According to Mining Journal, Collective Mining has achieved a significant breakthrough in shallow drilling at the Apollo deposit within its Guayabales project in Caldas Province, central Colombia. Preliminary sampling analysis indicates the deposit contains high-grade tungsten, copper, silver, and gold, further expanding the outcrop range of the Apollo deposit. This discovery marks the first identification of tungsten in this region in Colombia’s history, holding significant strategic importance.
The drilling program involved 30 holes, with key mineralization details from the first eight holes as follows: (1) 124 meters of mineralization from the surface, with a gold equivalent grade of 3.03 g/t or tungsten (WO3) equivalent grade of 0.66%, including 0.16% WO3, 0.55 g/t gold, 86 g/t silver, and 0.63% copper; (2) 91 meters of mineralization from a depth of 56.15 meters, with a gold equivalent grade of 3.14 g/t or WO3 grade of 0.32%, including 0.32% WO3, 0.85 g/t gold, 48 g/t silver, and 0.39% copper.
Collective Mining noted that tungsten, present as scheelite, is primarily distributed at the top of the Apollo deposit and can be extracted early as a by-product of gold, silver, and copper. Executive Chairman Ari Sussman stated that discovering high-grade tungsten from the surface at the top of a copper, gold, and silver deposit represents a significant asset for the company. Early tungsten extraction will not only enhance the project’s value but also position Colombia as a key supplier of critical minerals.
Last year, Collective Mining achieved notable results at the Apollo deposit, with drilling revealing 534.4 meters of mineralization at a gold equivalent grade of 2.7 g/t, including a 150.55-meter high-grade section at 6.16 g/t gold equivalent. These results further confirm the deposit’s substantial potential.
However, Sussman noted in March this year that due to insufficient deposit control, the initial resource estimate still requires additional data. The company plans to optimize geological models and expand exploration efforts, aiming to achieve a resource target exceeding 10 million ounces.
