Blackstone Minerals (ASX:BSX) digs deeper and strikes gold at Mankayan

A nuggety new discovery at Blackstone Minerals’ (ASX:BSX) Mankayan Copper-Gold Project has investors paying attention—not just for its scale but for what it means for the company’s pivot towards high-value metals.

In a classic case of looking where others haven’t, Blackstone’s technical team drilled at a different angle and hit visible gold in volcanic units that had historically been ignored.

This is no small revelation—it suggests that Mankayan’s potential goes beyond its already impressive copper-gold porphyry system.

Key Points:

Visible gold found above the main porphyry system—a first for the project.
Merger with IDM International gives Blackstone a direct line to one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper-gold projects.
Mankayan already boasts intercepts of up to 911m at 1.00% CuEq, positioning it as a potential Tier-1 asset.

Turning Over a New Rock

The diamond drill hole in question, CDH-62, was drilled at an angle of 70 degrees—a departure from historical vertical drilling. This move has already paid off, intersecting free gold mineralisation in a previously underexplored volcanic horizon.

While the assays are still pending, Managing Director Scott Williamson sees this as a turning point:

“It’s incredibly exciting to see new exploration opportunities emerging, especially in zones that haven’t been historically targeted for assay.”

Translation? There could be more where this came from.

A Big Swing Into Copper-Gold

Blackstone Minerals proposed merger with IDM International is a game-changer.

Best known for its Vietnam-based Ta Khoa Nickel Project, Blackstone is now adding copper and gold to the mix—a move that aligns with soaring demand for decarbonisation metals while also tapping into gold’s traditional role as a safe-haven asset.

With copper hovering around multi-year highs and gold testing all-time records, the timing couldn’t be better.

Why It Matters for Investors

Mankayan isn’t just another copper project—it’s one of the biggest undeveloped porphyry systems out there. Historic drilling has already delivered eye-watering intercepts, including:
📍 911m @ 1.00% CuEq (0.51% Cu, 0.63g/t Au) from 156m
📍 543m @ 1.08% CuEq (0.46% Cu, 0.79g/t Au) from 262m
📍 1,119m @ 0.86% CuEq (0.42% Cu, 0.56g/t Au) from 230m

Now, add the possibility of a shallower gold system into the mix, and the economics start looking a lot more compelling.

Final Word

With a renewed 25-year mining licence, a strong local partner, and a fresh twist on an already world-class resource, Blackstone’s move into Mankayan is shaping up as a high-stakes bet with serious upside.

Will it pay off? The next batch of drill results will tell us soon enough. But in a market hungry for copper, gold, and battery metals, Blackstone has plenty of ways to win.

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