(Sharecast News) - Tertiary Minerals updated the market on its Brunton Pass and Pyramid Projects in Nevada on Friday, reporting that a trenching programme was set to commence on or around 20 July at the wholly-owned Brunton Pass.

The AIM-traded firm said the programme would consist of up to 950 metres of trenching in 11 separate trenches, to test areas of outcrop containing up to 6.84% copper and 1.75 grams of gold per tonne in separate chip samples.

It would also test multiple copper and gold soil geochemical anomalies defined in association with extensive skarn and hornfels alteration, and mercury soil geochemical anomalies in areas showing additional potential for epithermal gold and silver.

At the Pyramid silver-gold project, meanwhile, Tertiary said the project was being terminated following the review of drill results released on 13 April, and in view of its other project priorities.

It said termination would result in cash savings of more than $33,000 in lease and claim fees for the rest of 2022, and over $75,000 in 2023.

Accumulated costs would be impaired, which totalled £361,379 as at 31 March.

"We are continuing to focus on exploration for copper, the most widely used battery metal," said executive chairman Patrick Cheetham.

"The decision to terminate the Pyramid Project in Nevada was made in light of the impressive and recently reported drill results from our Jacks Copper Project in Zambia, the reporting of negative drill results from the Pyramid Project earlier this year and following a recent review of the company's priorities for expenditure in Nevada and Zambia."

Cheetham said the funds saved would be applied to a trenching programme at Brunton Pass, where the firm's "systematic exploration" to date had highlighted multiple soil geochemical anomalies and zones of copper-skarn mineralisation that required further evaluation.

"We remain committed to exploring in both Zambia and Nevada as this project and country diversification allows us to work year-round, with exploration access in Zambia being restricted during the southern hemisphere summer wet season."

At 1003 BST, shares in Tertiary Minerals were down 0.37% at 0.14p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.