Nordic Resources Hits 90% Gold Recovery at Kopsa Ahead of October Resource Update
Key Takeaways
- Blue Coast Research confirmed gold recoveries up to 90% and copper recoveries up to 91% at Kopsa using a conventional grinding, flotation and leach circuit — no exotic reagents or pre-oxidation required.
- A single flowsheet works across both Kopsa ore types (Stockwork and Tonalite), with Tonalite variability tests averaging 88% gold recovery across head grades ranging from 0.46g/t to 0.99g/t with "remarkably little variation."
- The copper concentrate produced is effectively a gold concentrate, with Stockwork LCT-1 returning 115g/t Au and 301g/t Ag alongside 24% Cu — commercially valuable well beyond its copper content.
- An updated Kopsa MRE incorporating 9,631m of recent drilling and the new metallurgical data is scheduled for release in October 2026, with a fresh 12,000m drill program already underway.
- Kopsa sits within NNL's broader MOGB portfolio carrying a combined 1.23Moz AuEq resource across three Finnish projects, with 66% of inventory in Measured and Indicated categories.
Kopsa delivers strong first metallurgical results with gold and copper recoveries up to 90–91%
Nordic Resources (ASX: NNL) has completed its first metallurgical test program on the Kopsa gold-copper project in Finland, delivering gold recoveries up to 90% and copper recoveries up to 91% using a conventional processing flowsheet. The results, conducted by Blue Coast Research (BCR) in Parksville, British Columbia, represent a meaningful de-risking milestone for the 815koz AuEq Kopsa deposit and feed directly into an updated Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) scheduled for release in October.
Eleven samples were tested across both of Kopsa’s primary mineralisation styles — higher-grade “Stockwork” and standard “Tonalite” — confirming that a single conventional flowsheet works across both ore types. That consistency is significant: it simplifies future processing design and reduces the technical uncertainty that typically accompanies projects with multiple distinct ore types.
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What the test results show — and why it matters for Kopsa’s development path
A single flowsheet for both ore types
The base case process is a conventional grinding, flotation and leach circuit, with no exotic reagents or sulphide pre-oxidation steps required. Gold at Kopsa is “free milling,” meaning it can be extracted through standard methods without the additional complexity and cost that pre-oxidation would introduce.
Key technical findings from the comminution and flowsheet work include:
- Primary grind of 70 microns employed, with recovery improvements anticipated at finer grind sizes
- Finland’s power costs are among the lowest in the OECD and the second lowest in the European Union, supporting the economics of finer grinding
- Comminution testwork suggests Kopsa ore is amenable to SAG milling (semi-autogenous grinding, a standard hard rock processing method)
- Bond work index averaged 17.8 kWh/tonne, indicating a moderate power requirement for a hard rock operation
Recovery results across both ore types
The table below summarises overall process recovery results from the Locked Cycle Tests (LCT) and Variability Tests (VT) across both mineralisation styles.
A Locked Cycle Test simulates a continuous processing circuit under closed-loop conditions to provide realistic final metal recovery and concentrate quality estimates. Variability Tests assess how consistently individual samples respond to the flowsheet across a range of head grades.
| Metal | Stockwork LCT-1 | Stockwork VT Average | Tonalite LCT-2 | Tonalite VT Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 90% | 90% | 86% | 88% |
| Copper | 91% | 86% | 88% | 85% |
| Silver | 76% | 82% | 82% | 76% |
A notable feature of the variability data is how little recovery varied across a wide range of head grades, particularly for the Tonalite material. Ten Tonalite tests averaged 88% gold recovery with, in the announcement’s words, “remarkably little variation” across head grades ranging from 0.46g/t Au to 0.99g/t Au. This is precisely the kind of consistency that supports credible resource and economic modelling.
Premium copper concentrate quality
The copper concentrate produced from the initial flotation step in both LCT runs contains elevated gold and silver grades that make it commercially valuable well beyond its copper content. The company notes it is more accurately described as a “gold concentrate,” with gold being the most valuable metal by a wide margin at current prices.
