Top 5 Junior Copper Stocks on the TSXV in 2023

Year-to-date gain: 211.54 percent; market cap: C$132.91 million; current share price: C$0.81

Minsud Resources is an exploration company focused on operations in Argentina. Its primary project, Chita Valley, is located in San Juan and covers 19,883 hectares. It hosts widespread porphyry copper-molybdenum-silver-gold mineralization and includes three core properties: Chita Valley, Brechas Vacas and the Minas de Pinto mineral concessions.

Shares of Minsud saw small gains through the first quarter of the year after the company announced that South32 (ASX:S32,OTC Pink:SHTLF) had given notice, as part of a 2019 earn-in agreement, of its intent to spend C$9.1 million on a fourth year of exploration to advance the Chita Valley project.

On March 21, Minsud announced that assay results from Phase 4 drilling at Chita Valley’s Chinchillones target had revealed greater mineralization at the site than previously anticipated. They confirmed the presence of a second tonalitic porphyry, with a highlight assay of 0.94 percent copper, 0.38 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold and 5.56 g/t silver over 86 meters.

The company saw further gains through the second and third quarters as it announced similar positive results from its drilling program at Chita Valley. On May 8, Minsud reported high-grade yields, including the best drill hole intercept to date, which included an interval of 1.35 percent copper over 166.3 meters. The Phase 4 drilling revealed more extensive mineralization, allowing Minsud to expand its target zone to 2 kilometers by 2 kilometers.

Minsud reported on August 1 drilling results at Chita Valley further supported the extension of the Chinchillones target zone identified on May 8, and according to the company represented a significant discovery. Minsud noted in the report, “The results of this drill hole are very significant, having intersected a continuous 670-metre interval of dacites and high-grade polymetallic (Cu-Ag-Au-Pb-Mo) hydrothermal breccia bodies.” In an update on November 20, the company reported it had completed 52 drill holes over 38,991 meters as part of Phase 4 of the drilling program at Chita Valley.

In its most recent update on November 27, Minsud announced that its subsidiary Minsud Argentina had exercised its cash-in option with respect to South32’s earn-in right to acquire a 50.1 percent ownership interest in the Chita Valley project. The acquisition is expected to be completed in February 2024.

Year-to-date gain: 200 percent; market cap: C$10.71 million; current share price: C$0.06

Aston Bay is a mineral exploration company with assets in Virginia, US; and Nunavut, Canada. Its flagship property is the Storm copper project on Somerset Island, Nunavut. The project is currently being developed by American West Metals (ASX:AW1,OTC Pink:AWMLF) through a May 2021 earn-in agreement that would give American West an 80 percent interest in the Aston’s Nunavut property, including Storm.

Shares in Aston Bay surged from C$0.04 on August 1 to a year-to-date high of C$0.305 on August 14 following August 2 news of a major copper discovery at Storm following a diamond drilling program. The company said it had intersected thick intervals of copper sulfides that show similarities to major sediment-hosted systems including the deposits of the Kalahari and Central African copper belts.

The news was followed by the release of more high-grade results on August 17, September 5 and September 26. Drilling at the site had revealed copper values of up to 2.7 percent across hole spacing between 600 meters and 2 kilometers long, and highlighted a large-scale exploration potential with more than 14 kilometers for prospective strike. Exploration also included the discovery of a new copper zone named Lightning Ridge. The company’s share price began falling in September, before plunging on September 26 to C$0.08.

The most recent news from the site came on November 27, when Aston Bay reported a significant discovery at the Tempest prospect, located 40 kilometers south of Storm, with grab samples grading up to 38.2 percent copper and 30.8 percent zinc. The company said the results from American West’s exploration at Tempest highlight the large-scale regional potential within the project area.

Year-to-date gain: 150 percent; market cap: C$12.13 million; current share price: C$0.075

Camino Minerals is a copper exploration and development company with assets located in Peru. Its flagship property is the Los Chapitos project, which consists of 22,500 hectares and hosts an iron oxide, copper and gold (IOCG) deposit.

Shares in Camino began rising early in the year following a news release on February 1 that it had signed an earn-in agreement with Japan’s Nittetsu Mining (TSE:1515). The venture would see Nittetsu earning a 35 percent stake in Los Chapitos for C$10 million in investment in the project over a three year period. The agreement allows Camino to draw from Nittetsu’s experience mining a similar IOCG deposit at its Atacama Kozan copper mine in Chile.

The release was followed a week later with an announcement by Camino on February 8 that it had identified a new drilling target 2.2 kilometers from Los Chapitos’ main Adriana copper zone. Prior channel samples from the newly identified Diana zone included results of 1.05 percent copper and 14 parts per million silver over 56 meters. The company also announced it had applied for a drilling permit expansion to increase the exploration area by 6,012 hectares, which was later granted on June 20..

The news sent Camino’s share price climbing significantly from C$0.045 on February 7, and momentum continued into Q2, when it reached a year-to-date high of C$0.12 on April 17.

More recently, in an announcement on October 24, Camino reported that aerial mapping of Los Chapitos had identified the La Estancia deep fault system, which extends 12 kilometers. It noted that similar fault systems have been observed at other iron oxide-copper-gold deposits along the Chilean coast with significant deposits lying within a 5 kilometer radius of a thick-skinned fault’s propagation zone.

