Exploration Update at the Buen Retiro and Caballos Copper Projects, Chile
September 29, 2025
Exploration Update at the Buen Retiro and Caballos Copper Projects, Chile
Vancouver, British Columbia – September 29, 2025 – Fitzroy Minerals Inc. (TSXV: FTZ, OTCQB:
FTZFF) (“Fitzroy” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on exploration progress at
its Buen Retiro and Caballos copper projects (the “Copper Projects”) in northern Chile.
At Buen Retiro, recent diamond drilling (holes 28 to 35 1) has extended the zone of continuous
mineralization in the Southwest Area to 1.4 km, representing a ~40% increase from the 985 m
previously reported. Copper mineralization is open along strike, with a further 2,250 m of
diamond drilling (“DD”) planned for 2026. Reverse-circulation (“RC”) drilling at Buen Retiro has
completed 1,050 m in four holes, with a further 3,950 m planned. Preliminary logging of RC chips
has identified intrusive rocks bearing chalcopyrite and pyrite mineralisation, several kilometres to
the east of the Southwest Area. Initial RC assays are expected in October, 2025. The Company is
investigating the potential for fast-track production and now aims to complete a maiden mineral
resource estimate and a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) on a heap leach project at
Buen Retiro in 2026.
At Caballos, the Company is expanding its Caballos drilling program to three rigs to accelerate
testing of priority targets on the back of several recent advances there. Fitzroy is in the process of
drilling an approximately 400 m hole (#3) at Caballos. Progress in a vertical hole (#2) from Pad 1
stalled when fault gouge was intersected at a depth of 350 metres. Two additional rigs are being
mobilised and the Company intends to complete at least 3,000 m of diamond drilling at Caballos
in 2025, comprising approximately 2,000 metres at the Chincolco Prospect and 1,000 metres at
the Mule Hill Prospect.
Highlights:
At Buen Retiro, BRT-DDH-028 intersected 133 2 m @ 0.46% Cu in oxides from top of bedrock
(at 22 m downhole) to a downhole length of 155 m, including 40 m @ 0.53% Cu from 32 m,
and 35 m @ 0.77% Cu from 115 metres.
At Buen Retiro, holes 28 to 35 contribute to extending the known zone of continuous
mineralization in the Southwest Area by 40% to 1.4 kilometres.
Fitzroy aims to complete a PEA on a heap leach project at Buen Retiro in 2026.
1 All diamond holes in this report are either from the Buen Retiro Copper Project, or the Caballos Copper
Project identified by a common prefix “BRT-DDH” or “CAB-DDH”, respectively, followed by a number. For
reader ease these have been reduced to the final two digits in the text of the news release.
2 True widths are estimated to be approximately 50% of reported intersection lengths.
Age-dating at Caballos identifies a long-lived hydrothermal system (44 Ma to 25 Ma), which
matches the ages of well known Eocene-Oligocene belts in Chile that host such deposits as
Chuquicamata, Escondida, Quebrada Blanca, and Collahuasi.
Mapping at Caballos identified expansion potential to the East under post-mineral-cover.
Three drill rigs are planned to be at Caballos in Q4, contributing to 3,000 m of drilling in 2025.
Merlin Marr-Johnson, President and CEO of Fitzroy Minerals, commented: “We have now
extended Buen Retiro’s strike length by ~40%, proving both scale and continuity in the Southwest
Area. Regional RC drilling is already delivering evidence of copper mineralization across a broader
footprint. The Company is investigating the potential for fast-track production at Buen Retiro,
starting with a PEA and associated maiden resource estimate to be completed in 2026. Fitzroy is
investigating the possibility of unlocking significant infrastructure advantages at Buen Retiro
which could potentially contribute to the near-term viability of a heap-leach operation.
At Caballos, several break-throughs at the project level have given us the confidence to add a
second and a third rig to the drilling program. The aim is to drill around 1,000 metres at the Mule
Hill Prospect in a helicopter-supported program, testing a 1.3 km-long coincident geophysical,
geochemical and geological anomaly. Separately, two rigs will be part of the track-accessed 2,000
m program at the Chincolco Prospect. We look forward to publishing ongoing results from drilling
at Caballos in Q4 2025.”
Buen Retiro – Diamond Drilling
Today’s release reports assay results from diamond drill holes BRT-DDH-028 to BRT-DDH-035, all
of which are located in the Southwest and South Areas of Buen Retiro. The most note-worthy
aspect is that the extent of mineralization along strike has been increased to 1,400 m in the
Southwest Area, and the trend is still open at both ends.
