Matt Birney

With a positive mining study Coda Minerals has unveiled a viable pathway to steady-state production of 2.5 million tonnes per annum at the company’s Elizabeth Creek copper project in South Australia. The mining assessment forms part of a broader scoping study and is centred around underground mining of the project’s cornerstone Emmie Bluff copper-cobalt deposit whilst also proposing open pit extraction at satellite deposits to rapidly achieve nameplate production.

Software business K2fly has been contracted by Rio Tinto for another of its mining packages, the resources giant signing on for its Reconciliation Module in a three-year deal worth $360,000. It’s the first sale of the product to any tier 1 miner and the sixth software solution the Subiaco-based company has sold to the global diversified company.

55 RC holes plunged across the northern bank of CZR Resources’ Robe Mesa iron ore project in WA’s Pilbara region have delivered the highest grades of direct shipping ore mineralisation at the operation to-date with an average of 56 per cent iron. The company says the northern extension sits outside of the operation’s current 37.5 million tonne resource and underlines the venture’s development upside.

Askari Metals has kicked off a phase 1 3500m RC drilling campaign at the company’s recently acquired Uis lithium, tantalum and tin project in Namibia, Africa. The initial phase is part of an overall 10,000m campaign designed to test high-grade lithium rock chip results of up to 3.1 per cent lithium oxide. The main target area will be less than 2.5km along strike from an operating battery metals mine.

Geochemical assays have confirmed a significant gold intersection for Toro Energy about 80m north of where the company originally hit massive nickel sulphides at its Dusty project near Wiluna in WA. Diamond drilling struck a 4m intersection at 1.4 grams per tonne gold from 188m including a 2m hit going 2.2 g/t from 188m. The company says the latest result confirms the gold prospectivity of the site.

ASX-listed Venture Minerals has got the drill bit spinning at a new, high-priority rare earth and tin target at its flagship Mount Lindsay project in Tasmania after discovering a 1200m long soil anomaly at the site. The company has coined the prospect “Cruncher” and says it is laden with elevated doses of praseodymium and neodymium, materials critical in the construction of electric vehicles and wind turbines.

Tambourah Metals has identified further potential LCT-type pegmatites after analysing hyperspectral data from the company’s Russian Jack lithium project in WA’s Pilbara region. The analysis has lit up a number of features in similar orientations to known pegmatites at the project. In addition, Tambourah’s newly identified features lie within the Bonney Downs Monzogranite that is part of the Split Rocks Supersuite which is known for hosting pegmatites.

ASX-listed cell therapy innovator Chimeric Therapeutics has secured an exclusive global licence from a leading American research university for a promising cancer-fighting treatment. The treatment centres on “natural killer” cells that occur organically in the human body and can recognise and kill cancer cells. Chimeric says the treatment continues to show promise after a clinical phase 1 trial earlier this year.

Buru Energy is looking to end the year on a high following a flurry of activity across its WA-based oil and gas portfolio over the past few months including a successful November crude oil lift of 73,000 barrels which added $3.8 million to its bottom line. The deal marks the company’s third and final delivery for the year for a total exported volume of roughly 220,000 barrels.

After a round of infill drilling Blackstone Minerals has confirmed high grades of up to 4.3 per cent nickel, 4.73 per cent copper and 18.2 grams per tonne platinum group elements at the company’s Ta Khoa nickel project in Vietnam. The assays come from the company’s recently completed campaign of resource definition drilling at the project’s King Snake massive sulphide vein deposit.

ASX-listed Terrain Minerals is set for an exploration blitz across its wholly owned Lort River project near Esperance where the company is chasing clay-hosted rare earth elements. The company has engaged Cube Consulting to assist with a strategic exploration plan as Terrain looks to define a maiden resource at the site as soon as possible.

Estrella Resources has signed an offtake and ore processing agreement with Glencore subsidiary Murrin Murrin Operations for 2000 to 4000 tonnes of bulk metallurgical sample from its 5A nickel mine near Kambalda. The company says a positive process outcome from the bulk metallurgical sample will give Estrella a strong base from which to fully develop the 5A nickel mine using simple pit cutback methods.

ASX-listed Neometals has completed pre-feasibility study for production of titanium and iron-vanadium concentrate at its wholly owned Barrambie titanium and vanadium project near Sandstone, Western Australia. Results from the study confirm the viability of commercialising the project with the potential to supply in excess of 500,000 tonnes per annum of high-quality supply constrained ilmenite in the first 10 years of the project.

White Cliff Minerals has commenced a high-resolution magnetic and radiometric survey at its Yinnetharra lithium and rare earths project about 100km north-east of the Gascoyne Junction in WA. Previous rock chip sampling at the site has returned grades of up to 924 ppm total rare earth oxides and the in-progress geophysical campaign is aimed at refining and generating new targets at the site.

Shares in ASX-listed mineral explorer Emu surged 60 per cent during intraday trading after it lodged applications to extend its prospective Condingup project to an overall tenement area of 734 square kilometres. The company has also applied for another three new tenement packages in the broader area totalling a further 304 square kilometres. The latest land grab will substantially increase Emu’s exposure to rare earths by capturing more of the prospective Booanya granites.

Legend Mining’s board has got its boots on the ground at the company’s Rockford project in the Fraser Range to view field activities on-site including an ongoing 3D seismic survey of its Octagonal prospect. The company recently engaged hard rock seismic solutions company HiSeis to define the structure of the Octagonal intrusive complex at Rockford to a minimum depth of 1500m below the surface where it is targeting nickel-copper mineralisation.

