Azimut Exploration Inc.

Kukamas

Region

James Bay

Size

27,200 Ha

Metals

Au-Cu

Target Style

Shear-related Cu-Au systems / Intrusion-related Ni-Cu-Co-PGE systems

Stage

Early Stage - Technical assessment

Operator

AZM

Ownership

100% Azimut - Option to KGHM International

2024 Planned Program

Prospecting, drilling

Introduction

The Kukamas property covers a 41-kilometre cumulative strike length along a highly prospective greenstone belt. It displays one of the strongest geochemical footprints for copper-gold systems in the James Bay region, marked by strong values in copper, silver, arsenic and antimony in lake-bottom sediments. While numerous known prospects sit on or adjacent to the property, the project is considered largely underexplored. Shear-related copper-gold systems and intrusion-related nickel-copper-cobalt-PGE systems are the main target types.

In December 2022, Azimut announced the signing of a joint venture option agreement with KGHM International Ltd for this property. KGHM International is a subsidiary of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A, a Polish corporation that has been a major copper and silver producer for more than 50 years, with mining projects in Europe, North America and South America. Under the agreement, KGHM International can acquire from Azimut an initial 50% interest in the property over 4 years with $5 million in exploration expenditures and can earn an additional 20% interest with a further investment of at least $4.2 million to complete and deliver a preliminary economic assessment (PR of December 8, 2022)

The project is located near regionally important infrastructure, situated along an access road leading to the LG-3 hydroelectric generating station and only 4 km north of the LG-3 airstrip and the Trans-Taiga Road, a nearly 600-km-long gravel highway running east-west through the James Bay region. The nearest town is Radisson, 80 km to the north-northwest.

Initial assessment

Azimut acquired the Kukamas property after identifying one of the strongest geochemical footprints for copper-gold systems in the James Bay region. The footprint is characterized by strong regional lake-bottom sediment signatures that include 232.8 ppm Cu, 0.39 ppm Ag, 65.7 ppm As, 1.17 ppm Sb. Numerous prospects also sit on or adjacent to Kukamas, with historical grab samples collected on the property grading up to 10.63 g/t Au and 20.7 % Cu. Several other gold showings are found nearby (Tour Elle: 18.1 g/t Au; Girard-Dupras: 3.6 g/t Au over 1.0 m (channel); La Guiche Zone: 2.72 g/t Au; and Dune Zone: 2.2 g/t Au, 4.3% Cu).

2023 Activities under the option agreement with KGHM International Ltd

Exploration work in 2023 comprised 3,199 line-kilometres of heliborne geophysical survey and an initial prospecting phase.

Geophysical survey: A high-resolution heliborne magnetic-electromagnetic VTEM^TMPlus survey covered the entire property at 100-metre line spacing for a total of 3,199 line-kilometres (see press release of February 8, 2023). Ten target areas have been identified related to strong to moderate VTEM^TMPlus conductors or strings of conductors, as well as smaller isolated EM anomalies. None of these conductors, often well correlated with outcropping gold, copper and/or nickel mineralization, has been drill-tested.
Prospecting: The main objective of this phase of work was to follow up on several geophysical targets identified. 114 rock grab samples were collected from six (6) target areas, leading to the discovery of an amphibolite-hosted nickel-copper-platinum-palladium showing with pyrrhotite, pentlandite and chalcopyrite veinlets that returned up to 1.36% Ni, 0.12% Cu, 0.206 g/t Pt and 0.685 g/t Pd in grab samples.

A strong spatial correlation exists between the new nickel-copper-PGE showing and a kilometre-long strong electromagnetic conductor that remains untested by drilling. Other historical prospects in the same area yielded up to 2.0% Cu and 0.75% Ni in grab samples. This area has been ranked as a priority for additional prospecting in 2024 and likely diamond drilling.

A new gold showing (4.28 g/t Au in a grab sample of pyritic amphibolite) has been identified along the Chain Lake fault, a multi-kilometre-long wide shear zone previously recognized on the property. This target area presents a string of strong punctual electromagnetic conductors over a 6-kilometre strike on the western claim block, which will be subject to additional prospecting work.

Several other highly prospective target sectors have been flagged for first-pass field assessment, including a 12-kilometre-long gold-copper trend along the northern part of the western claim block. Historical showings delivered up to 12.54 g/t Au and 3.30% Cu in grab samples.

The Kukamas property is located within the La Grande Subprovince (Archean Superior Province), about 7 km north of the Opinaca Subprovince. The geology is characterized by sheared metasediments, including iron formations, and metavolcanics surrounding granitic intrusions. Regional metamorphism attained greenschist facies. The rocks on the property belong to the following:

Yasinski Group: composed of iron formations, clastic sedimentary rocks, and mafic, intermediate and felsic volcanic rocks, the rocks of this group cover most of the property and host several copper and silver prospects.
Duncan plutons: composed of tonalite, diorite, monzonorite and monzonite, these intrusives of various sizes crop out along the edge of the Yasinski Group volcanics.
Ekomiak Group: composed of clastic rocks unconformably overlying the Yasinski Group, this sequence is defined by a polygenic conglomerate with tonalite clasts, a magnetite banded iron formation, chert, and felspathic or lithic wacke.