Alto Metals Secures Option Over Lightning Mining Lease

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Alto Metals (ASX: AME) is set to acquire granted mining lease M57/659 that sits within the company’s 100 per cent-owned Sandstone gold project in Western Australia.

Alto Metals has signed an option agreement to acquire gold prospect, known as ‘Lightning’, which is located only three kilometres from the 2.3 million tonnes at 2 grams per tonne gold for 150,000 ounces Vanguard Camp.

The mining lease has seen no RC drilling carried out and remains untested at depth, however shallow high-grade gold mineralisation was intercepted in limited historical RAB drilling.

“We are pleased to have secured an option to acquire the Lightning prospect, situated within a granted mining lease and immediately west of our Vanguard deposit,” Alto Metals managing director and CEO, Matthew Bowles said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“Limited shallow RAB drilling in the area has returned some significant gold intercepts of up to 147 grams per tonne gold, yet the area has not been tested with deeper RC drilling.

“There are extensive shallow alluvial gold workings throughout the Lightning area, however the primary source of mineralisation has not yet been identified.

“With a growing, open-pit gold resource of 832,000 ounces of gold at 1.5 grams per tonne, constrained within $2,500 per ounce pit shells, at our Sandstone gold project, we consider Lightning to be a great addition to our asset base and has the potential to deliver further resource growth in the Vanguard/Lightning area.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Roadhouse Presenting Diverse Program to Melbourne Investment Community

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THE CONFERENCE CALLER: The Resources Roadhouse will be in Melbourne next week presenting our inaugural Resources Roadhouse Roadshow. Here’s a quick bite of two of the companies that will be presenting.

Encounter Resources (ASX: ENR) controls a large portfolio of 100 per cent-owned projects in one of Australia’s exciting mineral provinces considered prospective for copper and critical minerals including the Aileron project in the West Arunta region of Western Australia.

Encounter recently completed a $10.5 million placement, the funds from which have been earmarked to accelerate and expand the company’s upcoming drill program at Aileron project.

The drilling will pick up from results and modelling from the company’s 2023 exploration campaign that confirmed the presence of shallow, high-grade niobium-REE mineralised carbonatites at several prospects and the discovery of large-scale primary niobium-REE carbonatite-hosted mineralisation within a five kilometre corridor.

Elsewhere in the company portfolio, Encounter reported assays from two drill holes completed at the Zeta target at the Jessica copper project in the Northern Territory confirming the presence of copper sulphide bearing veins and alteration signatures associated with iron oxide copper gold (IOCG) style mineralisation.

“The NT has significant untapped copper potential which has been recognised by numerous major resources companies,” Encounter Resources managing director Will Robinson said.

“Located in a previously unexplored region of the NT, the first holes drilled at Zeta targeted large magnetic and gravity anomalies.

“Both holes intersected red-rock hematite alteration and copper associated with quartz–carbonate veining which is interpreted as a distal alteration signature to a potential IOCG style mineral system.”

The Jessica project is subject to a Joint Venture with South32, which has the right to earn a 60 per cent interest in the project via sole funding $15 million of exploration expenditure within 10 years.

 

Bass Oil (ASX: BAS) is an oil producer with majority interest in eight permits in the Cooper Basin of Australia that includes the 100 per cent-owned Worrior and Padulla oil fields.

The company is also in Indonesia where it holds a 55 per cent interest in the Tangai-Sukananti KSO, which it acquired in 2017 instantly transforming Bass Oil into a profitable oil producer in a prolific oil and gas region.

Bass Oil’s Tangai-Sukananti KSO 2P Reserves as at 31 December 2023 were assessed to be 0.741 million barrels of oil with production expected to continue until 2032.

In 2023 Bass secured a 10 year licence extension for the KSO which now expires in September 2035.

In October 2022 Bass completed the acquisition of its portfolio of Cooper Basin assets.

