Somerset Minerals Ltd – Jura North Keeps Growing While the 2026 Copper Campaign Takes Shape
- Noel Ong
- 3 days ago
- 11 min read
Announcement
1. Multiple high-grade intercepts, including 18.3m @ 3.14% Cu - 5 November 2025 (click here to view the announcement)
2. Coppermine Drilling Confirms Thick High-Grade Copper - 24 November 2025 (click here to view the announcement)
Somerset Minerals Limited (ASX: SMM) is steadily building a district-scale copper narrative at its flagship Coppermine Project in the Kitikmeot region of Nunavut, Canada (Figure 1). The project covers ~1,665 km² of tenure dominated by the Copper Creek Formation basalts, a setting already known for high-grade, structurally controlled sulphide and native copper mineralisation.
Over the last six months, Somerset has moved from initial acquisition work into consecutive drilling and regional programs at the Jura trend, particularly at Jura North. Two ASX announcements – 5 November 2025 and 24 November 2025 – now frame the current position: thick high-grade copper intercepts from a growing ore system at Jura North, and a clearly defined 2026 exploration, permitting, and community agenda for the wider Coppermine camp.
Figure 1: Somerset Project locations and mines in Nunavut. (source: SMM)
The Business of Somerset Minerals: Focus – Projects
Somerset is positioning itself as a growth-focused copper explorer with a portfolio built around North and South American opportunities:
Flagship Asset – Coppermine Project, Nunavut (Canada)
102 exploration licences plus one exclusive exploration right with Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated (NTI), covering ~1,665 km².
90% of tenure overlies Copper Creek Formation basalts, prospective for fault-hosted, flow-top replacement and sediment-hosted copper-silver mineralisation.
Other Projects
Prescott Project (Nunavut, Canada): Interpreted to host an anticlinal repetition of the same formation that hosts American West Metals’ Storm Copper Project.
Blackdome–Elizabeth JV (British Columbia): High-grade past-producing gold project.
Rio Zarza and Valle del Tigre (Ecuador): Two early-stage exploration projects in a fertile tectonic setting.
Operationally, the company’s near-term focus is clear: advance Jura North from discovery drilling toward resource definition, while using new geophysical and geochemical datasets to open up a broader copper camp across the Coppermine landholding.
Highlights – 5 November 2025: Jura North Drilling Grows the System
The 5 November announcement reports assays from three additional RC holes at Jura North (JURC007, JURC008, and JURC012), all of which intercepted wide zones of copper mineralisation along strike from the standout discovery hole JURC001.
JURC012 – Thick, High-Grade Northern Step-Out (Figure 2)
39.6 m @ 1.61% Cu from 128 m, including 18.3 m @ 3.14% Cu from 131.1 m and 4.6 m @ 6.05% Cu from 143.3 m.
This is the northernmost intercept to date and remains open in all directions.
Figure 2: Cross-section showing mineralisation intercepted in JURC011 and JURC012 (source: SMM)
JURC008 – Broad Mineralised Envelope with High-Grade Core (Figure 3)
71.6 m @ 0.57% Cu from 89.9 m, including 10.7 m @ 2.47% Cu from 131.1 m and 4.6 m @ 4.38% Cu.
JURC007 – Shallow Mineralisation Maintaining Strike Continuity (Figure 3)
16.8 m @ 0.82% Cu from 53.3 m, including 3.0 m @ 2.97% Cu from 53.3 m.
Figure 3: Cross-section showing mineralisation intercepted in JURC002, JURC007, and JURC008 and interpreted thickening of mineralisation at depth (source: SMM)
System Scale and Geometry (Figure 4)
Jura North has now been drilled to ~190 m down-dip and remains open in all directions.
Ground IP identifies a low-resistivity zone extending from the known mineralisation to >600 m below surface, suggesting significant vertical extent and potential for increasing grade with depth.
Figure 4: Plan map of Jura North showing drill collars and significant intercepts (source: SMM)
Additional Visual Mineralisation
Step-out holes JURC009–JURC011 show multiple intervals of visually logged sulphides over tens of metres (assays subsequently reported in the 24 November update).
Highlights – 24 November 2025: Thick High-Grade Copper Confirmed & 2026 Strategy
By 24 November, all Jura drilling results are in, and Somerset can summarise the campaign as a consistent success – every hole drilled at Jura North has intersected copper mineralisation.
Key intercepts across the program now include:
Discovery & Down-Dip Growth (Figure 5)
JURC001: 42.7 m @ 2.69% Cu from 15.24 m, including 16.8 m @ 3.96% Cu.
JURC005: 61.0 m @ 0.85% Cu from 67.1 m, including 9.1 m @ 2.88% Cu.
