Pioneer Minerals Limited (ASX:PMM) Secures Option to Acquire High Grade Gold-Copper-Silver Project in San Juan, Argentina

Perth, Oct 9, 2026 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Pioneer Minerals Limited (ASX:PMM) (PMMNF:OTCMKTS) announced that it has entered into staged option agreements to acquire the San Francisco Gold-Copper-Silver Project ("San Francisco" or the "Project"), located in the Calingasta Department of San Juan Province, Argentina.

The acquisition provides Pioneer with an advanced polymetallic exploration project centred on the historically mined and extensively drilled San Francisco Breccia, together with a substantially larger surrounding exploration position containing numerous additional mineralised quartz-tourmaline breccias and vein systems.

Historical exploration, most recently by Turmalina Metals Corp. between 2019 and 2021, included extensive geological mapping, surface geochemistry and diamond drilling. Drilling at San Francisco intersected broad zones of sulphide-rich Au-Ag-Cu mineralisation from near surface and subsequently tested the breccia system to several hundred metres depth. Across the broader project area, historical exploration identified more than 70 breccias and over 130 veins, of which only nine breccias and one vein system have been drill tested.

Highlights

- Pioneer Minerals Limited has entered into staged option agreements to acquire the San Francisco Gold-Copper-Silver Project (SFD) in San Juan Province, Argentina. The San Francisco breccia pipe has been tested by 47 historical diamond holes for approximately 13,332 m, providing a substantial dataset for 3D modelling and future resource definition.

- Historical drilling at San Francisco has returned broad, high-grade gold-silver-copper mineralisation from near surface, including:

o SFDH-012: 109m @ 4.94 g/t Au, 109 g/t Ag and 1.13% Cu from 12m
-- Incl. 27m @ 9.02 g/t Au, 94 g/t Ag and 1.08% Cu from 31m

o SFDH-011: 83m @ 4.40 g/t Au, 82 g/t Ag and 0.43% Cu from 25m
-- Incl. 41m @ 7.03 g/t Au, 91 g/t Ag and 0.51% Cu from 27m

o SFDH-001: 37m @ 6.30 g/t Au, 122 g/t Ag and 0.88% Cu from 35m

o SFDH-005: 85m @ 2.70 g/t Au, 87 g/t Ag and 0.56% Cu from 33m
-- Incl. 21m @ 5.05 g/t Au, 173 g/t Ag and 0.80% Cu from 35m

o SFDH-030: 22m @ 7.95 g/t Au, 60 g/t Ag and 0.14% Cu from surface
-- Incl. 6m @ 23.75 g/t Au and 143 g/t Ag from 3m

o SFDH-002: 23m @ 6.70 g/t Au, 86 g/t Ag and 0.08% Cu from 28m

o SFDH-035: 66m @ 2.31 g/t Au, 96 g/t Ag and 0.29% Cu from surface

o SFDH-039: 86m @ 1.80 g/t Au, 68 g/t Ag and 0.47% Cu from 28m

o SFDH-003: 27m @ 5.50 g/t Au, 97 g/t Ag and 3.30% Cu from 44m
o SFDH-018: 29m @ 4.21 g/t Au, 223 g/t Ag and 1.42% Cu from 67m
-- Incl. 16m @ 5.30 g/t Au, 232 g/t Ag and 0.99% Cu from 71m

- Historical drilling also returned high-grade gold-silver-copper mineralisation at depth, including:

o SFDH-039: 72m @ 3.47% Cu, 100 g/t Ag and 0.71 g/t Au from 398m

o SFDH-039: 36m @ 1.83% Cu and 119 g/t Ag from 329m

o SFDH-047: 17m @ 4.33% Cu, 108 g/t Ag and 0.64 g/t Au from 370m
-- Incl. 6m @ 10.93% Cu, 251 g/t Ag and 1.49 g/t Au from 370m

o SFDH-043: 35m @ 1.99% Cu, 150 g/t Ag and 0.79 g/t Au from 109m
-- Incl. 18m @ 3.57% Cu, 283 g/t Ag and 1.24 g/t Au from 109m

- Historical drilling progressively tested San Francisco from surface to significant depth, with later drilling extending hundreds of metres beneath the initial near-surface discoveries. mportantly, strong mineralisation was intersected at depth, including the 72.3m polymetallic interval in SFDH-039 from 397.7m downhole.