These included a 100 per cent interest in the producing Worrior and Padulla oil fields that, as of January 2024, are producing approx. 100 barrels of oil per day (bopd) at a gross profit margin of around $64 per barrel at a Brent oil price of around US$80.

The fields provide 2P reserves of almost 366,000 barrels of oil and 2C contingent resources of approximately 582,000 barrels of oil.

The portfolio also contains properties that host prospective appraisal and exploration opportunities.

Bass Oil owns a high equity stake (74%-100%) in fifteen Cooper Basin licences, representing one of the largest acreage holdings in the core of the Cooper Basin covering a cumulative area of approximately 1,900 square kilometres.

 

Warriedar Resources Intercepts Further High-Grade Extensional Gold at Ricciardo

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Warriedar Resources (ASX: WA8) reported assay results from drilling undertaken at the Ricciardo deposit (previously known as Silverstone) within the company’s Golden Range project in the Murchison region of Western Australia.

Warriedar Resources said the latest results have extended the high-grade shoot below the Silverstone pit and broadened what is already a known (high-grade) mineralisation envelope.

The company said the drilling had demonstrated the Mineral Resource growth potential that exists at Ricciardo and along the broader ‘Golden Corridor’ trend.

Warriedar took receipt of assay results received for an additional six RC holes drilled at the Ricciardo deposit, with all holes intersecting gold including:

RDRC041
8 metres at 11.4 grams per tonne gold from 166m, including 3m at 22.38g/t gold from 167m; and

RDRC034
8m at 2.63g/t gold from 160m.

The Ricciardo gold system spans a strike length of approximately 2.3 kilometres, with very limited drilling having been undertaken below 100m depth.

Ricciardo possesses a current Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of 8.7 million tonnes at 1.7 grams per tonne gold for 476,000 ounces of gold (6,000 ounces Measured, 203,000 ounces Indicated, 267,000 ounces Inferred).

“This is another very pleasing set of results from our recent drilling at Ricciardo,” Warriedar Resources managing director and CEO Amanda Buckingham said in the company’s AXS announcement.

“Combined with the initial results released in March, they readily demonstrate why we have made the Golden Corridor the primary focus of our 2024 exploration activities.

“At Golden Range we have scale, plus grade, and immediate and substantial resource growth potential. We look forward to receiving the remaining assays, as well as recommencing drilling this quarter.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Brightstar Resources Releases Aspacia Mineral Resource Estimate

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Brightstar Resources (ASX: BTR) released an initial Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the Aspacia deposit within the company Menzies gold project in Western Australia.

Brightstar Resources has now increased the total Menzies MRE by around 20 per cent since taking ownership of the project in late May 2023.

The Aspacia JORC 2012-compliant MRE has come in at 1.37 million tonnes at 1.6 grams per tonne gold for 70,000 ounces of gold at a 0.5g/t gold cut-off grade.

Within the Aspacia MRE, there is a high-grade subset of 290,000 tonnes at 3.72g/t gold for approx. 35,000 ounces using a 2g/t gold cut-off grade.

Brightstar said the Mineral Resource growth vindicates the company’s strategy strategy of identifying, drilling and delineating areas considered prospective to hold future potentially mineable ounces.

“We are delighted to announce that we’ve added a further 70,00 ounces to the Menzies gold project, with +90,000 ounces added by Brightstar to the original 505,000 ounces acquired three quarters ago through the transaction with Kingwest Resources Ltd,” Brightstar Resources managing director Alex Rovira said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“Encouragingly, the Selkirk-First Hit-Lady Shenton trend seems to be distinct to that of the Aspacia deposit, which may lead to similar repetitions north and south of Aspacia and warrants further follow up exploration which we’ll target in our upcoming drilling programs set to re-commence this quarter.

“The results from the previous drilling and the MRE output utilising a typical underground mining economic cut-off grade indicates to Brightstar that strong potential exists to assess a modest-scale underground operation at Aspacia given the grades and widths observed.

