Target Style
Intrusion-related Ni-Cu-Co-PGE systems / Shear-related Cu-Au systems
Stage
Early Stage - Technical assessment
Ownership
100% Azimut - Option to KGHM International
2025 Planned Program
Prospecting, drilling
Introduction
The Kukamas property covers a 41-kilometre cumulative strike length along a highly prospective greenstone belt. It displays one of the strongest geochemical footprints for copper-gold systems in the James Bay region, marked by strong values in copper, silver, arsenic and antimony in lake-bottom sediments.
In December 2022, Azimut announced the signing of a joint venture option agreement with KGHM International Ltd for this property. KGHM International is a subsidiary of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A, a Polish corporation that has been a major copper and silver producer for more than 50 years, with mining projects in Europe, North America and South America. Under the agreement, KGHM International can acquire from Azimut an initial 50% interest in the property over 4 years with $5 million in exploration expenditures and can earn an additional 20% interest with a further investment of at least $4.2 million to complete and deliver a preliminary economic assessment (PR of December 8, 2022)
In January 2025, Azimut announced a significant nickel drilling discovery on the property (PR of January 20, 2025). A $3.6 million partner-funder program started in May with drilling initiated in August.
The objectives of the 4,000-metre drilling program are as follows:
• Expand the Perseus Zone at depth and along strike with 2,200 metres of drilling; Perseus is open in all directions.
• Test new targets, principally north of Perseus along a 1.6-kilometre favourable geological and geophysical trend with 1,200 metres of drilling.
The project is located near regionally important infrastructure, situated along an access road leading to the LG-3 hydroelectric generating station and only 4 km north of the LG-3 airstrip and the Trans-Taiga Road, a nearly 600-km-long gravel highway running east-west through the James Bay region. The nearest town is Radisson, 80 km to the north-northwest.
A comprehensive $3.6 million partner-funded exploration program was initiated on the Kukamas to follow up on the significant progress made in 2024 at Perseus.
Detailed mapping led our technical team to make dramatic progress in the understanding of the geological context. At least 7 distinct and extensive komatiitic flow sequences over a NNW-strike extent of 3 kilometres, often in contact with sulphide-bearing iron formations, have been mapped and represent a minimum 300-metre-thick ultramafic package. This volcanic package (the “Perseus Complex”) may be subdivided into a thick central effusive zone and relatively thinner lava flows along the northern extension of the complex (“Perseus North”). The entire stratigraphic sequence is steeply dipping with a consistent west-facing polarity.
Several strong heliborne electromagnetic anomalies (VTEMTM Plus, VLF) correlate well with komatiitic flows proximal to sulphide-bearing metasedimentary rocks, along the 1.6-kilometre-long Perseus North trend.
A minimum 4,000-metre diamond drilling program has started in order to further define the Perseus high-grade nickel-PGE discovery and test additional targets on the Kukamas property.
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2024 Activities - Perseus, a High-Grade Nickel Discovery
Exploration work in 2024 comprised a prospecting phase, an infill lake sediment sampling survey, a ground EM survey and 2,000 m of drilling. This work led to a significant high-grade nickel and platinum group element (“PGE”) discovery on the Perseus Zone, likely associated with komatiitic volcanics. Two mineralized horizons have been intersected in drilling and both zones remain open in all directions. These initial results underscore the potential of Kukamas, which also hosts several under-explored, kilometre-scale, high-quality nickel targets. A work plan for 2025 is currently being developed to further advance the Perseus discovery and test surrounding targets.
Best drill results to date include:
- Hole KUK24-001: Perseus Zone - 1.64% Ni, 0.11% Cu, 1.12 g/t PGE over 8.5 m, including 3.55% Ni, 0.19% Cu, 2.19 g/t PGE over 2.5 m
New sulphide horizon - 0.90% Ni, 0.32 g/t PGE over 9.05 m
- Hole KUK24-002: Perseus Zone - 8.42% Ni, 0.55% Cu, 7.25 g/t PGE over 1.9 m
- Hole KUK24-003: Perseus Zone - 0.81% Ni, 0.52 g/t PGE over 24.2 m, including 1.63% Ni, 0.14% Cu, 1.61 g/t PGE over 1.25 m and 3.46% Ni, 0.21% Cu, 2.44 g/t PGE over 0.75 m
- Hole KUK24-007: Perseus Zone - 6.06% Ni, 0.38% Cu, 3.34 g/t PGE over 2.6 m, including 19.6% Ni, 0.81% Cu, 9.43 g/t PGE over 0.75 m
New sulphide horizon - 3.18% Ni, 0.15% Cu, 1.17 g/t PGE over 1.7 m
The features of the mineralization (high-grade Ni, high Ni/Cu ratio, high Pd/Pt ratio) and the lithological context highlight a fertile system, with similarities to Archean Kambalda-type komatiitic nickel deposits, exemplified by the Kambalda district in Western Australia.
