Project overview and history
Eureka is located in the Province of Jujuy, northern Argentina. The Project comprises 12 highly prospective gold and copper licences and is fully owned by Puna.
In May 2025, Ajax completed the acquisition of the Eureka Gold and Copper Project (“Eureka”) by acquiring the fully owned Argentine subsidiary of Bezant Resources Plc (“Bezant”) named Puna Metals S.A. (“Puna”) for a cash consideration of US$170,000.
By way of historical background, Bezant Resources Plc acquired Eureka for an overall cash consideration of US$3.9 million in 2010. This was subsequently reduced to US$2.6 million in 2010 by accelerating the schedule of payments. Due to management and strategy changes, Bezant never developed Eureka.
The Eureka mine has a long history dating back to Incan times and subsequently the Jesuits in the 16th century who recovered alluvial gold from a number of shallow surface pits as well as one underground drift with almost 2,000m of workings.
Located 230km north of Provincial Capital, San Salvador de Jujuy, Eureka is accessible by way of good quality asphalt and gravel roads. It is comprised of 11 licences, located within gently rolling sparsely populated terrain at an elevation of approximately 4,000 metres.
With mineralisation close to the surface containing a low carbonate content it’s ideally suited for heap leaching, a cost-effective hydrometallurgical process used to extract valuable metals from low-grade ores, particularly copper, gold, and uranium.
Eureka valuation
In a now out-dated study commissioned by Bezant Resources Plc in 2010, Eureka was valued by Edison Investment Research at approximately US$81 million. Additionally, Miera Penoles non-JORC Resource estimation for Eureka includes 62 million tonnes at 1% Cu, equivalent to 620,000 tonnes of contained copper, and 52,000 oz. of gold.
Eureka development
The Eureka Project is drill-ready, meaning the Company has already identified various geological anomalies that can be drilled with a view to formalising a Mineral Resource Estimate in accordance with JORC.
Phase 1
Ajax will commence a drilling programme in Q4 2025 that is expected to conclude in Q1 2026, having already engaged a senior exploration team to review all historical data and formulate a development plan to include:
- Pit and trench sampling with geochemical and stream sediment prospecting Geophysical
- IP and microseismic surveys to confirm previously defined drill targets
- Drilling – an initial drilling campaign of circa 2,500 metres
- Metallurgical test work and leaching tests on primary mineralization and tailings
Phase 2
Having obtained and analysed the results derived from the implementation of Phase 1, a further approximately 3,000 metres of combined reverse circulation and diamond drilling and associated metallurgical tests will be performed to produce a Mineral Resource Estimate in accordance with JORC. Phase 2 is expected to complete in Q2 2026.
Minas La Escondida
Ajax has the option to acquire Minas La Escondida, an area contiguous to the Eureka Project in Argentina, located approximately 100 metres from Mina Eureka.