Share prices in Camino saw another boost on November 8, when the company announced Rio Tinto (LSE:RIO,ASX:RIO,NYSE:RIO) had staked copper claims adjacent to the Los Chapitos project. Camino President Jay Chmelauskas said, “A major copper company like Rio Tinto entering the Los Chapitos district is another strong indicator that Camino’s geological research and exploration initiatives.” Camino also announced it had increased its land position at the site by 1,000 hectares.

Year-to-date gain: 129.77 percent; market cap: C$1.28 million; current share price: C$7.10

NGEx Minerals, which is part of the Lundin Group, is a copper and gold exploration company focused on developing its projects in Argentina and Chile. NGEx’s primary focuses are the Los Helados and Lunahuasi (formerly Potro Cliffs) projects, both located within the Vicuña copper-gold district on the border of Argentina and Chile. The district is controlled by companies within the Lundin Group.

Strong assay results in April from within the Vicuña district were highlights of the first half of the year for NGEx, causing the company’s share price to surge from C$4.40 to C$6.83 that month.

The first of these results came on April 4, when NGEx reported the discovery of a new zone of high-grade copper, gold and silver mineralization at what was then called Potro Cliffs. Drilling at the zone yielded intersects that were the highest yet at the site: 7.52 percent copper equivalent over 60 meters, including 18 percent over 10 meters. The zone marks the fourth major deposit in Lundin’s Vicuña district.

NGEx followed with results on April 13 from drilling at the Fenix and Alicanto zones at Los Helados; one hole from Fenix had an interval of 343.8 meters grading 0.9 percent copper equivalent, including 63 meters grading 1.25 percent. The quality of the results has helped to expand the size of the Fenix zone and shows that both zones have opportunities for future expansion.

NGEx continued to drill into July, and announced on July 4 that high-grade results had confirmed the newly discovered zone announced on April 4, which it named Lunahuasi. The company believes the samples indicate that the outer halo of a core deposit that has yet to be discovered. In addition to the high-grade copper, the drilling revealed bonanza-grade gold and silver values as high as 43.9 g/t gold and 1,165 g/t silver.

NGEx reported on August 11 it had closed a non-brokered private placement of C$85.7 million; the company plans to use the money to further fund its exploration programs in Chile and Argentina. It began its inaugural drill program at Lunahuasi on October 17.

The company released news on November 14 that the Vicuña district exploration team would receive the Thayer Lindsley award for best global discovery from the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada when the awards are presented on March 5, 2024.

The most recent news from the company came on December 5, when it released its updated mineral resource estimate for Los Halados with indicated and inferred resources of 12.1 million metric tons of copper, 13.8 million ounces of gold and 147.7 million ounces of silver.

Shares in NGEx set a new year-to-date high of C$7.67 on December 21.

Year-to-date gain: 100 percent; market cap: C$14.42 million; current share price: C$0.08

Spruce Ridge Resources is a junior mineral exploration company working on several projects in North America. Its flagship asset is the Great Burnt copper project, which consists of four primary zones: the Great Burnt copper primary zone, the South Pond A copper-gold zone, the South Pond B gold zone and the End Zone copper zone. Resource estimates for Great Burnt include indicated and inferred deposits of 29,500 metric tons of copper and 8,800 ounces of gold.

Spruce Ridge was issued a cease trade order in September of 2022 by the Ontario Securities Commission for a delay in filing audited financial statements, CEO and CFO certifications and management discussion and analysis for the year ending April 30, 2022. At the time the company said the delays were due to management changes that occurred close to the filing deadline of August 29, 2022.

Spruce Ridge completed the filings of financial statements for 2022 on March 2, 2023. A further statement from the company on August 4 indicated that in addition to the yearly statement it also filed financial statements for the three month periods ending July 31 and October 31, 2022, and January 31, 2023. Trading for Spruce Ridge resumed on August 10 opening at C$0.50.

Shares quickly made gains following news on August 17 that the company had signed a binding letter of intent with Benton Resources (TSXV:BEX,OTC Pink:BNTRF) in which Benton could earn a 70 percent stake in Spruce’s Great Burnt property. Benton announced initial drill results from the property on November 7 with a highlighted intersect of 8.31 percent copper over 13 meters at a depth of 162 meters.

On November 16, Spruce Ridge announced it had entered into a share purchase agreement with RAB Capital Holdings for the acquisition of RFN Holdings and its 80 percent stake in Homeland Nickel. Homeland owns a portfolio of historic claims in Oregon comprising the Red Flat and Cleopatra properties. Spruce said the acquisition will allow it to enter the US critical minerals market with properties containing significant resources of nickel and expansion potential.

Shares in Spruce Ridge climbed to a year-to-date high of C$0.095 following its November 30 annual general meeting, at which the company stated shareholders voted against a special resolution approving a name change. According to the AGM notice released on October 20, the name change would have been to ”Homeland Nickel Corporation,’ or such other name as the board of directors, in its sole discretion, deems appropriate.’