The November-December 2024 drilling program followed up on the surface discovery of Perseus, which returned high-grade nickel-PGE from channel and grab samples, including:
- 2.98% Ni, 0.32% Cu, 2.25 g/t PGE over 8.0 m, incl. 3.74% Ni, 0.41% Cu, 2.82 g/t PGE over 6.0 m
- 1.10% Ni, 0.15% Cu, 1.02 g/t PGE over 9.0 m, incl. 1.42% Ni, 0.19% Cu, 1.36 g/t PGE over 6.0 m
- Up to 9.35% Ni, 3.04% Cu, 3.78 g/t Pt and 8.99 g/t Pd
Note that grab samples are selective by nature and unlikely to represent average grades.
Exploration work in 2023 comprised 3,199 line-kilometres of heliborne geophysical survey and an initial prospecting phase.
- Geophysical survey: A high-resolution heliborne magnetic-electromagnetic VTEMTMPlus survey covered the entire property at 100-metre line spacing for a total of 3,199 line-kilometres (see press release of February 8, 2023). Ten target areas have been identified related to strong to moderate VTEMTMPlus conductors or strings of conductors, as well as smaller isolated EM anomalies. None of these conductors, often well correlated with outcropping gold, copper and/or nickel mineralization, has been drill-tested.
- Prospecting: The main objective of this phase of work was to follow up on several geophysical targets identified. 114 rock grab samples were collected from six (6) target areas, leading to the discovery of an amphibolite-hosted nickel-copper-platinum-palladium showing with pyrrhotite, pentlandite and chalcopyrite veinlets that returned up to 1.36% Ni, 0.12% Cu, 0.206 g/t Pt and 0.685 g/t Pd in grab samples.
A strong spatial correlation exists between the new nickel-copper-PGE showing and a kilometre-long strong electromagnetic conductor that remains untested by drilling. Other historical prospects in the same area yielded up to 2.0% Cu and 0.75% Ni in grab samples.
A new gold showing (4.28 g/t Au in a grab sample of pyritic amphibolite) has been identified along the Chain Lake fault, a multi-kilometre-long wide shear zone previously recognized on the property. This target area presents a string of strong punctual electromagnetic conductors over a 6-kilometre strike on the western claim block, which will be subject to additional prospecting work.
Several other highly prospective target sectors have been flagged for first-pass field assessment, including a 12-kilometre-long gold-copper trend along the northern part of the western claim block. Historical showings delivered up to 12.54 g/t Au and 3.30% Cu in grab samples.
Azimut acquired the Kukamas property after identifying one of the strongest geochemical footprints for copper-gold systems in the James Bay region. The footprint is characterized by strong regional lake-bottom sediment signatures that include 232.8 ppm Cu, 0.39 ppm Ag, 65.7 ppm As, 1.17 ppm Sb. Numerous prospects also sit on or adjacent to Kukamas, with historical grab samples collected on the property grading up to 10.63 g/t Au and 20.7 % Cu. Several other gold showings are found nearby (Tour Elle: 18.1 g/t Au; Girard-Dupras: 3.6 g/t Au over 1.0 m (channel); La Guiche Zone: 2.72 g/t Au; and Dune Zone: 2.2 g/t Au, 4.3% Cu).
August 21, 2025
Azimut and KGHM Resume Drilling on the Perseus High-Grade Nickel-PGE Discovery at Kukamas, James Bay Region, Quebec
May 29, 2025
Azimut and KGHM Launch Exploration Campaign at Kukamas
January 20, 2025
Azimut and KGHM Drill High-Grade Nickel-PGE Mineralization on the Kukamas Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
October 28, 2024
Azimut and KGHM to Undertake a Maiden Drilling Program on the Kukamas Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
September 23, 2024
Azimut and KGHM Announce a High-Grade Nickel Discovery on the Kukamas Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
September 9, 2024
Azimut Provides Update on its Exploration Activities in Quebec
June 11, 2024
Azimut Updates on its Strategic Approach, Launches Work Programs
April 2, 2024
Azimut and KGHM Discover Nickel-Copper-PGE Mineralization on the Kukamas Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
August 21, 2023
Azimut Provides Update on its Exploration Activities
February 8, 2023
Azimut and KGHM Commence a 3,000 km Airborne Geophysical Survey to Cover the Kukamas Cu-Au Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
December 8, 2022
Azimut and KGHM Sign Joint Venture Option Agreement for the Kukamas Copper-Gold Property, James Bay Region, Quebec
July 8, 2019
Azimut Conducts Predictive Modelling for Copper Over the James Bay Region and Acquires Four Quality Projects