Venus Metals Corporation has joined the hunt for the next Julimar nickel-PGE discovery in WA with the company acquiring two new tenements at Bridgetown East. The tenure covers over 270 square kilometres of prospective stratigraphy and hosts a previously defined electromagnetic sulphide target in the southern portion of the project area.
Venus’ new project is located east of the town of Bridgetown, around 220km south of Perth in Western Australia’s fertile south-west mineral terrane. The terrane hosts an impressive range of world-class mineral deposits that includes the Greenbushes lithium-tantalum operation and the Boddington copper-gold mine, both located to the north of Bridgetown.
However, it is Chalice Gold Mines spectacular Julimar nickel-PGE discovery to the east of Perth that has fired the industry’s imagination, with a cavalcade of miners and explorers now flocking to the region in a bid to make a headline-grabbing discovery of their own.
Venus joins a select group of explorers in the Bridgetown region that now includes Emu NL at the neighbouring Sunfire project, which boasts an extensive nickel anomaly and drill-hole intercepts of up to 19m at 1.07 per cent nickel, and Chalice Gold Mines, also in the immediate surrounds via a farm-in agreement with Venture Minerals.
Venture owns the Thor prospect, south of Bridgetown, which covers a 20km-long magnetic anomaly that shows strong similarities to the Julimar discovery near Perth, a curious coincidence that is not lost on Chalice.
Chalice is now earning a 70 per cent interest in Venture’s ground at Thor by spending $3.7 million over four years. Previous drilling over the prospect has already produced massive nickeliferous sulphide mineralisation including 2.4m at 0.5 per cent copper and 0.05 per cent nickel, with anomalous levels of gold and platinum group elements.
The Venus tenure picks up the northern extensions to the Thor anomaly with previous exploration across the company’s new tenure having outlined a high priority electromagnetic, or “EM” target for testing. A desktop review indicates that the target is associated with mapped ultramafic rocks, and with recognised sulphides in the system at Thor, this anomaly looks ripe for drill testing.
Modelling of Venus’ EM target shows it to be a discrete anomaly that is around 300m long and lies around 100m below surface. The company is planning to further prove up the target via geochemical and ground EM prior to committing to a future drilling program.
Venus has paid Lithium Australia $15,700 for the two tenements and will also pay a 1 per cent royalty in the event that a discovery is made and progresses through to a decision to mine.
With the eyes of the industry on Chalice’s evolving exploration and development program across the south-west terrane, including the Thor JV, Venus is likely to attract some attention with its new strategic acquisition.
The company now looks to be sitting in the box seat at Bridgetown and with two nickel prospects developing down the road, and its EM target being prepared for drilling, Venus appears to be in the right place at the right time hoping its next big discovery is just around the corner.
Is your ASX listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Matt Birney
