Aurania Resources Ltd (CVE:ARU) (OTCQB:AUIAF) revealed a drill rig is due to be airlifted via helicopter to its flagship Lost Cities-Cutucu project in Ecuador in the last week of August.
In a quarterly update statement, the explorer said drilling is planned to start at the Tsenken N2 target and then move to Tsenken N3 at the project, which sits in the foothills of the Andes, and where six targets in the Tsenken area have been defined.
READ: Aurania Resources reveals high-grade copper and silver from the Kirus target on the Lost Cities-Cutucu project
The aim is to test each target with a handful of holes, the group said in a statement on Monday.
Soil sampling results are due from the Tsenken N4 target shortly and drilling will likely start here after Tsenken N2 and N3.
Meanwhile, Tsenken N1 is also being readied for scout drilling, said Aurania. The copper-silver-bearing breccia here is likely to be the fourth target drilled in the Tsenken area.
The drill rig is light-weight and portable with a capacity to drill to 800 metres or 2,400 feet, the firm added, while a low environmental footprint, tented camp, is under construction.
Noble repeats 'Outperform'
Noble Capital Markets repeated an 'outperform ' rating on Aurania stock following the latest update.
"Aurania's exploration program has affirmed the rich mineral potential of the Lost Cities project and yielded drilling targets for a variety of metals," said analyst Mark Reichman in a note.
"With the success of its copper exploration program, we think the upcoming scout drilling program at Tsenken could further attract interest from majors interested in the project's copper potential. The company has remained nimble in ordering its activities and we expect attention on the epithermal gold and silver targets to intensify over time."
The pre-revenue firm posted a net loss of C$0.05 per share in the three months to end-June compared with a loss of C$0.09 during the second quarter of 2019 and against Noble estimate for a loss of C$0.07, partially due to coronavirus (COVID-19) work restrictions, the analyst suggested.
For the six months ended June 30, net cash used in operating activities amounted to C$8,524,292, net cash used in investing activities amounted to C$8,064, while net cash provided by financing activities was C$6,839,606 resulting in a net decrease in cash of C$1,692,750, he added.
For 2020 as a whole, Noble has narrowed its loss per share estimate for Aurania to C$0.46 from C$0.48.
It's been a busy spell for Aurania. On August 6, it reported promising new data from the Kirus target at Lost Cities-Cutucu, which doubled the size of the area over which high-grade copper-silver was found. Samples taken from the Kirus target returned grades of up to 6.1% copper and 51 grams per ton silver.
Shares in Toronto nudged up 2.4% to C$4.31 each
----Updates for share price---
Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com