Shares in Tertiary Minerals jumped 10.3% to £0.08 after the AIM-listed explorer reported the richest silver-copper drill hole ever recorded at its Mushima North project in Zambia. For a company valued at roughly £5.7 million with no revenue, the question is whether eye-catching geology can translate into a funded mine — or remains a drill-result story indefinitely.
The Best Hole Yet Starts Just Metres Below the Surface. Hole 26TMNRC-066 returned 82 metres grading 107 g/t silver equivalent from just 8 metres depth, including a higher-grade 37-metre section at 165 g/t silver, 0.28% copper, and 0.58% zinc.
The hole ended in mineralisation, and a separate intercept hit 1.01% copper and 164 g/t silver, while the programme produced a project-record single assay of 659 g/t silver. Near-surface, high-grade hits matter because they imply lower potential mining costs — but these are still exploration results, not a proven resource.
A Maiden Resource Estimate Is the Next Make-or-Break Milestone. Tertiary aims to report a maiden JORC-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate by the end of 2026.
The Discovery Zone currently holds an Exploration Target — essentially a preliminary size estimate — of 15 to 30 million tonnes grading 40–60 g/t silver equivalent. Upgrading that estimate into a formal resource is the step that could attract joint-venture partners or acquirers. Without it, grades alone don't prove enough material exists to justify a mine.
Silver Prices Provide a Favourable Backdrop — for Now. Silver sat at $66.19/oz on September 21, still roughly 50% higher year-over-year. That benefits the project's economics on paper. But the market is running a sixth consecutive annual supply deficit of around 46 million ounces , and the Fed just hiked rates 25 bps, with further increases signalled — a headwind for non-yielding metals.
Tiny Market Cap Means High Dilution Risk. With a market cap of roughly £5.7 million and approximately 7.15 billion shares outstanding , any capital raise to fund deeper drilling or a feasibility study would heavily dilute existing shareholders. Weekly price swings average 20.9%, more than double the UK metals-and-mining sector average , underscoring the speculative nature of the stock. The drilling is genuinely encouraging, but investors are buying a possibility, not a proven asset.