A New Way to Mine? 116,000 Tonnes of Copper Targeted Over 31 Months
CEO.CA Jul 13, 2026 6:22
Summary
Northstar Gold's first $627,000 co-investment payment from DIGITAL unlocks access to a $4 million non-dilutive funding package — no shareholder dilution.
A Nova Mera production scenario targets up to 116,000 tonnes of mineralized material — conceptual average grade around 12% copper — over 31 months.
Surgical mining — a turnkey extraction technique suited to small, discreet high-grade deposits — has never been tried at this scale, the CEO says.
An exploration target — a conceptual estimate, not yet a formal resource — outlines 140,000 tonnes grading 9-18% copper at Cam Copper.
A resource estimate is underway, and a fall/winter drill program targets the nearby Allied gold deposit — outlined at half a million near-surface ounces.
Brian Fowler's takeaways
- Top takeaway Fowler argues the discrete, high-grade CAM Copper deposit is ideal for surgical mining and that Northstar can be the platform to prove the technique at a scale never attempted before.
- He presents the Number 2 zone target of about 140,000 tonnes grading 9-18% copper as the basis for a compact 31-month surgical mining campaign.
- He frames the path to production as deliberate: finish technical studies, upgrade the block model, complete a resource estimate and metallurgical work, then give Nova Mera a notice of intent to proceed by the end of 2027.
- He acknowledges the technology has only been tried in a small program at the Golden Promise mine in Newfoundland, so the CAM Copper plan would be a first at this scale.
- He argues the Allied gold system makes the Miller property a two-metal story, citing the 2022 SRK Canada study of roughly half a million near-surface ounces at just over 2 g/t gold and plans for another drill program later in 2026 or early winter.