Public Company News

Allup Silica is rapidly ticking boxes at its Sparkler project in the South-West of WA as it readies the silica sands project for a mining licence which it will apply for next quarter. The company has appointed the South-West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council to undertake a Heritage Survey and it has also just wrapped up an auger drilling campaign at its Dune Buggy and Pink Bark projects near Esperance with some success.

WA-based oil producer Triangle Energy has banked $10 million through a binding farmout agreement with New Zealand Oil & Gas for 25 per cent of its L7 production licence and EP 437 exploration permit. Following the separate sale to Talon Energy in December last year of another 25 per cent slice of its permits, Triangle retains a 50 per cent stake of its original tenure.

Neometals is in the crosshairs of the European Investment Bank for cornerstone debt funding of its vanadium recycling project in Finland. The EIB is the lending arm of the EU and one of the biggest providers of climate-related finance. While it does not tend to lend 100 per cent of required funding for projects, its approval could see other commercial banks come to the table.

ABx Group has hit paydirt with its latest rare earths exploration in Tasmania with assays from an ongoing drill campaign more than tripling the initial mineral resource of its Deep Leads and Rubble Mound channel. At 13.9 million tonnes, the resource is now 350 per cent larger than the maiden mineral resource however, with assays outstanding and drilling continuing, a further upgrade might be on the cards.

Terrain Minerals has used an induced polarisation survey to help lock in two priority gold-drilling targets under shallow cover and near existing gold prospects at its Smokebush project in the Yalgoo mineral field, 350km north of Perth. The company found a 400m IP anomaly near existing drilling where results include a 5m hit at 6.1 g/t gold from 55m.

Ora Banda Mining will collect a cool $10 million for the sale of non-core tenements at Lady Ida, 65km south of its Davyhurst gold processing plant in WA. The company says the move will strengthen its balance sheet ahead of a decision on the go-ahead for its Riverina underground gold mine. The sale includes low-grade gold resources in addition to related mining and infrastructure licences.

Multi-commodity explorer Meeka Metals continues to rack up high-grade gold hits at its Circle Valley project near the WA town of Esperance, where it expects to soon deliver a maiden rare earths mineral resource. The intriguing intercepts appear to be evolving into a significant gold footprint covering several kilometres at its underexplored tenure. The head grade came in a 4m core showing 3.89 g/t.

Infinity Mining has a renewed optimism in its search for more lithium-bearing pegmatites and rare earths after positive results in the latest field program at its South Tambourah project in WA’s Pilbara region. The return of eight rock chip samples collected late last year confirm lithium mineralisation of up to 3.86 per cent lithium, 338.5 parts-per-million caesium, 174ppm niobium, 233.7ppm tantalum and 3013.5ppm rubidium.

Classic Minerals has joined the ranks of WA gold miners after hauling the first ore from its wholly-owned Kat Gap gold mine, which sits 170km south of Southern Cross in the State’s Central Wheatbelt. Initial haulage is focused on 6500 tonnes of ore recovered from the bulk sample pit. Kat Gap has a healthy grade of 2.96 g/t gold with near-surface mineralisation.

Surefire Resources has the drill bit spinning again at its promising Yidby gold project in the Murchison district of WA’s Mid West, targeting extensions to gold mineralised intercepts of discovery holes at the project’s three main prospects. The program will also test structural targets generated from magnetic and gravity data and will comprise 24 RC holes for a total of 2800m.

EMU NL has confirmed the presence of both magnetic and heavy rare earths at its Condingup project near Esperance after rock samples returned results of up to 2124 parts-per-million total rare earth oxides. A total of eight samples were collected from a reconnaissance program late last year including three rocks from the Booanya granite complex that all returned results above 1000ppm TREO.

A high-resolution aeromagnetic survey has identified high-priority drill targets for clay-hosted and fresh rock rare earths mineralisation at Venus Metals’ wholly-owned Marvel Loch East project in WA. Hard rock targets include a 25km long magnetic trend and a 3km zoned magnetic anomaly where previous rock chips up to 4365ppm total rare earths were discovered.