“With the technical PFS work streams underway, RC and diamond drilling will shortly recommence at Brightstar’s projects and conduct large programs targeting conversion and upgrades to our current MREs proposed to be mined within our BTR 2023 Scoping Study, along with Linden gold projects at Second Fortune and Jasper Hills.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Spartan Resources Claims New High-Grade Gold Discovery

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Spartan Resources (ASX: SPR) has claimed discovery of a new high-grade gold lode at the company’s 100 per cent-owned Dalgaranga gold project in the Murchison region of Western Australia.

Spartan Resources made the discover immediately south of its 952,000 ounces Never Never gold deposit.

The new lode, named the Pepper gold prospect, sits approximately 90 metres south of the previous southernmost intercept at Never Never and all current conceptual underground development designs for future underground drilling and potential extraction of high-grade Never Never gold mineralisation pass by the new high-grade Pepper discovery position.

The company noted the discovery intercept of 17.52m at 15.86 grams per tonne gold, including 9.22m at 27.89g/t gold, comprises typical Never Never-style mineralisation with similar grades and mineralogical characteristics.

“The discovery of the new high-grade Pepper gold prospect, located directly between Never Never and Four Pillars, is yet another game-changer for the Dalgaranga gold project,” Spartan Resources managing director and CEO Simon Lawson said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“The core from the discovery hole DGRC1432-DT shows the same thick, heavily-altered volcaniclastic host-rock, orientation and mineralisation style as Never Never and the gold grades are consistent across the entire intercept and of an impressive tenor, to this point only seen elsewhere at Never Never.

“Think of fold shoots as linear folds like those on a corrugated iron roofing sheet.

“The sheet represents the north-striking steeply west-dipping volcaniclastic rock package at Dalgaranga.

“East-west shears regularly cross-cut the sheet, creating corrugations or fold shoots.

“The troughs of the folds host steeply plunging high-grade gold mineralisation while the ridges between host lower-grade gold mine.”

Spartan has drilled several follow-up holes up-dip from DGRC1432-DT which have intersected the same style of mineralisation, from which it awaits assays.

“The potential to add further high-grade ounces in close proximity to planned future infrastructure through discoveries like this is central to our strategy and investment proposition – and demonstrates clearly why we think there is so much more upside in what is turning out to be a truly remarkable gold system at Dalgaranga!” Lawson said.

 

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Legacy Minerals Gets High-Grade Gold Drilling Underway at Black Range

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Legacy Minerals (ASX: LGM) has drilling underway at the company’s 100 per cent-owned Black Range project in New South Wales.

Legacy Minerals has commenced a first-phase, 1,100 metres diamond drilling program at the Sugarbag Hill prospect a large epithermal gold-silver system that has remained undrilled for three decades.

The last drilling conducted at Sugarbag Hill was by done by Newcrest Mining in 1992, which resulted in that company being unable to find any high-grade feeder zones.

Legacy Minerals has now identified coincident Induced Polarisation (IP) and geochemical targets that were not recognised by previous explorers and remain untested by drilling.

“The gold targets at Sugarbag Hill are large, compelling, and untested since Newcrest ceased exploration 32 years ago,” Legacy Minerals CEO and managing director Christopher Byrne said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“The target remains open as Newcrest’s exploration program did not identify the high-grade feeding targets and there has been no on-ground exploration or drilling since 1992 at Sugarbag Hill.

“To Legacy Minerals’ advantage there has been both a significant advance in epithermal mineral system understanding, as well as a sustained growth in the gold price.

“This increases both the probability of success and the value of a gold discovery.

“Undrilled prospects of this nature are rare opportunities to test for high-grade gold and silver targets in mineral systems that are globally recognised for their potential to turn into high-margin gold mines.

“In addition to Black Range, Legacy Minerals is in the unique position of controlling three district scale epithermal systems including, Bauloora, which is being explored with the world’s largest gold miner Newmont, and the Drake gold-silver epithermal system.

