Key Highlights

  • Hole 26TUR009, the northernmost drilled at Turpentine so far, returned 14m at 1.57% CuEq from 251m, including 5m at 3.75% CuEq.
  • Holes 26TUR004 and 26TUR008 also intersected copper-gold mineralisation, with 26TUR008 returning a lower 24m at 0.46% CuEq from 271m.
  • Turpentine hosts an Inferred resource of 8.7Mt at 1.16% CuEq, and an RC rig is due to resume drilling the following week, with assays from early October 2026.

Breakthrough Minerals Limited (ASX:BTM) reported on 15 September 2026 further assay results from resource expansion drilling at the Turpentine Deposit, part of its Hazel Creek Copper-Gold Project and the wider North Queensland Copper-Gold Project near Mt Isa. Three further holes returned copper-gold mineralisation, and the company says the results extend the interpreted mineralised system north of the existing resource model.

The three new intersections

Hole 26TUR004 intersected 9 metres at 1.59% copper equivalent (CuEq), made up of 1.36% copper and 0.29 g/t gold, from 262 metres, including 5 metres at 2.62% CuEq from 263 metres. It also recorded two further zones: 4 metres at 0.76% CuEq from 277 metres and 9 metres at 0.42% CuEq from 291 metres.

Hole 26TUR008 intersected 24 metres at 0.46% CuEq, comprising 0.41% copper and 0.06 g/t gold, from 271 metres, including 3 metres at 0.99% CuEq. Hole 26TUR009 intersected 14 metres at 1.57% CuEq, comprising 1.30% copper and 0.34 g/t gold, from 251 metres, including 5 metres at 3.75% CuEq from 252 metres. That interval is the highest grade from the latest phase of drilling.

Position relative to the current resource

Hole 26TUR009 is the northernmost extensional hole at Turpentine to date, and the company says it supports the interpreted northern down-plunge continuation of the mineralised system, which was identified from gravity inversion modelling and magnetic data. The company notes that every one of the nine holes drilled at Turpentine in 2026 has intersected copper mineralisation.

Earlier standout results restated in the release are 17 metres at 1.24% CuEq from 180 metres in 26TUR002, 19 metres at 1.03% CuEq from 216 metres in 26TUR003, and 5 metres at 3.21% CuEq from 137 metres in 26TUR005. Intersections outside the current resource envelope are not yet part of any Mineral Resource.

Resource context

Turpentine is the company's largest single deposit, with an Inferred Mineral Resource of 8.7 million tonnes at 1.16% CuEq for 101,000 tonnes of contained CuEq. It sits within a broader North Queensland Copper-Gold Project resource base of 200,000 tonnes of contained CuEq, reported in October 2025. All of the Turpentine resource is in the Inferred category, which carries a lower level of geological confidence. An initial program of about 4,000 metres is underway to test northern and deeper extensions.

Drilling schedule

Drilling at Turpentine was due to restart the following week with a dedicated reverse circulation rig, replacing a multipurpose rig, to keep testing the northern down-plunge extension. Further assays were expected from early October 2026 and are to be reported progressively. A separate program of about 2,500 metres of RC drilling is planned across the Hazel Creek project to test targets including Turpentine South, Eight Mile Creek North and Eight Mile Creek East. These programs form part of a broader exploration campaign of about 10,000 metres in 2026, focused on growing the resource inventory.

Copper equivalent reporting and earlier releases

Results are reported as copper equivalent (CuEq) alongside individual copper and gold grades. For hole 26TUR009, the 3.75% CuEq interval consists of 3.07% copper and 0.84 g/t gold, while for 26TUR004 the 2.62% CuEq interval consists of 2.23% copper and 0.48 g/t gold. The release does not restate the metal price assumptions behind the equivalent figures.

Earlier holes in the same program were reported on 6 August 2026 and 1 September 2026. The company says all nine holes drilled so far at Turpentine this year intersected copper mineralisation, within an initial program of about 4,000 metres targeting extensions to the north and at depth.