Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH): La Verde Drilling, Costa Fuego Funding and 2026 Milestones

Aditi Sarkar

02 November 2026 06:03 PM AEDT

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH): La Verde Drilling, Costa Fuego Funding and 2026 Milestones

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Highlights

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) completed Phase 2 drilling at La Verde in 2026.
The September quarter ended with AUD 29.3 million cash and no debt.
La Verde South drilling returned 148 metres grading 0.44% copper equivalent.
The company continued revised feasibility work and environmental assessment preparation.

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) develops copper-gold Assets in Chile’s coastal Atacama region, with Costa Fuego as its principal project and La Verde as an exploration focus. The company’s October quarterly disclosure detailed additional La Verde drilling, development studies and its September cash position.

Costa Fuego and the La Verde Project

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) is progressing Costa Fuego through the pre-feasibility stage rather than operating a producing mine. The project includes copper-gold deposits and a proposed central processing hub in Chile. Its development planning involves mineral resource estimation, mine design, metallurgy, infrastructure and environmental approvals.

La Verde is a nearby copper-gold porphyry discovery that the company is assessing for potential integration into a revised Costa Fuego mine plan. Hot Chili also has an interest in the Huasco Water venture, whose seawater infrastructure work is being planned alongside the Mining project.

October Report Details La Verde Drilling

The quarterly activities report released on 30 October 2026 said Phase 2 resource infill and extension drilling at La Verde had been completed. This program covered more than 40,000 metres over 13 months, following an earlier 10,000-metre program. Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) reported that drilling had identified two porphyry centres across the wider discovery area.

Southern step-out hole DKP084 intersected 148 metres at 0.44% copper equivalent from 36 metres, including 44 metres at 0.56% from 138 metres. Separate diamond drilling in DKD100 visually recorded a 307-metre interval of porphyry-style mineralisation; laboratory assays were pending. Visual observations should not be interpreted as confirmed grades.

Within the main discovery, the Quarterly Report recorded 398 metres at 0.45% copper equivalent from surface in hole DKP063, including 62 metres at 0.91%. A maiden resource estimate was pending.

Cash Flow and Development Funding

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) reported AUD 29.3 million cash and no Debt at 30 September 2026. For the quarter, Operating Activities used AUD 2.605 million, while exploration and evaluation payments classified as investing activities totalled AUD 10.144 million. Tenement-related payments were AUD 3.371 million.

Net receipts of AUD 20.435 million under an amended Royalty arrangement contributed to quarter-end liquidity. The Appendix 5B calculated 2.29 quarters of available funding using relevant quarterly outgoings; the company indicated that exploration spending should decline after completion of Phase 2 drilling.

Longer-term financing is a separate consideration. The company’s October report cautioned that progressing Costa Fuego through feasibility, construction and production would require funding of approximately USD 1.27 billion under the existing study assumptions. Funding terms are uncertain.

Execution Risks and Upcoming Milestones

Project-specific risks include resource-estimation uncertainty at La Verde, metallurgical and design outcomes, capital-cost changes, Commodity prices and environmental approvals. Heavy rainfall during July and August affected some field activities, although the company said contingency scheduling partly mitigated the delays. Permitting submissions for the Costa Fuego and Huasco Water workstreams remained targeted for the second quarter of 2027.

Next disclosures to monitor include the maiden La Verde resource estimate, remaining drill assays, a revised Costa Fuego pre-feasibility study and environmental assessment documentation. Their outcomes remain uncertain.

Key Insights

Hot Chili Limited (ASX:HCH) ended September 2026 with AUD 29.3 million cash following a royalty-related receipt, while continuing exploration and technical studies. La Verde drilling expanded the dataset available for the next mineral resource estimate. Development economics, approvals, spending and access to construction funding remain central considerations.

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