Lindian Resources is off to a promising start with early samples from its maiden drill program at the Kangankunde rare earths project in Malawi showing continuous visible monazite from surface to current depth. The company says monazite is the rare earths bearing mineral Lindian is targeting at the project and mineralisation is consistent with expectations indicated from surface mapping.

Valor Resources has successfully deployed radon-in-soil surveys at its Hidden Bay uranium project and identified priority targets located close to the historic Rabbit Lake mine in the Athabasca Basin, Canada. The surveys were designed to follow up on prospective targets previously identified by the company. The area of interest is situated close to the Athabasca unconformity with the potential for both basement-hosted and Athabasca sandstone-hosted uranium deposits.

Empire Energy has shattered another record in the Beetaloo sub-basin with a 2632m horizontal section of its Carpentaria-3H gas well in the Northern Territory cementing itself as the longest well section drilled in the zone to date. The company says over 90 per cent of its latest interval penetrated the hydrocarbon-rich Velkerri-B shale formation where strong gas shows were observed.

Internationally recognised lithium expert Joe Lowry expects the price of battery quality lithium carbonate to continue its upward trajectory into 2027 before hitting highs of US$97,000 per tonne as the supply and demand curve starts to invert. Speaking at this year’s Lithium Update by the Experts at Perth’s Hyatt Hotel, Lowry dubbed lithium the “irreplaceable element” in the new energy transition and says the balance of power in the industry has switched from China to Australia and South America.

WA-focused gold explorer Classic Minerals has received final approval from the state regulator to produce gold from the company’s flagship Kat Gap project south of Southern Cross in WA. The company says over the coming months it will move from a pure explorer to gold producer. Classic intends to take a staged mining approach at Kat Gap as it looks to reduce early overhead costs and mitigate risk.

Buru Energy has stepped up its commercialisation efforts associated to its Rafael gas development in WA’s Canning Basin by signing an agreement with Transborders Energy to conduct a pre-feasibility study for an LNG plant solution. The company says the Kimberley-based facility could promote a swifter, simpler and more capital efficient mechanism to liquify and export its resources.

Following rolling success across its reinvigorated battery metals and rare earth-focused portfolio, White Cliff Minerals has offloaded its non-core Gardener Dome rare earths project in WA to ASX-listed explorer Black Cat. The transaction will see the company pocket a non-refundable deposit of $5,000, followed by $45,000 in cash and $150,000 worth of fully paid ordinary shares in Black Cat upon the deal's completion.

Surefire Resources has achieved excellent gold recoveries of between 97.6 per cent and 99.5 per cent from gravity and cyanide leach tests on samples from the company’s Yidby gold project in the Murchison district of WA’s Mid West. The metallurgical test work was designed to provide greater insights into Surefire’s potential overall gold recovery and processing options for the project.

After an initial phase of reconnaissance, Askari Metals has uncovered high-grade spodumene-hosted lithium within extensive pegmatites at the company’s recently acquired Uis lithium, tantalum and tin project in Namibia, Africa. Results up to 2.1 per cent lithium oxide were returned from 196 rock chip samples collected as part of the company’s due diligence evaluation of the advanced project.

Blackstone Minerals has validated its process for the company’s proposed Ta Khoa nickel refinery project in Vietnam after its metallurgical test work program was successful in producing battery-grade nickel and cobalt sulphates in addition to processing third-party cobalt supply. The findings come from batch test work and commissioning of piloting equipment completed in August as part of a definitive feasibility study into the company’s Ta Khoa nickel project and its namesake refinery.

JV partners Triangle and Pilot Energy could lodge a formal application to use the company’s Cliff Head oil reservoirs as carbon storage tanks in the next few weeks after finalising the regulatory approval data required for the submission. The producer’s oil fields are currently churning out about 700 barrels of oil per day but once depleted it is hoped they will be used to progress the partnership’s clean energy initiatives.

BMG Resources has extended the mineralised footprint of its Abercromby gold project near Wiluna out to 1.3km after receiving assay results from the company’s recent diamond drilling campaign. Assay highlights include a 5.56m hit at 3.5 grams per tonne gold from 400m whilst a second hole recorded a 6m intercept going 2.79 g/t gold from 171m.

As the price of gold continues to recover lost territory, Surefire Resources has wrapped up a five-hole diamond drilling program at the company’s Yidby gold project in the Murchison district of WA’s Mid West. The campaign was designed to reveal structural and lithological information as the explorer looks to home in on the project’s broad gold mineralisation and localised high grades. The drill core has been transported to a laboratory in WA and is currently under the geological microscope.

West Perth-based Asra Minerals has appointed experienced geologist and mining executive Rob Longley as its new Managing Director. Longley was General Manager Geology for Sundance Resources in Africa from 2007 to 2015 and CEO and MD of Helios Gold. His most recent position was CEO and MD of minerals explorer Ardiden and he is also a non-executive director of Green Technology Metals.

Shares in mineral explorer Tambourah Metals shot up over 83 per cent this morning after multiple prospective pegmatites were confirmed across a strike length of 500m at the company’s Russian Jack lithium project in WA’s Pilbara region. The explorer also excited the market by claiming a small yet highly prospective tenement in the Pilbara’s latest lithium hotspot.

The Cliff Head joint venture between Triangle and Pilot Energy continues to deliver the goods with the duo completing its fourth tanker load of 26,500 barrels of oil onto the AB Paloma vessel at the Port of Geraldton in WA. Triangle Energy holds a 78.75 per cent share in the partnership and says the ship is now stocked with 53,000 barrels of oil and is on its way to a refinery in Asia where it will be sold.