Islamabad: Mari Energies Limited has announced a significant copper-gold discovery at the East Siah Diq (ESD-1) exploration site in District Chagai, Balochistan.

The discovery was announced by Managing Director and CEO Faheem Haider at the Pakistan Mineral Investment Forum 2026. It was made through the company's wholly owned subsidiary, Mari Minerals (Private) Limited.

The discovery site is located approximately 50 kilometres east of the Reko Diq copper-gold mining project and 25 kilometres northwest of Nokkundi in the Koh-i-Sultan area.

According to the company, approximately 25,000 metres of exploration drilling have been completed in two phases, with drill holes reaching depths of up to 500 metres.

The drilling identified porphyry-style copper mineralization beneath approximately 100 metres of overburden, covering an area of around 1.4 square kilometres.

Faheem Haider said the discovery marked an important milestone in the company's mineral exploration programme and strengthened confidence in the geological potential of Chagai.

He said the company would now focus on further exploration and technical studies to determine the scale and development potential of the discovery.

The company said results from the first drilling phase supported the identification of a new porphyry copper discovery, while laboratory analysis of samples collected during the second phase was underway and expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027.

The next exploration phase is expected to include deeper drilling of up to 1,000 metres, alongside additional drilling to assess the mineralized area's lateral extent.

Mari Energies said an initial geological model and resource estimate would also be developed using findings from the two completed drilling phases.

However, the company emphasized that further drilling, metallurgical testing, geological assessments and technical studies would be required to establish the discovery's actual size, mineral grade, economic significance and development potential.

It clarified that the exploration findings announced so far do not constitute a Mineral Resource or Mineral Reserve.

Mari Energies has also disclosed the discovery through a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange.