Strong Pumpkin Hollow Drill Results For Nevada Copper

VANCOUVER — The latest drill results out of Nevada Copper’s (NCU-T, NEVDF-O) Pumpkin Hollow project in Nevada look set to boost resources in a new estimate due out before mid-year.

The company drilled 73 holes totalling 26,600 metres in 2008 at Pumpkin Hollow, which sits about 20 km southeast of the small town of Yerington in Lyon Cty. The property hosts three open-pittable iron oxide copper-gold (IOCG) deposits, two large ones called the North and South zones and the smaller Southeast zone. Pumpkin Hollow also has three higher-grade underground copper deposits, named the Northwest, East, and E-2 zones.

Nevada Copper’s latest results are the last set of holes from the North zone. Infill hole 46 returned a long mineralized intercept: 225.3 metres averaging 0.62% copper from 184 metres depth. Hole 46 was a follow-up to hole 20, which was collared 30 metres south along the southern boundary of the North deposit and returned 1.03% copper over 235.6 metres. And hole 41, drilled 60 metres east of hole 20, cut a total of 192 metres grading better than 0.3% copper, including 62.8 metres of 0.65% copper and 59.4 metres of 0.67% copper.

Hole 42, another North zone infill hole, but near the eastern boundary, intersected several zones of mineralization. The largest measured 11.7 metres true width and carried 2.65% copper, from 215 metres depth. In the same area, stepout hole 35 returned 50.8 metres of 0.45% copper from 235 metres. Another eastern stepout, hole 12, hit 30.8 metres of 0.59% copper.

And two central infill holes also returned strong results. Hole 22 cut 80 metres of 1.15% copper from 255 metres depth and hole 24 intersected five mineralized zones totalling 121 metres, the largest of which carried 0.4% copper over 41 metres.

Over at the South zone, hole 52 was drilled to follow up on shallow, high-grade intercepts from the 2007 program in the southwest corner of the zone. The drill hit 48.5 metres of 1.4% copper from 95 metres depth.

And several infill holes returned significant intercepts. Hole 58 cut 68.6 metres grading 0.5% copper from 129 metres; hole 59 returned 18.3 metres of 1.07% copper; and near the centre of the South zone, hole 25 hit 89.6 metres of 1.03% copper from 175 metres depth.

In the Southeast deposit, infill hole 44 cut 69.8 metres grading 0.56% copper. Hole 51 returned 12.2 metres of 0.35% copper, indicating the western boundary of copper mineralization.

In late 2007, Nevada Copper announced a resource for Pumpkin Hollow’s North and South zones, totalling 342.7 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 0.58% copper, plus 438.1 million inferred tonnes at 0.45% copper. The deposits also carry low silver and gold grades.

Nevada Copper plans to calculate a new resource estimate once the final results from its 2008 campaign are available. Results from the East and E-2 zones are still outstanding. The company will then use the updated resource to optimize the preliminary economic assessment completed a year ago. The company also plans to begin a feasibility study before the end of the year.

The scoping study evaluated an integrated underground and openpit operation with a standard milling and flotation plant to produce high-grade copper concentrates. The operation would produce 95,000 tonnes of copper per year for more than 20 years. Capital costs were estimated at US$780 million.

Nevada Copper shares recently traded at 38.5¢ in a 52-week trading range of 16.5¢-$2.83. The company has 41 million shares outstanding.