Research & Clinical Trials
Hot Chili Confirms Second Porphyry Centre at La Verde, Extending Footprint to 1,400m
By News Desk ·
Key takeaways
- Step-out hole DKP084 returned 148m grading 0.44% CuEq from 36m, confirming the La Verde South porphyry centre.
- La Verde drilling now totals 50,000m after the 40,000m Phase 2 program finished over 13 months.
- Hot Chili held A$29.3 million in cash at quarter-end, with A$20.4 million in net royalty proceeds and no debt.
Hot Chili has confirmed a second porphyry centre at La Verde South, extending the La Verde mineralisation footprint to 1,400m, the company said in its quarterly report for the period ending September 30, 2026. The first step-out reverse circulation hole, DKP084, returned 148m grading 0.44% CuEq from 36m. Newswire published the report on October 30, 2026.
How the La Verde South Discovery Was Drilled
Hot Chili is a pre-revenue Australian-listed copper developer advancing the Costa Fuego copper-gold project in Chile's Atacama region, supplemented by the La Verde discovery and the Huasco Water joint venture. DKP084 was collared about 250m south of La Verde's existing +0.4% copper mineralisation footprint and included 44m grading 0.56% CuEq from 138m. The hole followed up DKP024, which recorded 114m grading 0.4% CuEq from 86m in an announcement dated May 19, 2025.
The first southern diamond step-out hole, DKD100, was collared a further 100m south of DKP084 and visually recorded a 307m downhole interval of copper porphyry-style mineralisation, with assays pending. Phase 2 resource infill and extensional drilling is complete after 13 months and more than 40,000m of diamond and reverse circulation drilling, adding to 10,000m from Phase 1. Assay results are pending for 35 drill holes, 24 infill and 11 southern step-out holes.
Quarter-end cash reached A$29.3 million, strengthened by A$20.4 million in net royalty proceeds, with no debt, TradingView reported.
Hot Chili's Costa Fuego Resource Base
According to akta.pro company records, Costa Fuego holds a Mineral Resource of 798 Mt at 0.45% CuEq Indicated and 203 Mt at 0.31% CuEq Inferred, effective February 26, 2024, with about 85% of contained metal in the higher-confidence measured and indicated categories. The same records list a Probable Mineral Reserve of 502 Mt at 0.37% copper, effective March 27, 2025, and a 2025 PFS production profile of 116 ktpa CuEq for 14 years, with a 74 ktpa CuEq life-of-mine average over 20 years.
Earlier La Verde Results and Royalty Funding
On October 18, 2026, TradingView reported that Hot Chili had discovered a second porphyry centre at La Verde in Chile's Atacama region, with step-out drilling revealing higher-grade copper mineralisation. On August 24, 2026, Stock Titan reported a 472m intersection grading 0.41% CuEq at La Verde. On July 30, 2026, Stock Titan reported that Hot Chili had secured US$15 million in additional non-dilutive funding through an amended and restated investment agreement with OR Royalties Inc., bringing total royalty consideration under the arrangement to US$30 million.
La Verde South Drilling Set for Early 2027
Drill rigs will start back up and focus on growth of La Verde South in early 2027, the company said. The maiden La Verde Mineral Resource Estimate, the revised Costa Fuego Pre-Feasibility Study and preparation of the EIA submission remained on track, with the Q2 2027 submission on track for both EIAs.