Copper Explorer Works Through 10,000M of Historical Cores

May 24, 2023 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Gladiator Metals Corp. is continuing to release assay results from 10,000 meters of historical drill cores from its project in the Yukon Territory that were never systematically logged or assayed.

Gladiator Metals Corp. (GLAD:TSX) is continuing to release assay results from 10,000 meters of historical drill cores from its project in the Yukon Territory that were never systematically logged or assayed.

The company released results from two holes at its high-grade Cowley Park prospect at the Whitehorse Copper project on Monday. Hole 19-CP-01 intersected 32.92 meters of 2.08% copper (Cu) from 73.76 meters, including 8.11 meters of 5.35% Cu from 80.16 meters, and 34.75 meters of 0.94% Cu from 117.65 meters.

Bob Moriarty of 321gold.com pointed out that even at Tuesday's depressed prices for copper, that would be worth US$443 per tonne.

"That's like having an eight-gram gold intercept," Moriarty wrote. "It's outstanding. At today's price, the company is only worth CA$19.7 million. That's absurdly cheap."

Other results released included Hole 19-CP-05, which returned 27 meters of 0.68% Cu and 0.23% molybdenum (Mo) 97 meters, and Hole 19-CP-10, which returned 19.08 meters of 1.45% Cu from 108.94 meters within 81.26 meters of 0.55% Cu from 108.94 meters.

In a recent interview, Gladiator Chief Executive Officer Jason Bontempo said, "We've only just started."

"It's better than we expected in terms of infilling between the gaps," Bontempo said. "They're much wider zones. So it really is quite impressive from our perspective when we look at it globally amongst other drill results in Cowley, which, you know, there's a good 25,000 meters of drilling that have been done at Cowley Park. And, of course, it's never been mined."

Moriarty called the Whitehorse Copper Belt "one of the best jurisdictions in the world."

"It sits right next to a major city in the Yukon and (a) transportation hub," Moriarty wrote. "One of the foremost First Nation families is partners on the project and has done years of drilling in the belt. They have invested their money into Gladiator and are doing the drilling."

The 10,000 meters of historical drill cores are from a prior operator and were completed between 2018 and 2020, the company said.

"If someone hands you 10,000 meters of free drilling, that is like handing you US$3 million in US$100 bills," Moriarty noted. "It's free money. Look for assay results to come out on a regular basis. They will continue to be spectacular, I suspect."

He also noted how as the energy transition continues, the metal, which is needed in large supplies for electric vehicles (EVs), is in acute shortage.

The Catalyst: 'A Lot of Work to Do'

Gladiator's Whitehorse Copper project is made up of 314 contiguous claims covering about 5,380 hectares, the company said.

Copper mineralization was first discovered there in 1897. The belt comprised more than 30 copper-related, primarily skarn occurrences covering 35 kilometers by 5 kilometers. Between 1967 and 1982, 267.6 million pounds Cu, 225,000 ounces gold (Au), and 2.8 million ounces (Moz) silver (Ag) were milled from 11.1 million tons of mineralized skarn ore.

"This project . . . has been in the cupboard for almost 40 years, and we've pulled it out, and there's a lot of work to do, and it's really exciting," Bontempo said.

The company said its interpretation of results from Cowley Park is that the prospect consists of multiple bodies, dipping shallowly to the southwest. Mineralization remains open at depth. High-grade copper skarn mineralization has been traced over more than 700 meters in historical drilling and remains open in all directions.

Gladiator's current 3,000-meter drilling program at the site is expected to be completed by the end of May. The company said it would continue to announce relevant intercepts based on logical grouping.

It will also continue to log and assay the 10,000 meters of unanalyzed cores. Most of the material relates to drilling at Crowley Park but also includes drilling in the North Start, Grafters, and Verona prospects.

Demand Expected to Double

EVs, as they are now, would not exist without copper. They use three times the amount of the red metal as cars with internal combustion engines. It's also needed in large amounts for solar panels, wind turbines, grid energy storage, and 5G infrastructure.

One out of five vehicles sold worldwide could be an EV in less than two years, and Ford and General Motors have set a goal of achieving 40-50% of their sales from EVs in the U.S. by 2030.

According to a report by S&P Global, The Future of Copper, demand is expected to double from about 25 million metric tons (Mmt) today to about 50 Mmt by 2035. [OWNERSHIP_CHART-10587]

"The implications are that high copper prices (relative to history) are likely to continue and will need to be high enough to encourage additional new greenfield capacity or brownfield expansions to come on stream," a copper market analysis by RFC Ambrian said in 2022.

Ownership and Share Structure

About 48% of Gladiator is owned by management and insiders, and the rest, 52%, is retail, including 13% owned by H. Coyne & Sons and Coyne family members, Gladiator said.

Other major shareholders include Director Darren Devine at 3.76%, Director Shawn Khunkhun at 2.08%, the CEO Bontempo at 1.58%, and Director Ian Harris at 0.77%, according to Reuters.

Its market cap is CA$19.46 million, with 28.9 million shares outstanding, and 26.5 million free-floating. It trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.73 and CA$0.10.

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