In the Southwest Area, holes 29 and 35 extended the mineralization for more than 400 m to
southeast, under gravels. Holes 28 and 34 were infill drill holes that helped demonstrate the
continuation of widths and grades of shallow zones of well-mineralized rock along the entire
trend. The Southwest Area now hosts a zone of 1,400 m of continuous mineralization, open to
both the northwest and to the southeast. The gravels increase in depth to the southeast.
Three holes drilled in the Southwest Area were negative. Hole 30 was drilled at an angle away
from the trend to test a potential parallel trend to the west. Hole 31 was drilled to test the
extension of the trend to the southeast of hole 29, but it was still in gravel at the point where it
was projected to cross the trend. A step-back was made, and hole 35 was subsequently completed
which confirmed the presence of the trend, albeit under thick gravels. Hole 32 was programed to
test copper mineralization below the central part of the trend but instead it intersected a shear
zone and a set of strong fault zones with gouge, and the hole could not be completed.
In the South Area, hole 33 extended the zone of defined mineralization 150 m to the south and
the trend is still open both to the north and to the south. In general, the mineralization here is
lower grade and narrower than that found in the Southwest Area. In the event that an economic
resource is defined in the Southwest Area, it is possible that some parts of the South Area may lie
within a proposed open pit centered on the Southwest Area, especially where the two areas
converge toward the south (Figure 1). Current drilling is focused on the zone between the South
and Southwest Areas, targeting oxide and transition material.
Figure 1. Southwest and South Area showing strike extent, Buen Retiro, Chile
Table 1. Selected Phase 2 drill core assay results from BRT-DDH028 to BRT-DDH035, Buen Retiro
Copper Project, Copiapó, Chile*
Drill Hole East (m)
(WGS84)
North (m)
(WGS84)
**Azimuth /
Dip
From
(m)
To
(m) ***Interval (m) Cu (%)
BRT-DDH028 344999 6920878 055/-45 22 155 133 0.46
including 30 70 40 0.53
including 115 150 35 0.77
BRT-DDH029 345096 6920594 082/-45 67 168 101 0.37
including 103 130 27 0.80
BRT-DDH030 344821 6921119 243/-60 No significant intersections
BRT-DDH031 345177 6920374 078/-45 No significant intersections
BRT-DDH032 344833 6920967 065/-45 No significant intersections
BRT-DDH033 345361 6920753 270/-45 Minor intersections
BRT-DDH034 344755 6921395 070/-52 4 62 58 0.21
BRT-DDH035 345156 6920374 078/-53 152 210 58 0.29
including 157 171 14 0.52
and 180 190 10 0.48
*Minimum thickness of 5 m and minimum average grade of 0.15% Cu, except for BRT-DDH034 where a minimum average grade of
0.1% Cu was used.
**measured at the collar
***True width estimated to be 50% of drill hole interval.
Figure 2. Cross-section of diamond drill hole BRT-DDH028, Buen Retiro, Chile
Buen Retiro – Reverse Circulation Drilling
Fitzroy has commissioned a 5,000 m RC drilling contract at the Buen Retiro Project. RC holes are
being used as a relatively low-cost tool to test blind geophysical targets in the wider Buen Retiro
and Sierra Fritis areas. Hole depths will vary between 400 m and 150 m, testing a range of target
styles. To date 1,050 m has been drilled in four holes. Initial holes tested targets in the wider Sierra
Fritis area. Preliminary logging of RC chips has identified intrusive rocks bearing chalcopyrite and
pyrite mineralisation, several kilometres to the east of the Southwest Area. Initial RC assays are
expected in October 2025.
Buen Retiro – Next Steps
The Company is investigating the potential for fast-track production at Buen Retiro, thanks to
significant infrastructure advantages at the project. The Pan-American highway and high voltage
transmission lines cross the eastern portion of the Buen Retiro concession area, and the project
is close to the sea (~35 km) and to Copiapó (~60 km) and associated mining and mineral processing
infrastructure. Fitzroy aims to complete a maiden resource estimate and PEA in 2026.
Environmental baseline monitoring, as part of a permitting process, has already started.
Caballos Update
At Caballos, the Company is expanding its Caballos drilling program to three rigs to accelerate
testing of priority targets on the back of several recent advances at the project. Fitzroy is in the
process of drilling an approximately 350 m hole (#3) oriented to the west-northwest at Caballos.
Progress in a vertical 500 m hole (#2) from Pad 1 stalled when fault gouge was intersected at a
depth of 350 metres. Two additional rigs are being mobilised and the Company intends to
complete at least 3,000 m of diamond drilling at Caballos in 2025, comprising approximately 2,000
metres at the Chincolco Prospect and 1,000 metres at the Mule Hill Prospect. Results will be
published as the drilling program progresses and results become available.
