ASX-listed platinum group metals explorer, Podium Minerals, is shooting for an upgraded resource estimate next month for its Parks Reef PGM project in the Mid West region of WA following more encouraging results from rock chip sampling work.
The Perth-based company says the anomalous platinum, palladium, gold and copper occurrences in the rock chip samples closely align with the observed stratigraphy in the Parks Reef drill results and magnetic imagery indicates the potential for a 1.2km-long extension of the western flank of Parks Reef.
Despite limited outcropping, values from rock chip samples taken included copper up to 1,070ppm and platinum, palladium and gold up to 14ppb, 16ppb and 34ppb respectively. Importantly, the anomalous PGM results consistently lie along the contact between mafic and ultramafic rocks interpreted from the magnetics. Podium says the PGM rock chip results are significant considering the lack of surface signature that is typical at Parks Reef.
The company has now completed the initial geological mapping and rock chip sampling at the Parks Reef project’s area of interest.
Earlier this year, Podium released an initial resource estimate for three separate mineralised blocks in the western, central and eastern sectors at Parks Reef of 23 million tonnes of oxide and fresh ore containing 1,140,000 ounces of combined platinum, palladium and gold plus 37,300 tonnes of copper, all within 100m of surface. The mineralisation remains open along strike and at depth.
The mineral resource estimate has been outlined across 6.9km of strike to a depth of 100m, representing less than one-quarter of Podium’s “exploration target envelope”. Podium is targeting an open-pittable resource of about 1.5Moz to 2.6Moz of PGMs – down to 100m – within a resource target of 3.1Moz to 5.8Moz at 200m below surface.
According to Podium, the rock chip results substantially improve its confidence in the interpretation of the magnetic data as an extension of Parks Reef that warrants follow-up drilling. Podium intends including further exploration of the western extension in the form of RC drilling as part of its ongoing drilling blitz.
In the meantime, the company’s systematic resource extension drilling along the full 15km strike length of Parks Reef continues to look for opportunities to increase the resource base.
The company says recent drilling has consistently intersected thick intervals of significant platinum, palladium and gold mineralisation over a footprint of 1.6km of strike connecting the western and central resource blocks.
Current drilling is aimed at increasing the extent of total resources to a combined length of 8.5km, including a continuous resource block spanning about 6.1km over the western half of Parks Reef.
Podium plans to undertake resource modelling shortly with the resource upgrade for Parks Reef targeted for October.
The Parks Reef project covers 77sqkm of mining leases over the Weld Range complex located between the regional mining towns of Meekatharra and Cue in the state’s Murchison mineral province.
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