Public Company News

ASX-listed battery metal player Lithium Australia is a step closer to the development of a 10,000 tonne per annum lithium ferro phosphate manufacturing facility after its wholly-owned subsidiary VSPC appointed engineering and project delivery outfit Lycopodium to drive a definitive feasibility advancing the proposal towards reality.

Blackstone Minerals has delivered nickel-cobalt sulphides from its Ban Phuc mine in Vietnam to consultant, ALS in Perth, as part of a trial of its Ta Khoa nickel refinery pilot program. The company has a plan to become a globally significant producer of high purity NCM811 nickel precursor products for the lithium-ion battery industry and it is building an integrated mining, ore processing and downstream refinery business in Vietnam.

Murdoch University’s Hydrometallurgy Research Group has kicked off a research project that will look to develop a new roasting process for ASX-listed King River Resources’ massive Speewah vanadium, titanium and iron deposit in WA’s Kimberley region. Speewah boasts a cocktail of metals including high purity alumina that are part of the new energy and battery revolution.

While White Cliff Minerals is encouraged by results from the first look at its Hines Hill rare earths project 200km east of Perth. Mother Nature is still holding out on the geological origins of the exciting rare earth oxide anomalies that have been showing up in field work at the project and White Cliff will now get stuck into more geochem sampling ahead of its first air core drilling program.

Mineral explorer Panther Metals has gold in its sights after launching a 2500m RC drill program at its Eight Foot Well prospect near Laverton in Western Australia. According to the company, the campaign will see it kick off infill and extensional drilling as it looks to vector in on the region’s historic gold trend in search of a mineral resource.

Capping off its first round of holes in one of WA’s historical gold mining centres, Tambourah Metals has spotted what it believes could be lithium-bearing pegmatites at its namesake gold project. After lighting up geophysical anomalies and taking aim beneath past workings, the explorer has fired off its inaugural volley of 23 reverse circulation holes for 2527m across its numerous gold targets.

Junior explorer Emu NL has lit up a 10km structural corridor at its flagship Badja gold project due east of Geraldton in WA that it says is prospective for gold and tungsten. Results from a recent soil sampling program have etched out a string of high-priority targets along the corridor that are set to feel the impending bite of the drill bit.

DiscovEx Resources is set to offload its Newington project in WA’s Goldfields region after entering into an option agreement to sell off the venture to Midas Minerals. According to the company, the venture is prospective for gold and lithium and its sale will provide a cash boost that could be funnelled into its flagship precious and base metal projects that are scattered across the state.

Cancer fighting biotech Radiopharm Theranostics has licensed another tumour killing antibody, known as DUNP19, from its US development partners, adding to the company’s clinical development pipeline of radiotherapy cancer treatments. The antibody is unique in its dual action in killing both the cancerous tumour and micro-environment cells that make up most of the mass of a solid tumour.

Okapi Resources is set to sink 100 shallow drillholes at its Rattler uranium project in Utah, USA after getting its hands on a government drill permit to launch the operation. According to the company, the RC probe will be aimed at testing the degree and nature of mineralisation at the Rattlesnake mine, where a recent rock chip sampling program delivered promising results.

On the back of high-grade tidings from its joint venture project, the drill bit is now spinning for Godolphin Resources at its Yeoval porphyry copper-gold project in NSW. The company says the 900m program will feature two diamond drill holes and will aim for southern extensions to its current resource, in addition to identifying further mineralisation at the Cyclops prospect.

Gold-focused explorer Classic Minerals is energised in its final run to production at its flagship Western Australian project after receiving approvals from the state regulator to assemble its gold processing plant and drill a water bore. Given water is required to run its plant, Classic sees the approval as an essential milestone towards processing.