Although activity at our El Palmar project in Northern Ecuador was limited to trenching and other surface sampling, it was pleasing to see the recent strong results from trenching. These have expanded the area of known shallow gold-copper mineralisation to an area of 600m by 600m. In particular, trenching at the T2 target, immediately to the east of the main T1 target, delivered epithermal gold mineralisation, which appears to sit above a large porphyry target, and correlates with results from hole EPDD024, which were announced in February 2023. At the T5 target just to the south of T1, trenching revealed a robust stockworked veined gold-copper porphyry system, which returned 30m at 1.18g/t gold, including a 2m interval at 10g/t gold and 0.11% copper. This combination of results, together with drilling already done at T1, gives us encouragement that the El Palmar project will present a significant gold-copper development opportunity. To the west of El Plamar, we believe the Verde Chico project contains the same level of prospectivity, particularly as it is contained in the same geological structure, the ‘Toachi Fault Zone’ as El Palmar, as well as the nearby giant Cascabel and Llurimagua copper-gold and copper-molybdenum deposits. Senior management changes during the year saw the Company appoint Patrick Duffy to the role of Managing Director and CEO. With Patrick’s experience with Xstrata and Glencore and more recently at Red 5 developing the King of the Hills mine from a development project into a successful mid-tier Australian gold producer, he provides incredible knowledge and experience to drive future growth and shareholder value. I’d also like to welcome Neal O’Connor to the Board, a highly experienced former Xstrata Copper executive. Neal’s legal background and experience in developing and operating mines and infrastructure across South America, as well as in mergers and acquisitions, provides critical complementary skills to the Board in maximising the future value of Sunstone’s high-quality advanced exploration properties and opportunities in Ecuador. Although it has been a difficult period for junior explorers in the broader market, with a noticeable reduction in market support for explorers, we have been able to progress Sunstone’s projects in Ecuador and are on the cusp of delivering the incredible scale and quality of both the Bramaderos and El Palmar Projects. Yours sincerely Graham Ascough Non-executive Chair Sunstone Metals Limited Company Highlights Establishing Limon as an Exploration Target of 0.9 to 1.7Moz of gold equivalent (within 30 to 44M tonnes at a grade of between 0.9 to 1.2g/t gold equivalent). Emerging strategy to establish Limon as a complimentary highergrade open pit opportunity that is a stepping stone to developing the large gold-copper porphyries at Brama-Alba, Melonal and others Expanding the known area of shallow goldcopper mineralisation at El Palmar through continued trenching Board and management transition with appointing highly-regarded new MD and CEO Patrick Duffy in April 2024 and Malcolm Norris to become Chair in October 2024. 3 Sunstone Metals Limited Annual Report 2024
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