Public Company News

Perth-based junior explorer Aruma Resources is set to get boots on the ground after receiving the green light to kick off drilling at its Salmon Gums gold project in WAs prolific Norseman goldfields. The company plans to undertake a maiden 3,000m RC program at the project, located 30km south and along strike from the recent Scotia gold discovery.

Perth-based gold-miner Wiluna Mining is frantically ticking boxes as it gains momentum on the downhill run towards commissioning its 750,000 tonne-per-annum flotation plant as part of its major production ramp-up plan at its namesake project in WA. The company expects the plant to be in operation in December and is targeting increased production to 120,000 ounces per annum by the end of the 2022 financial year.

ASX-listed Quantum Graphite says the first two holes of an eight-hole diamond drilling campaign along the ‘Eastern Conductor’ near its Uley 2 resource on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia appear to have successfully intercepted multiple graphitic zones. Uley 2 already takes in a hefty 6.3 million tonne resource going 11.1 per cent total graphitic content.

ASX-listed Calidus Resources has taken two crucial steps in its journey towards becoming Australia’s next gold producer completing installation of the mill at its Warrawoona project in WAs Pilbara region and signing a mining services agreement with Macmahon Holdings. Construction is now more than 60 per cent complete with the company on track to pour first gold in the June quarter next year.

Market punters pushed Metal Hawk’s share price through the roof after maiden reverse circulation drilling at the company’s Berehaven nickel project near Kalgoorlie hit massive sulphide nickel mineralisation. Metal Hawk’s share price touched 76c in intraday trading after it announced a two-metre intersection of massive and semi-massive nickel sulphide mineralisation from 144m. The company’s previous day’s closing share price was 18.5c.

ASX-listed Barton Gold is continuing its aggressive exploration approach at its 100 per cent owned Tarcoola and Tunkillia gold projects in the South Australia’s revered Gawler Craton. With the South Australian government contributing up to $300,000 courtesy of its “Accelerated Discovery” initiative, the company has commenced a high-resolution gravity survey designed to refine its new regional structural model and optimise future drill targeting.

Multi-mineral exploration company, Okapi Resources has snapped up a 100 per cent interest in the historical Sunnyside uranium mine in Utah, USA, after staking mining claims that cover 960 acres adjacent to Okapi’s existing Rattler uranium project. The Sunnyside uranium mine comprises several small past-producing pits where uranium and vanadium were both mined in the early 1900’s at high grades. The project has seen no modern exploration since.

Nickel exploration company, St George Mining says maiden regional drilling at two 100 per cent owned prospects near its exciting Mt Alexander nickel sulphide discovery in Western Australia’s north-eastern Goldfields has intercepted broad intervals of host rocks prospective for nickel sulphide mineralisation. The company believes its Mt Alexander tenure has potential to develop into a major multi-deposit nickel camp.

Minerals technology group Neometals’ joint venture partner Critical Metals has struck a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Swedish company H2 Green Steel that may open the door to a possible second vanadium recovery project for the partners. The collaboration with H2 Green Steel complements the existing agreement between Neometals and Critical Metals in relation to their proposed vanadium recovery plant in Finland.

ASX-listed Northern Minerals has progressed its potentially game changing ore sorting initiative with the successful testing of the sorter system at its Browns Range rare earths pilot operation in the north of WA. The company is now producing sorted material and converting this to a 30 percent total rare earth oxide concentrate. Processing of the ore sorted material has resulted in remarkably better recoveries.

Perth-based Wiluna Mining has wrapped up a mammoth 175km of drilling over the past 18 months to support a resource and reserve upgrade integral for its stage 2 sulphide development feasibility study. Latest drilling results from the East Lode and Happy Jack lodes continue to impress with intercepts grading up to 53.4 g/t gold confirming Wiluna as a high-grade mineralised system.

Bardoc Gold’s hopes of increasing the forecast mine life of its namesake multi-deposit gold project near Kalgoorlie in WA have been buoyed by recent encouraging extensional and infill drilling results. Best numbers from the latest diamond drill hits from gold-bearing lodes in the key Zoroastrian deposit area are 4.5m grading 3.53 g/t gold from 102m, 1m at 11.7 g/t from 466m and 6m at 2.44 g/t from 460m.