The First Assay
Wednesday Drill Digest
TSX · TSX-V · CSE · July 8, 2026
3 companies
12 qualifying holes
2 jurisdictions
San Juan, Argentina owns the tape today: NGEx closed out Phase 4 at Lunahuasi with five holes led by a 573.4m strike-parallel run at 2.17% CuEq and a 57.75m Jupiter vein at 9.41% CuEq, while Andina Copper delivered first assays from its Piuquenes North discovery — 468m at 0.50% Cu from 700m, one ridge over from Aldebaran's Altar. Abcourt's 153m at 0.5 g/t Au in an unexplored zone at Flordin is the lone Canadian qualifier on a quiet day for gold. Three companies, twelve qualifying holes, and a table dominated by copper porphyry and high-sulphidation veins.
⚑ Hole of the Day
▾ Deep · From 700m
★ Discovery · New Zone
Argentina · Moderate Risk ~
Porphyry-Cu
Andina Copper ANDC TSX-V · C$365M~
Piuquenes North, Argentina
PIU13: 468m of 0.50% Cu, 0.30 g/t Au, 3.04 g/t Ag* from 700m
incl. 164m of 0.70% Cu, 0.44 g/t Au from 924m
GT
234.0 %·m
Exceptional
AuEq·m
466.6
Cu+Au+Ag computed
GT/MCap
0.64×
(Cu)
Deposit
Porphyry-Cu
First assays from PIU13 confirm a third porphyry centre at Piuquenes — 468 continuous metres of 0.50% Cu with meaningful gold credits (~1.0 g/t AuEq) through a multiphase intrusive stack, and the grade improves downhole with 164m at 0.70% Cu from 924m. It is deep — mineralization starts at 700m, so think block-cave scale, not open pit — but discovery holes of this size next door to Aldebaran's Altar and in the same San Juan belt as Los Azules and El Pachón get priced on district potential, and the 800×700m MT target is open in all directions. At 0.64× GT/MCap on a ~C$365M cap, it screens as the best value hole today by a wide margin once NGEx's C$5.5B denominator is accounted for; it ranks #6 of 19 Cu intercepts in the 30-day archive by GT — and three of the five above it are today's NGEx holes. Argentina is a moderate-risk jurisdiction, though San Juan remains the country's most mining-friendly province. Watch for PIU12 assays (pending) and step-outs to the north.
* Drilled widths — true width not determined pending geological modelling.
GT/MCap Spotlight — Top 5
Au and Cu metrics are on different price bases — not directly comparable across metals.
ABI FL-26-306 Au ◉ ✓
0.76×
ANDC PIU13 Cu ~ ★ HOTD
0.64×
NGEX DPDH071 Cu ✓ ~
0.13×
NGEX DPDH077 Cu ✓ ~
0.07×
NGEX DPDH072 Cu ✓ ~
0.05×
◉ From depth ≤200m (shallow) · ⚠ High jurisdiction risk · ~ Moderate jurisdiction risk · ✓ True width stated · ★ HOTD
Today's Qualifying Intercepts — Top 5 of 12
| Rating | Company | Metal | Hole | m | Grade / COG | GT | AuEq·m | GT/MCap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great | Abcourt MinesABI | AuOrogenic | FL-26-306 ✓ | 153 ◉ | 0.5 g/t / n/s | 76.5 | 76.5 | 0.76 |
| Exceptional | NGEx MineralsNGEX | CuHS Cu-Au veins | DPDH071 ✓ ~ | 573.4 | 2.17 % CuEq / n/s | 728.2 | 1643.6 | 0.13 (Cu) |
| Exceptional | NGEx MineralsNGEX | CuHS Cu-Au veins | DPDH077 ✓ ~ | 57.75 | 9.41 % CuEq / n/s | 375.9 | 717.7 | 0.07 (Cu) |
| Exceptional | NGEx MineralsNGEX | CuHS Cu-Au veins | DPDH072 ✓ ~ | 207 | 2.37 % CuEq / n/s | 298.1 | 659.3 | 0.05 (Cu) |
| Exceptional ★ | Andina CopperANDC | CuPorphyry-Cu | PIU13* ~ | 468 | 0.50 % Cu / n/s | 234.0 | 466.6 | 0.64 (Cu) |
↗ View all 12 intercepts in Google Sheets
+7 not shown (per-company cap): NGEX DPDH069 Exc 171 GT, DPDH072-shallow Great 91, DPDH074 Great 80, DPDH077-upper Good 47 (Au), +3 Good
Near-Miss
| Near-miss | Abcourt MinesABI | AuOrogenic | FL-26-298 ✓ | 29.5 ◉ | 0.3 g/t / n/s | 8.9 | 8.9 | 0.09 |
| Near-miss | Abcourt MinesABI | AuOrogenic | FL-26-300 ✓ | 22.5 ◉ | 0.3 g/t / n/s | 6.8 | 6.8 | 0.07 |
| Near-miss | Abcourt MinesABI | AuOrogenic | FL-26-299 ✓ | 14 ◉ | 0.4 g/t / n/s | 5.6 | 5.6 | 0.06 |
All three are Cartwright-area depth/lateral continuity holes at Flordin — low grades, but they extend the mineralized structure 300m+ west and to 200m depth.
✓ True width stated in PR · * Drilled width — TW not determined · ◉ From ≤200m (shallow)
⚠ High jurisdiction risk · ~ Moderate jurisdiction risk · n/s = COG not stated
GT thresholds — Au: Good >10, Great >50, Exceptional >200 g/t·m · Cu: Good >20, Great >40, Exceptional >150 %·m
AuEq: Au $3,200/oz · Ag $33/oz · Cu $13,700/t · GT/MCap uses C$ mkt cap at July 8, 2026
NGEx CuEq as reported by PR (legacy US$3.00/lb deck); AuEq·m recomputed at current reference prices. Deposit type shown under metal symbol.
⚠ High jurisdiction risk · ~ Moderate jurisdiction risk · n/s = COG not stated
GT thresholds — Au: Good >10, Great >50, Exceptional >200 g/t·m · Cu: Good >20, Great >40, Exceptional >150 %·m
AuEq: Au $3,200/oz · Ag $33/oz · Cu $13,700/t · GT/MCap uses C$ mkt cap at July 8, 2026
NGEx CuEq as reported by PR (legacy US$3.00/lb deck); AuEq·m recomputed at current reference prices. Deposit type shown under metal symbol.
THE FIRST ASSAY
thefirstassay.com
Au $3,200/oz · Ag $33/oz · Cu $13,700/t
Not investment advice.
Not investment advice.
Archived: Google Sheets
· Raw CSV also saved to Drive