- San Francisco forms part of a substantially larger mineralised breccia and vein field, where historical exploration mapped more than 70 breccias and over 130 veins. Only nine breccias and one vein system have been historically drill tested, with just 4,964m of drilling completed outside San Francisco, leaving most of the broader hydrothermal system largely untested.

- If completed, the acquisition will provide Pioneer with a consolidated exploration position of approximately 3,477 hectares in San Juan Province, comprising a right to acquire 100% of the San Francisco and Jose Mario mining concessions and 81.25% of the adjoining El Tapau permits, subject to completion of the staged option arrangements and Pioneer shareholder approval under Listing Rule 10.1.

- Pioneer has received firm commitments to raise A$1.8 million (before costs) at an issue price of $0.18 per share. The raising comprises A$1.0 million to be advanced by way of unsecured, interest-free convertible loans, together with a A$0.8 million Tranche 2 placement, in each case subject to shareholder approval. Director participation of A$300,000 forms part of the raising and is also subject to shareholder approval.

Historical Drill Results

Historical drilling at San Francisco returned numerous broad, high-grade polymetallic intercepts containing significant gold, silver and copper mineralisation. Phase I drilling tested the down-dip continuation of the breccia and intersected broad sulphide-rich zones, while Phase II drilling stepped approximately 30-150m from the initial drilling and continued to return strong mineralised intercepts. Phase III subsequently tested the geometry and orientation of the system approximately 100-400m below the Phase II drilling.

The historical drilling indicates that mineralisation is not restricted to isolated narrow high-grade veins, but occurs across substantial intervals within the breccia system, with high-grade sulphide zones occurring within the broader mineralised envelope.

The San Francisco Breccia

The San Francisco Breccia represents the most advanced exploration target within the Project and was the principal focus of historical drilling. The mineralised body comprises a quartz-tourmaline hydrothermal breccia developed within sedimentary rocks of the Agua Negra Formation and associated intrusive rocks.

Mineralisation occurs predominantly within the breccia matrix and includes pyrite, chalcopyrite and arsenopyrite, together with bornite, chalcocite, covellite and silver-bearing sulphosalts.

Surface and near-surface portions of the system contain secondary copper minerals including malachite and azurite. The combination of quartz-tourmaline brecciation, sulphide development and associated potassic, sericitic and silicic alteration is interpreted to reflect a substantial hydrothermal system.

Historical drilling was completed over three campaigns between 2019 and 2021 and progressively tested the breccia from near surface to several hundred metres depth. Early drilling targeted the down-dip continuation of mineralisation exposed at the historical San Francisco workings, before subsequent programs stepped laterally and vertically away from the initial drilling to test the broader geometry and depth extent of the system.

Commenting on the Acquisition, Pioneer CEO Michael Beven said:

"San Francisco represents a compelling opportunity for Pioneer. Extensive historical drilling has intersected broad zones of high-grade gold, silver and copper mineralisation, including mineralisation extending to significant depths, Our priority will be to independently reconstruct the San Francisco system in three dimensions and determine exactly what additional work and drilling is required to advance the project towards resource definition. Importantly, we also intend to test the continuation of the mineralisation at depth and investigate the potential for a deeper feeder system.

What makes the broader Project particularly exciting is that San Francisco represents only one of more than 70 historically mapped breccias within an extensive mineralised district. The historical geochemical dataset demonstrates widespread gold, silver and base-metal anomalism, while the majority of the identified breccias remain untested by drilling.

Our exploration strategy will therefore pursue two objectives in parallel: advancing the known San Francisco mineralised system towards resource definition while systematically exploring the broader Project for additional discoveries.

We believe the combination of a historically drilled system with high-grade intercepts at San Francisco and a large pipeline of regional exploration targets provides Pioneer with a strong platform for exploration in Argentina."

*To view the full ASX announcement including tables and figures, please visit:
https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/16101PNJ

About Pioneer Minerals Ltd

Pioneer Minerals (ASX:PMM) is a diversified mineral exploration company focused on advancing a portfolio of prospective mineral projects across the United States and Canada. The Company's portfolio provides exposure to tungsten, gold, antimony, uranium and lithium, with a focus on identifying and advancing high-potential mineral systems in established mining jurisdictions. 

 

   

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