Concentrate grades and distribution from the LCT results:
- Stockwork (LCT-1): 24% Cu, 115g/t Au, 301g/t Ag
- Tonalite (LCT-2): 25% Cu, 42g/t Au, 260g/t Ag
- 88–91% of copper, 34–44% of gold, and 56–69% of silver recovered into the copper concentrate per the LCT results — with the remainder of recoverable gold and silver produced as doré via leaching
- Arsenic grades were managed below smelter rejection limits through re-grinding of the rougher concentrate prior to cleaning stages, meaning no expected impact on concentrate marketability
Understanding metallurgical testing — what it means for a mining project’s path to development
Metallurgical testing is the process of determining how efficiently metal can be extracted from ore using a defined processing method. The key output is the “recovery rate” — the percentage of metal in the ground that can actually be extracted and sold. A project might have substantial gold in its resource, but if only 50% can be practically recovered, its economic value is very different from one achieving 90% recovery.
For Kopsa specifically, the LCT and variability results now provide the recovery inputs needed to support a potential future economic study. Between resource definition and a Preliminary Feasibility Study (PFS), metallurgical test programs like this one are a critical gating step: they answer whether the ore can be processed economically, using what flowsheet, and at what recovery rate. Without them, economic modelling rests on assumptions rather than data.
Strong, consistent recoveries across both ore types and across a wide grade range directly reduce technical uncertainty. They support the credibility of the resource model and any future economic assessment — moving Kopsa from “resource in the ground” toward “economically assessable asset.”
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What comes next — MRE update, fresh drilling, and the path toward PFS
The immediate milestone is an updated MRE for Kopsa, expected during October 2026. This update will incorporate 9,631m of drilling completed at Kopsa over the past year, along with the new metallurgical results. The AuEq formula is also planned to be updated using current commodity prices and the new recovery data.
Near-term catalysts include:
- Updated Kopsa MRE due in October 2026, incorporating 9,631m of recent drilling and new metallurgical data
- New 12,000m drill program recently commenced at Kopsa
- Next metallurgical phase: a PFS-level geometallurgical program expected to include mineralogy, comminution, flotation, leaching, tailings analysis, and finer grind optimisation
- Approximately 14km of total diamond drilling planned across NNL’s MOGB projects in 2026
Managing Director Robert Wrixon commented on the results:
Robert Wrixon, Managing Director
“These results represent an important milestone for the Kopsa Project. It is particularly encouraging that a single conventional flowsheet has delivered consistently high recoveries across both mineralisation styles and a wide range of head grades. These results show improved gold and copper recoveries versus historical testwork and demonstrate strong recovery of payable silver for the first time. For a first pass program, these are impressive results, albeit slightly delayed by laboratory congestion currently affecting much of the global gold sector. We look forward to incorporating these results into the Kopsa resource update intended for release during October.”
The broader MOGB picture — 1.23Moz AuEq across three projects
Kopsa sits within NNL’s wider Finnish gold portfolio in the Middle Ostrobothnia Gold Belt (MOGB). The combined resource across Kopsa, Angesneva (Kiimala Trend), and Hirsikangas stands at 34.3Mt @ 1.11g/t AuEq for 1.23Moz AuEq, comprising 1.04Moz of contained gold and 38kt of contained copper across all resource categories. 66% of the total inventory is currently in the Measured and Indicated categories.
NNL’s strategic mineral acquisition in Finland assembled the three MOGB projects into a portfolio now carrying a combined 1.23Moz AuEq resource, with Kopsa representing the largest and most advanced of the three assets.
| Project | Tonnes (Mt) | Au (g/t) | AuEq (g/t) | AuEq (Moz) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kopsa Total | 23.2 | 0.85 | 1.09 | 0.81 |
| Angesneva Total | 3.85 | 1.19 | 1.19 | 0.15 |
| Hirsikangas Total | 7.29 | 1.13 | 1.13 | 0.26 |
| Combined Total | 34.3 | 0.95 | 1.11 | 1.23 |
The three projects are located within 70km of each other. Two existing processing facilities are situated in the MOGB region: the 1.4Mtpa Pyhasalmi copper-zinc-pyrite plant owned by First Quantum Minerals, located 40km east of Kopsa, and the formerly operating Laiva gold plant 120km to the northwest, currently on care and maintenance. Both plants, or a standalone facility at Kopsa, are noted as potentially accessible by road or road/rail from each of NNL’s three projects.
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