Montero Secures BHP Drilling Data for Avispa Copper Project in Chile

Montero Mining and Exploration Ltd has licensed historical drilling data from BHP for its Avispa copper-molybdenum project located in northern Chile, granting BHP a one percent royalty in return. The company announced the agreement with BHP Chile, a subsidiary of BHP Group.

The newly acquired license encompasses collar, survey, geology, and assay results from historical drillholes across the Avispa area, along with their precise locations. Furthermore, Montero will obtain approximately half of the remaining drill chips and pulps where available, allowing for independent verification and future technical evaluations.

Tony Harwood, CEO of Montero, stated that the agreement provides the company with access to valuable historical exploration datasets. He noted that integrating these findings with existing geological databases is expected to refine exploration models, prioritize future drill targets, and potentially accelerate the advancement of the project.

Montero plans to merge the BHP data with its current geological, geochemical, and geophysical datasets. The company indicated that these combined resources may support subsequent technical studies, including evaluations of exploration programs and potential resource-definition initiatives down the line.

In exchange for the dataset, Montero granted BHP a one percent net smelter return royalty over its mining concessions within a defined Area of Interest tied to the historical drilling program. This area covers specific existing Montero concessions alongside any future concessions acquired within those boundaries.

Additionally, the agreement allows Montero to buy back the royalty for five million US dollars, minus any royalty payments already remitted to BHP.