Patriot Resources has secured five-year access to the Tassa Community’s land in southern Peru, clearing the way for surface exploration and drilling at its high-grade Tassa silver-gold project.
The agreement covers the full range of surface exploration work, including drilling, across the portion of the project overlapping the community’s territory. Combined with an earlier agreement and a separate deal with the Pachamayo Community, it gives Patriot access across the entire project area.
The arrangement also includes the recently pegged Tassa 5 tenement, extending the company’s interpreted silver-mineralised strike to more than 3km.
Surface mapping and sampling are expected to begin shortly, with the results to be used to define targets for a planned drilling campaign. Patriot’s own corporate material identifies a Phase One drilling programme for 2026.
Patriot Resources unlocks drilling at Tassa silver project
Patriot’s Tassa project already contains a maiden JORC-inferred resource of 18.53 million tonnes grading 52.68 grams per tonne of silver equivalent, for a total of 31.4 million ounces.
The company has also outlined a much larger exploration target of between 559 million and 774 million ounces of silver equivalent. The target is conceptual rather than a mineral resource, and will require further exploration and drilling before its potential can be assessed.
Patriot said the target was supported by historical exploration carried out by previous operators including Teck and Bear Creek Mining. The project’s existing database includes 26 diamond drill holes totalling more than 8,400 metres.
Among the reported results are a 60-metre intersection grading 224.2g/t silver from 24 metres, including higher-grade sections, and a four-metre interval grading 919.5g/t silver from 36 metres.
Managing director Dominic Duggan said the agreement provided the company with a stable operating pathway at Tassa.
“Concluding this five-year agreement with the Tassa Community gives us a clear, multi-year pathway to carry out surface exploration and drilling across the Company’s Tassa high-grade silver deposit. The agreement includes our recently pegged Tassa 5 tenement,” he said.
Securing community consent is a significant step for exploration companies operating in Peru, where access to community-held land can determine whether field programmes proceed. Patriot had previously received authorisation from the Pachamayo Community for geological mapping and surface sampling across 226 hectares in the northern part of the project.
The agreement comes as Patriot moves to concentrate on Peruvian precious metals. The company has said it intends to divest its Zambian copper portfolio, following an earlier plan to sell its Gorman lithium project in Canada.
Patriot has also raised $3 million, providing funding for its planned exploration work. The next major test for the Tassa project will be whether drilling confirms the scale and continuity suggested by the existing resource, historical results and exploration target.
