Strickland Metals digs deep for gold-copper glory in Serbia
- Doug Bright
- Jul 14
- 2 min read
Strickland Metals (ASX: STK) has launched an ambitious exploration program targeting large-scale porphyry copper-gold mineralisation at its 7.4-million-ounce gold equivalent Rogozna project in Serbia.
The focus is on the company’s Jezerska Reka copper-gold porphyry target, seven kilometres southwest of its flagship Shanac deposit, where drilling has begun to probe the interpreted centre of a significant porphyry system.
The Jezerska Reka target was identified after soil geochemical sampling and geological mapping three years ago. The company followed up with trenching, drilling and a maiden exploration hole in 2023.
The maiden hole intersected 92 metres assaying 0.4 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 484m hosted by low-sulphidation epithermal veining in brecciated andesitic volcanic rocks.
A second hole drilled last year delivered a 493m hit at 0.14g/t gold from 223.6m, extending the footprint of the porphyry alteration system several hundred metres eastwards from the maiden drill hole.
Both holes confirm extensive porphyry-related veining and alteration on the fringes of a large porphyry system.
Global porphyry expert Professor David Cooke confirmed the system’s potential during a site visit, concluding from the alteration and associated pathfinder geochemistry that earlier drilling had passed through the northeastern periphery of the main porphyry centre.
The current hole is being drilled further southwest of the previous two holes to spear the heart of the porphyry system, guided by strong IP chargeability and resistivity anomalies identified in prior geophysical surveys.
Since the discovery of the large-scale Jezerska Reka porphyry system in 2023, we have been eager to unravel the prospective geology and make the kind of world-class discovery that Serbia is renowned for.
Strickland Metals Managing Director Paul L’Herpiniere
In parallel, Strickland is conducting systematic geophysical surveys in the Central Porphyry target area, where younger volcanic cover obscures possible alteration and geochemical anomalism that may identify underlying prospective porphyry hosts.
Previous geochemical sampling, mapping and airborne ZT electromagnetic surveys identified large remanent magnetism anomalies, further supporting the area’s potential.
The anomalies are related to disseminated sulphide bodies and are also spatially associated with the nearby Shanac and Medenovac deposits, east of the Central Porphyry target.
L’Herpiniere said a detailed ground gravity survey is in progress to map density contrasts, which will be followed by a magneto-telluric survey to detect conductivity variations at depth.
Strickland expects to complete the surveys within three months, aiming to identify multiple new blind porphyry-hosted deposits beneath volcanic cover within the Central Porphyry area.
It plans to drill any new targets defined from the geophysics later this year.
The Central Porphyry’s prospectivity is enhanced by its central position within the Rogozna magmatic system.
Its spatial associations, with extensive skarn alteration near the Skadar-Pec transform fault, are often linked to world-class deposits such as the massive Grasberg-Ertsberg complex in Indonesia.
Strickland remains well-funded with $34.8 million in cash and liquid assets as of March 31, bolstered by a $5 million strategic investment from Chinese giant Zijin Mining, ensuring robust support for the company’s ongoing and future exploration efforts.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: office@bullsnbears.com.au