JURC006: 59.4 m @ 1.50% Cu from 83.8 m, including 19.8 m @ 3.54% Cu (and 4.6 m @ 6.87% Cu reported previously).
Figure 5: Section line A. (source: SMM)
Northern Extensions & Step-outs (Figure 6)
JURC012: 39.6 m @ 1.61% Cu from 128 m, including 18.3 m @ 3.14% Cu from 131.1 m.
JURC008: 71.6 m @ 0.57% Cu from 89.9 m, including 10.7 m @ 2.47% Cu from 131.1 m.
JURC007: 16.8 m @ 0.82% Cu from 53.3 m.
Figure 6: Section line B. (source: SMM)
Newly Reported Holes – 24 November Update (Figure 7)
JURC011 - Confirms shallow mineralisation in the upper part of the structure with 16.8 m @ 0.7% Cu from 89.9 m, including 7.6 m @ 1.26% Cu from 97.5 m, demonstrating continuity across the steeply dipping fault corridor.
JURC012 - Delivers a thick, high-grade down-dip intercept of 39.6 m @ 1.61% Cu from 128 m, including 18.3 m @ 3.14% Cu and 4.6 m @ 6.05% Cu, showing the strong copper zone persists at depth and remains open.
Figure 7: Section line C. (source: SMM)
Scale and Continuity (Figure 8)
The mineralised system at Jura North is now defined over ~250 m of strike, with interpreted true widths locally up to ~60 m and lengths up to 71.6 m.
IP defines a large low-resistivity zone from surface to >600 m depth, with associated high-chargeability zones and possible parallel lodes and undrilled targets to the south.
Figure 8: Plan map showing wider Jura prospect area, drill hole collar locations, significant intercepts, and rock chip samples. (source: SMM)
District Context (Figure 9)
Jura represents <5% of the Coppermine landholding, which contains >112 mapped copper occurrences along >100 km of prospective strike.
Figure 9: Over 100km of prospective strike with 112 copper occurrences between Laphroaig, Jura and wider project area within the Copper Creek Basalt. (source: SMM)
Managing Director, Chris Hansen, commented,
“Over the past six months, Somerset has achieved what many explorers take years to deliver. We moved from initial acquisition to completing two back-to-back drill campaigns, each of which has delivered thick, continuous and high-grade copper intercepts across multiple zones at Jura North. Every hole drilled at Jura has intersected mineralisation—an exceptional outcome that confirms we have uncovered a potentially large, growing copper system that remains open in all directions. With strike now defined over ~250 metres, interpreted true widths up to ~60 metres, and geophysics suggesting continuity of mineralisation to depths beyond 600 metres, Jura North has rapidly emerged as an advanced, high-quality discovery with clear potential to evolve into a significant copper deposit.
Importantly, Jura represents less than 5% of our large 1,665 km² Coppermine Project landholding. In parallel with resource drilling, we’ve completed the first truly comprehensive regional geochemical and geophysical datasets ever collected across this land package—more than 11,000 line-km of high-resolution magnetics and over 1,500 soil samples. These results, expected shortly, have the potential to identify multiple virgin copper targets across a district already hosting more than 112 mapped copper occurrences. This work is laying the foundation for what we firmly believe is a genuine belt-scale copper camp, capable of delivering not just one, but several significant copper discoveries.
With all the groundwork now complete, 2026 is shaping up to be a transformational year for Somerset. We are now preparing for an aggressive program of RC and diamond drilling at Jura North to expand the system along strike, at depth, and into potential parallel lodes, while simultaneously advancing a pipeline of new regional targets for first-pass drilling. As these datasets come together, we expect to unlock the broader potential of Coppermine Project and demonstrate that the district has the potential to host much larger copper systems than previously recognised. We are entering the new year with strong momentum, a growing high-grade discovery, a district-scale opportunity in front of us, and a clear strategy to convert this into significant value for our shareholders.”
About the Project – Jura within the Coppermine Copper Camp
Geological Setting
Coppermine sits within Copper Creek Formation basalts and associated sediments, hosting multiple copper styles:
Fault-hosted mineralisation (~2–45% Cu) in sub-vertical brecciated structures.
Basalt flow-top replacement (~2–15% Cu).
Sediment-hosted mineralisation (~0.25–2% Cu).
The broader setting is considered analogous to the Keweenaw Peninsula copper deposits in Michigan, which contain high-grade native copper in continental flood basalts and sediments.
Jura Trend
Jura comprises a ~7 km long, north–south striking fault zone, with a historic resource to the north and high-grade rock chips along strike, including 19.10% Cu and 21.1 g/t Ag.
Drilling and mapping have confirmed copper mineralisation over >3 km of strike, within a steeply east-dipping (~65°) fault corridor.
