Tinka (TSXV: TK) said earlier this month it had about C$20 million cash in the bank after earlier this year completing private and brokered share placements at 48c to complete a planned 15,000m of drilling and a preliminary economic assessment this year.
The shares closed yesterday at 41c, capitalising Tinka at C$102.5 million. They hit 82c last November and were at 77c at the start of 2018.
Tinka had drilling success last year and increased inferred resources at Ayawilca to 42.7 million tonnes grading an average 7.3% zinc-equivalent and 10.5Mt at 0.70% tin-equivalent.
It has had three drill rigs working at the central Peru property most of this year. Tinka also expects to post new zinc metallurgical test results by the end of the current quarter.
The company said this week assays from six holes in the ongoing resource step-out drill program included 106.5m grading 6.8% uncut from 237.5m depth in hole A18-118 at West Ayawilca, about 50m north of the current zinc resource.
"The footprint of high-grade zinc mineralization continues to grow," the company said.
"Three rigs continue to drill step-out holes at West Ayawilca and at Zone 3, with other targets at South Ayawilca and Valley to be tested in coming weeks."
Tinka president and CEO Dr Graham Carman said the standout intercept was one of the best mineralized holes from the West Ayawilca drilling.
"Importantly, our geological model has successfully predicted zinc mineralization is concentrated close to the hinge of an anticline fold within limestone beneath sandstone cover, and this mineralization remains open," he said.
"At West Ayawilca more holes are planned to target the projections of the fold hinge and its flat-lying eastern limb. The steep-dipping western fold limb, tested by A18-115 and 116, appears to host vein-style mineralization in the overlying sandstone only.
"We continue to target possible connections between the resource areas at West and Central Ayawilca, and several holes have results pending. The Zone 3 area is also beginning to show encouraging zinc intersections and although the mineralization is relatively deep, we believe Zone 3 has the potential to add significant new resources to the project.'
"High-grade tin mineralization in A18-119, more than 2km away from West Ayawilca, further indicates the potential and very large size of the Ayawilca mineralized system."
