Crypto Project
Introduction
The Crypto deposit in western Utah is a zinc-copper skarn deposit with exceptionally high levels of indium and recoverable amounts of gold and silver. The project is situated near infrastructure in one of the most mining-favourable and secure jurisdictions in the world. Exploration from the late 1950's through 1993, mainly by Utah International and Cyprus Minerals, resulted in the delineation of a significant historical zinc resource and led Cyprus to complete a pre-feasibility study. Lithic acquired a 100% interest in the property in 2005, carried out 10,640 metres of core drilling in 2007-2008 and in 2009, completed preliminary metallurgical testwork and a new resource estimate. Lithic's work extended the known deposit, confirmed the presence of significant levels of associated copper and revealed exceptional levels of indium, a key component of flat panel displays and thin film solar panels, establishing Crypto as perhaps the most important potential resource of indium in the continental USA.
The Crypto deposit remains open to expansion in most directions. Other intriguing opportunities for further discovery on the property include structurally controlled, high grade silver-zinc-lead mineralization in several areas, one of which was mined historically, and the possibility of a deep, underlying porphyry molybdenum deposit.
Plans for the future consist of a major program of work leading to pre-feasibility, including:
- drilling to expand and increase the confidence level in both the sulphide and oxide zinc deposits
- continued metallurgical test work on both the sulphide and oxide mineralization to optimize recoveries and process costs
- drilling to test peripheral skarn style mineralization to the north and at depth to the east
- deep drilling to test for the possibility of a large, buried porphyry molybdenum deposit underlying the skarn deposits
- drilling to test extensions of high-grade, replacement-style Ag-Zn-Pb mineralization
- environmental baseline studies