The geometry is characterised by high-grade cores within broader lower-grade envelopes, with chalcocite-dominated sulphides, hematite alteration, and associated magnetic lows providing useful exploration vectors.
Regional Targets
Beyond Jura, Somerset’s priorities include:
Laphroaig District – Along strike from White Cliff’s Vision District (Don & Pat prospects) with rock chips at Somerset’s ground up to 45.4% Cu and 60 g/t Ag.
Ardbeg District – Immediately south of White Cliff’s Thor and Rocket districts, supported by historic drilling and surface sampling.
Oban District – Hosts the Coronation prospect, a historic resource open at depth and along strike, with historical drilling and EM/IP providing drill-ready positions.
Near-term Milestones to Watch
(Figure 10)
1. Integration of Regional Datasets (Next ~4 Weeks and Beyond)
Delivery and interpretation of:
~11,000 line-km of high-resolution airborne magnetics (200 m line spacing).
1,500 multi-element soil samples on key fault corridors and broader grids.
Identification of demagnetised corridors, magnetic lows, and multi-element soil anomalies aligned with major fault zones.
Prioritisation of coincident geophysical–geochemical anomalies for ground IP follow-up and first-pass drilling.
2. 2026 Jura North Drill Program – RC + Diamond
RC drilling to:
Extend mineralisation along strike at Jura North.
Test hanging-wall and footwall IP anomalies, including a ~400 m long resistivity low and a highly chargeable footwall zone interpreted as potentially coarser-grained sulphides.
Drill the Jura “lookalike” IP/Resistivity target ~3 km south of Jura South.
Diamond drilling to:
Step the main Jura North zone down-dip to ~400–500 m depth, targeting the deep resistivity low that envelopes known high-grade intercepts.
3. Regional Target Testing (2026 Field Season)
Systematic RC testing of ~5–10 regional target areas where magnetics, soils, and structural interpretation converge.
Use of ground IP to refine high-priority anomalies prior to drilling.
4. Permitting and Community Engagement
Progress of Class A Land Use Permit (CIRNAC), amendments to existing KIA Class III Land Use Permit, and new Class B Water Use Licence application to enable up to 100 drill holes and two small camps (Jura and Hope Lake).
Ongoing community meetings and consultation in Kugluktuk and with local organisations such as the HTO and KIA.
Figure 10: Indicative 2026 exploration timeline and activity chart (source: SMM)
How Samso Understands the Investment Memo for the Company
From a Samso perspective, Somerset is methodically de-risking a structurally controlled copper system within a largely underexplored basaltic province. Jura North is emerging as the company’s anchor discovery: thick, high-grade zones, a clear structural control, and geophysical support for significant depth extent.
At the same time, the company is not losing sight of the bigger picture. The extensive magnetics and soil programs, plus the focus on coincident geophysical–geochemical anomalies, indicate an intention to build a pipeline of prospects across the Copper Creek basalts, not just refine a single ore shoot.
Permitting and community engagement are being treated as core workstreams, not afterthoughts. The move toward small, low-impact field camps, expanded drill approvals, and transparent communication with local stakeholders aligns with a long-term view of operating in Nunavut.
For investors, the memo looks like this: Jura is the immediate focus for adding tonnes and grade, while the broader Coppermine region offers optionality in the form of multiple potential discoveries. Funding, drilling density, and execution across future field seasons will decide how quickly this conceptual copper camp can turn into defined resources and, eventually, development options.
Samso Concluding Comments
The Somerset story at Coppermine is still very much in the “building blocks” phase, but the foundations being laid are meaningful. A consistent run of mineralised drill holes at Jura North, supported by strong copper grades and improving geological understanding, helps when assessing a new district-scale copper play. These broad mineralised envelopes with high-grade cores are encouraging.
The resource-style drilling and IP modelling at Jura North are sharpening the picture of a potential initial development centre, while the company is investing heavily in the datasets – magnetics, soils, and mapping, which are required to unlock the underground targets across a 1,665 km² land package. In a region that has seen limited modern exploration since the 1960s, that combination of scale and method is important.
There is also a realism to the way Somerset is handling permitting and community engagement. Operating in Nunavut requires patience, clear communication, and a willingness to work with multiple regulatory bodies and local organisations. The Company’s move toward small, low-impact camps and its effort to engage directly with the community in Kugluktuk are positive indicators for how future operations might be conducted, but it is a process that will need ongoing attention as activities scale up.
For investors watching from the sidelines, Jura North currently provides the tangible evidence of value. This will come from drill metres, copper grade, and a growing strike length. As always, funding, execution, and market conditions for copper will ultimately shape outcomes.
From the Samso viewpoint, Coppermine is an early-stage, technically interesting copper camp where the next two or three field seasons will be critical in determining whether Somerset can convert a promising geological concept into a portfolio of genuine copper assets.
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