Noronex Begins Drilling at Botswana Copper Target in Strategic South32 Alliance

Noronex (ASX: NRX) has kicked off a 3,000 metre reverse circulation drilling campaign at its Cgae Cgae Copper Project in Botswana, part of the company’s broader push into the Kalahari Copper Belt through a strategic exploration partnership with South32.

The Cgae Cgae tenements, acquired earlier this year, are being explored under a new earn-in agreement that allows South32 to secure a 60 percent stake by funding $5 million in exploration over five years. Noronex remains the project operator and will steer the campaign under its alliance with South32, which spans both Namibia and Botswana.

Managing Director Victor Rajasooriar said the drilling marks a significant step in uncovering copper potential in a largely untested part of the Kalahari Copper Belt.

“Located along the interpreted basin edge and concealed beneath shallow Kalahari sands, the Cgae Cgae Project area exhibits key geological traits analogous to the prolific Central African Copper Belt,” Rajasooriar said.

“Guided by robust geological models and a commitment to systematic exploration, this campaign is a bold step into promising terrain.”

Drilling is being carried out by Rotsdrill Exploration and will test depths of up to 150 metres. Holes are expected to penetrate 10 to 30 metres of sand cover before targeting prospective basement rocks.

The target area has never been drilled before, but geological modelling indicates strong similarities to world-class copper deposits found in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. These include basement-hosted systems which remain the cornerstone of the Central African Copper Belt.

The Cgae Cgae work follows a 7,000 metre campaign currently underway at Noronex’s Powerline Project in Namibia, also part of its alliance with South32. In June, Noronex reported encouraging copper anomalies at the nearby Damara Project, with elevated copper values intersected in basement rocks.

Those findings, coupled with the identification of Kwebe Volcanic equivalents — a key geological component in copper mineralisation across the belt — underscore the broader potential of Noronex’s landholdings.

Backed by consistent quarterly funding of $1 million from South32, Noronex is targeting high-impact discoveries that could mirror the success seen elsewhere in the copper-rich belt. The exploration strategy leans heavily on geophysical modelling and new interpretations of underexplored ground concealed beneath cover.

As exploration ramps up across the region, the Cgae Cgae program is shaping as a key test of the company’s thesis: that the next big copper discovery in the Kalahari could be just below the surface.