King Copper Selects Drill Contractor for Inaugural Drill Program at Colquemayo
VANCOUVER, British Columbia,, Oct. 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- King Copper Discovery Corp. (TSX-V: KCP, OTCQB: TBXXF, FSE: 3RI0) (“King Copper” or the “Company”) announces that its Peruvian operating company, Aurora Copper Peru S.A.C., has selected Kluane Drilling Perú S.A.C. (“Kluane”) as its drilling contractor for the Company’s initial phase of drilling at the Colquemayo Copper Project (“Colquemayo” or the “Project”) in southern Peru.
King Copper’s inaugural drill program is fully funded, consists of over 36,000 metres and marks a major new phase of exploration at Colquemayo. Drilling will focus on testing five, initially identified, highly prospective porphyry targets across Colquemayo, testing the deeper porphyry copper potential and unlocking the multi-discovery potential of this extensive mineralized system. The initial contract comprises 15,000 meters of diamond drilling.
Jonathan Richards, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The high-grade potential of the Colquemayo mineralized system is illustrated by prior drilling that returned up to15.15 metres of 27 percent copper,within a broader intercept of 237.3 metres of 2.4 percent copper, starting at a downhole depth of 306.25 metres in hole COQ-10-36. Our technical work at Colquemayo has now defined a robust pipeline of five initial priority porphyry targets that we plan to systematically test through diamond drilling. The scale of the mineralized system, together with the significant copper intercepts from shallower historical drilling, highlights compelling discovery potential across Colquemayo.”
Initial Drill Program Highlights
The Colquemayo Project hosts a series of high-priority exploration targets defined by multiple geological, mineralogical and hydrothermal indicators consistent with porphyry–epithermal systems. These include high-grade copper mineralization, B-type quartz veins, phreatic breccias containing porphyry-related clasts, porphyritic domes, and white-mica crystallinity signatures indicative of increasing hydrothermal temperatures at depth. Together, these features support the potential for deeper, copper-gold porphyry mineralization and provide compelling targets for the Company’s ongoing exploration program. The following targets are distributed across the broader (12 km x 4 km) Colquemayo mineralized system (see Figure 1):
- Amata – Deep exploration targeting high-grade copper mineralization associated with an epithermal system, hosted within phreatic breccias containing clasts indicative of a porphyry system at depth.
- Cairani – Targeting the porphyry–epithermal transition, characterized by high-grade copper mineralization, including covellite and bornite, together with the presence of B-type quartz veins.
- Coripuquio – Target characterized by a Maricunga-style vein system associated with phreatic breccias containing clasts of B-type quartz veins, supporting the potential for a porphyry system at depth.
- Palcamayo – Extensive diatreme system representing a compelling target for deeper exploration and investigation of potential mineralization at depth.
- Yanarico – Porphyritic domes within a diatreme setting, associated with a high white-mica crystallinity index, providing evidence for a potentially mineralized hydrothermal system at depth.
Kluane Drilling
Kluane Drilling Perú S.A.C. is part of Kluane Drilling Ltd., a private Canadian company with more than 35 years of experience dedicated to providing high-quality drilling services internationally based on technical innovation and human talent. Kluane’s modular drilling equipment is well suited to the terrain and logistical requirements at Colquemayo. Kluane has significant drilling experience in Peru and maintains an operational base in Arequipa, approximately 120 km by road from Colquemayo, providing regional logistical and operational support as King Copper advances the remaining requirements toward drilling.
DIA Approval and Next Steps
King Copper Discovery Corp. received approval of its Declaración de Impacto Ambiental (“DIA”) for the Colquemayo project, located in southern Peru. The approved DIA authorizes:
- Over 36,000 metres of diamond drilling
- Up to 59 drill holes from 40 drill platforms
- Exploration activities across multiple priority target areas identified through the company 's geological reinterpretation and targeting work
- Supporting infrastructure required to execute the planned exploration program
With the selection of the drill contract now complete, King Copper is advancing remaining pre-mobilization requirements necessary to commence drilling. Further details regarding drill mobilization and the commencement of the drill program will be provided as these activities advance.
Figure 1: Colquemayo Project – High-priority drill targets do be tested in the initial drilling phase.
Figure 2: Interpreted alteration at level 4,050m amsl and planned drillhole A1 for testing downdip potential of hole COQ10-36 intersections and potential deeper Cu porphyry target.
Figure 2A: Copper values in historic drilling and interpreted geology at level 4,250m amsl.
Figure 3: Gold values in historic drilling, interpreted alteration at level 4,100 amsl and planned drill holes C1 and C11, to test potential Cu porphyry target at depth, indicating by transition to pyrophyllite alteration and presence of B-type veinlets.
Figure 3A: Copper values in historic drilling and interpreted geology at level 4,300 amsl.
On Behalf of the Company,
Jonathan Richards, Chief Executive Officer and Director.
Contact Information:
Harp Gosal | Director of Capital Markets & Communications
E: hgosal@kingcopperdiscovery.com
Website: www.kingcopperdiscovery.com
Address: #1212-1030 West Georgia St., Vancouver, BC V6E 3M5
For Investor Relations enquiries, please contact +1 604 218 1142
Statements
About King Copper Discovery Corp and Our Projects: King Copper is a TSXV-listed exploration company focused on the Colquemayo copper-gold project in South America. The Company is led by a team responsible for multiple copper-gold-silver discoveries.
Forward Looking Statement: This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements”. All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward-looking statements, including the expected closing date of the Financing, the investor’s expected ownership interest in King Copper and the expected use of proceeds from the Financing. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words “expects”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “intends”, “estimates”, “projects”, “potential” and similar expressions, or that events or conditions “will”, “would”, “may”, “could” or “should” occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include the receipt of regulatory approvals, market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions, as well as legal, social, and economic conditions in Argentina and Peru, where the Company’s mineral exploration properties are located. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company’s management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management 's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release or has in any way approved or disapproved of the contents of this press release.
Qualified Person: The scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Douglas Kirwin, M.Sc., FGS, FAusIMM (CP), FSEG, a technical advisor to the Company and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”).
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