Highlights

  • Hole ANX-025 returns 16.52m at 1.06% CuEq (comprising 0.26% Cu, 0.26% Pb, 1.14% Zn, 25.1 g/t Ag) from 148.52m — located outside the current resource boundary.
  • Zinc-silver grades are interpreted as a separate high-zinc, low-copper horizon above the main copper-rich Mons Cupri VMS lens.
  • The result adds to a growing dataset supporting a broader mineralised system than represented in the current resource estimate.
  • Current resource estimate at Mons Cupri totals 15.6 Mt at 2.0% CuEq (Indicated and Inferred).
  • The Company has also identified the Murchison Basin as a potential new exploration frontier for volcanogenic massive sulphide-style copper-zinc targets.

Anax Metals Limited (ASX:ANX) has reported an intersection outside the current resource boundary at its Mons Cupri copper-zinc deposit within the Whim Creek Project in the West Pilbara region of Western Australia. The result, from diamond hole ANX-025, is interpreted as a potential new zinc-silver-dominant horizon above the main copper-rich Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (VMS) lens — a geological feature commonly encountered in zoned VMS systems where a hanging wall zinc-lead-silver zone overlies a deeper copper-gold core.

Latest Development

Hole ANX-025 returned 16.52 metres at 1.06% copper equivalent (CuEq) from 148.52 metres, comprising 0.26% copper, 0.26% lead, 1.14% zinc, and 25.1 g/t silver. This interval is located outside the bounds of the current resource model for Mons Cupri, which forms the core of the Whim Creek Project. The geological interpretation is that the zinc-silver-dominant composition reflects a separate stratigraphically higher horizon from the main copper-rich lens, consistent with the classic VMS zonation pattern where the most distal parts of the hydrothermal system precipitate zinc and silver before copper settles closer to the vent. The Company has flagged this as a potential new horizon warranting follow-up drilling to assess its continuity and lateral extent.

Company Background

Anax Metals is an ASX-listed base metals developer focused on its Whim Creek copper-zinc project in the West Pilbara. The Project consists of two distinct mineralised areas: the Mons Cupri VMS deposit, which hosts a Mineral Resource of 15.6 Mt at 2.0% CuEq, and the Whim Creek deposit, an oxide copper resource. Anax's development strategy for Whim Creek is focused on demonstrating a pathway to production through studies that could ultimately support an open-pit Mining and flotation processing operation, taking advantage of the existing infrastructure corridor in the West Pilbara. The Company's previously announced Scoping Study for Whim Creek has been superseded by ongoing resource and development optimisation work.

Sector Context

VMS copper-zinc deposits often contain multiple stacked lenses with distinct metal compositions reflecting the zonation of the hydrothermal system during formation. The hanging wall zinc-dominant zone identified at Mons Cupri is a classic VMS feature known in numerous world-class deposits, including those in Canada, Australia, and Europe. The recognition of this horizon, if confirmed through follow-up drilling, could add a new dimension to the resource inventory — potentially improving the base metals mix available for processing. The West Pilbara region of Western Australia is an established mining Jurisdiction with existing infrastructure, reducing logistical requirements for a future development scenario.

Market Perception

The ANX-025 intersection represents a geological step-up in the Mons Cupri story, introducing a potential new ore horizon that was not part of the existing resource model. For a company with an existing 15.6 Mt resource at Mons Cupri, the identification of additional mineralisation outside the current boundary is a resource growth signal that the market will assess in the context of the Company's development timeline and Capital requirements. The zinc-dominant composition also diversifies the Commodity exposure of the resource, which is relevant in the context of ongoing base metals Demand for the global energy transition.

Growth Drivers

If the zinc-silver horizon in ANX-025 is confirmed through follow-up holes, it could add to the total resource inventory at Mons Cupri and potentially improve the metallurgical recoveries and product mix available to a processing plant. The Company has also identified the Murchison Basin as a potential new exploration frontier for VMS-style copper-zinc targets, suggesting a broader strategic exploration agenda beyond the Whim Creek Project. Existing infrastructure access in the West Pilbara — including roads, power, and port facilities — provides a development advantage if the resource base can be extended to economic scale.

Risks and Challenges

The ANX-025 zinc-silver horizon is a single-hole discovery outside the resource boundary, and its lateral continuity and economic significance are not yet determined. VMS deposits can be highly irregular in geometry, and the zinc horizon may not be continuous across the width required for economic extraction. The Whim Creek Project has not yet progressed beyond scoping-level studies, and the transition to a bankable feasibility study requires substantial additional technical and financial work. Base metals prices for copper, zinc, and lead are subject to cyclical volatility, and project Economics are sensitive to commodity price assumptions.

Recent Announcements

The Company has also reported that it is evaluating several copper-zinc exploration targets in the Murchison Basin, which it has identified as a new exploration frontier for VMS-style mineralisation in a relatively underexplored geological setting. This represents a potential portfolio addition to the existing Whim Creek and Mons Cupri development pathway.

Key Insights

Anax Metals has identified a potential new zinc-silver horizon at Mons Cupri that sits outside the current 15.6 Mt resource boundary, consistent with the classic VMS zonation pattern. If confirmed by follow-up drilling, this horizon could expand the resource inventory and diversify the base metals product mix of the Whim Creek Project. The Company is simultaneously investigating new VMS exploration targets in the Murchison Basin, maintaining a dual-track strategy of resource growth at Mons Cupri and greenfields exploration for new discovery opportunities.