Recent developments at Caballos include:
1. Os-Re dating of molybdenite from the Chincolco prospect to 44 Ma (Eocene) puts
mineralization at Caballos within a well-established porphyry belt that includes the
Chuquicamata, Escondida, Spence and Gaby deposits. In 2007, K-Ar dating of secondary
biotite by Vale from the Mule Hill prospect gave an age of 25.5 Ma (Late Oligocene) to
these hydrothermal alteration processes. These two dates, spanning almost 19 million
years, indicate that Caballos has been a long-lived system straddling two of Chile’s most
fertile metallogenic epochs.
2. Re-logging of Caballos hole #1 confirms hydrothermal breccias contain clasts of
mineralised porphyry, a feature that is consistent with other breccia-dominated porphyry
systems such as El Teniente.
3. Fitzroy has bought a 291 hectare parcel of land in the Chincolco Valley, thereby becoming
a land-owner in the area, which comes with certain access rights.
4. Mapping shows that the barren, Farrellones volcanic rocks to the east of the Chincolco
and Mule Hill prospects lie unconformably on top of the mineralised breccias intersected
in hole #1.
Collectively, these developments support the interpretation of Caballos as a large, fertile, and
long-lived copper system with both depth and lateral scale potential.
Buen Retiro Sampling Procedures, Laboratory and QA/QC
Drill core in labelled and secured wooden core trays is picked up by Company personnel and
transported by truck from the drill rig to the core processing facility in Copiapó. Core depths are
checked, after which geotechnical logging is performed.
Using a core cutting diamond blade saw, primary half core samples are collected from HQ- or NQ-
sized drill core with the remaining half-core stored in the original wooden core trays at the rented
core storage warehouse in Cuesta Cardones, south of Copiapó. A silica blank is inserted every 20
samples (~20 m); a blank is always inserted immediately after a section that contains native
copper. Pulp duplicates are randomly selected in proportion to the number of samples from each
drill hole and inserted into the sample stream along with high-, medium-, and low-grade copper
standards. Sample identifications are changed and coded by the Company. The QA/QC samples
prepared by the Company represent about 12% of the total primary core samples.
The three copper standards (both oxide and sulphide), acquired from Chilean company Instituto
Nacional de Technologia Estandarizacion y Metrologia Ltda. (“ INTEM”), have international
standard certification. The certified standards are used to evaluate the accuracy (approximation
versus true value) of the laboratory analysis. Blanks are used to evaluate the quality of the
laboratory preparation and identify possible contamination. Pulp duplicates are used to test
analytical accuracy (repeatability). No secondary laboratory (referee lab) samples were
completed in this round of drilling; however, the next stage and subsequent stages of drilling will
put in place laboratory replicate procedures.
Once prepared, the core samples are bagged, tagged, and transported to the laboratory by the
project team. At the laboratory reception, the samples and their identification codes are verified
and accepted once the physical inventory matches the assay request form.
The pulps and rejects of crushed samples are collected from the ALS-Patagonia laboratory in
Copiapó every 3 months. The rejects are stocked in closed drums, identified with the
corresponding batches and sample ranges, while the pulps are stocked in boxes and in shelves
inside a container separated for this purpose. Both are located in the same Company warehouse
facilities in Copiapó.
A visual review of the Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC) results from the standards
and blanks inserted by the Company and the laboratory’s internal QA/QC information was
completed by the Company and no significant issues were identified.
Qualified Person
Dr. Scott Jobin-Bevans (P.Geo., Ph.D., PMP), a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument
43-101 and independent geological consultant to the Company, has reviewed and approved the
technical information provided in this news release, including the sampling, analytical and test
data underlying the technical information contained in this news release. Specifically, the QP
verified selected laboratory assay certificates against the reported drill core intervals as well as
drill core logs against the geology, as supplied by the Company.
About Fitzroy Minerals
Fitzroy Minerals is focused on exploring and developing mineral assets with substantial upside
potential in the Americas. The Company’s current property portfolio includes the Buen Retiro
Copper Project located near Copiapó, Chile, the Caballos Copper and Polimet Gold-Copper-Silver
projects located in Valparaiso, Chile, the Taquetren Gold Project located in Rio Negro, Argentina,
and the Cariboo Project in British Columbia, Canada. Fitzroy Minerals’ shares are listed on the TSX
Venture Exchange under the symbol FTZ and on the OTCQB under the symbol FTZFF.
On behalf of Fitzroy Minerals Inc.
Merlin Marr-Johnson
President and CEO
For further information, please contact:
Merlin Marr-Johnson
+447803712280
For more information on Fitzroy Minerals, please visit the Company's website:
www.fitzroyminerals.com
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the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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