. The company's shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol FTZ and on the OTCQX under the symbol FTZFF.
For more information, visit the company's website at www.fitzroyminerals.com.
