KARACHI: The National Resources Limited (NRL), a private sector company involved in exploring and mining minerals in Pakistan, has discovered significant copper-gold mineralization in the southwestern Balochistan province, the firm said on Tuesday.

NRL, a subsidiary of Fatima Fertilizer, Liberty Mills Limited and Lucky Cement, was awarded a lease in October 2023 for an area that contained two known porphyry prospects with strong exploration potential. Over 15 months, NRL had identified 18 new prospects, one of whom, “Tang Kaur,” had rapidly progressed to an “advanced drilling stage.”

“NRL has completed 13 diamond drill holes (3,517 meters), all of which intersected significant porphyry-style alteration, sheeted and stockwork quartz vein sets, and sulfide mineralization,” the statement said, quoting Muhammad Ali Tabba, Chairman NRL and CEO Lucky Cement Limited as he addressed the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum 2025.

“Assay results from the first six drill holes (1,500 meters) confirm strongly mineralized, near-surface zones with downhole intervals ranging from 48 to 148 meters, using a 0.2 percent copper cut-off grade and up to 10 meters of internal dilution. The average grade of the intercepts ranges from 0.23 percent to 0.48 percent copper, 0.09 to 0.14 g/t gold, and 1.30 to 6.21 g/t silver, resulting in a copper equivalent of 0.28 percent to 0.56 percent. The mineralized system remains open to the north, east, and at depth.”

Tabba said advanced drilling at Tang Kaur was scheduled for May 2025.

Additionally, NRL has acquired a lead-zinc exploration license adjacent to a well-known deposit, where a Bankable Feasibility Study had already been conducted, he said. A comprehensive metal value chain was also being studied to assess the feasibility of downstream processing.

“NRL is actively working with the Government of Baluchistan and the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) to secure two additional Copper-Gold Exploration licenses in Chagai, Balochistan supported by a dedicated $100 million exploration fund,” the statement added. 

“We have also signed MOU with Oil and Gas Development Company to work on newly acquired leases together. Looking ahead, NRL plans to bring additional national and international investors into the project as required.”

Pakistan is hosting ministers and officials of private mining companies from Saudi Arabia, China, the United States and a host of other countries for a two-day minerals summit in the capital today, Tuesday, as it eyes international investment in its natural reserves estimated to be worth $6 trillion. 

Grappling with a prolonged macroeconomic crisis, Pakistan hopes to tap into its vast reserves of minerals and natural resources to turn its fortunes around. The country is home to one of the world’s largest porphyry copper-gold mineral zones, while the Reko Diq mine in southwestern Balochistan has an estimated 5.9 billion tons of ore. Barrick Gold, which owns a 50 percent stake in the Reko Diq mines, considers them one of the world’s largest underdeveloped copper-gold areas, and their development is expected to have a significant impact on Pakistan’s struggling economy.