“With the drilling now underway at Sugarbag Hill we look forward to updating the market as this exciting drilling program progresses.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Impact Minerals to Commence Drilling at Arkun REE Project

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Impact Minerals (ASX: IPT) has the tools out for commencement of an aircore drilling program at the Hyperion rare earth element (REE) prospect, part of the company’s 100 per cent-owned Arkun project in the southwest of Western Australia.

Impact Minerals will be drilling approximately 40 holes for 2000 metres to test a previously identified REE soil geochemistry anomaly at Hyperion.

The company has earlier reported results of up to 5,880 parts per million (ppm) total rare earth element oxides and yttrium (TREO +Y), which it claimed as some of the highest TREO-in-soil results reported recently in Western Australia.

Other REE soil geochemistry anomalies have been identified at the Swordfish and Horseshoe targets.

Impact has defined an area over three square kilometres at greater than 1,000ppm TREO+Y at Hyperion.

Gathered data indicates Hyperion to hold potential to be a very large target for clay-hosted REE mineralisation immediately below the laterite cap, which is only a few metres thick in most places making it a priority area for drilling.

“The discovery of the Hyperion REE prospect was a significant breakthrough in exploring the Arkun project, and we are eager to drill test the anomaly to assess the depth extent of the weathered clay that may host the REE mineralisation,” Impact Minerals managing director Dr Mike Jones said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“The key to an economic discovery is to evaluate how easily the REEs can be extracted through simple acid leaching of clays and, so we will be sending samples for preliminary test work as quickly as possible.

“Given this is the first-ever drill program at Arkun, and that several other significant REE anomalies remain to be tested at Arkun, for example Swordfish and Horseshoe, the extraction characteristics will have an important bearing on any future resource definition drilling.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Asra Minerals Reports Initial MRE for Yttria REE Deposit

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Asra Minerals (ASX: ASR) reported its first JORC 2012-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the company’s 100 per cent-owned Yttria rare earth element (REE) deposit.

Asra Minerals reported the MRE covers the first two kilometres of strike at the Yttria REE deposit that sits within its Mt Stirling project near Leonora in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.

The Yttria MRE has come in at 15 million tonnes at 490ppm total rare earth oxide (TREO) with 67ppm scandium oxide (Sc2O3), 55 per cent of which has been categorised as Indicated.

The MRE has a high ratio of 55 per cent heavy rare earth oxides (HREO) incorporating high value dysprosium (Dy) and terbium (Tb) rare earth oxides.

Asra considers the high ratio of 55 per cent heavy and 22.5 per cent magnet rare earth oxides boosts Yttria’s credentials as a well-studied deposit in a Tier 1 mining jurisdiction the company expects will expand as ongoing exploration and metallurgical work provides further detail on the controls on mineralisation and refinement in potential recoveries and methods of extraction.

Recently carried out phase one metallurgy found two potential pathways to extract REE at Yttria, with results, including magnet rare earth elements (MREO) extractions of up to 78 per cent.

“Our maiden MRE for the Yttria REE deposit is an exciting moment for Asra Minerals and our shareholders, placing us another step closer to delivering the critical minerals needed to charge global electrification,” Asra Minerals managing director Rob Longley said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“This MRE sits neatly within our extensive gold portfolio at Mt Stirling in the world-renowned Goldfields region, where we also hold a current gold JORC Resource of 152,000 ounces at 1.7 grams per tonne gold across the project.

“Our focus will now turn to progressively expanding and growing the REE resource at Mt Stirling and utilise these learnings for exploration activity at our nearby Kookynie West project, just south of Leonora.

“I look forward to providing further updates as we venture into this next phase of exploration across our multi-commodity portfolio in Western Australia.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Cygnus Metals encouraged by First Lithium Assays at Pegasus, Auclair

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Cygnus Metals (ASX: CY5) announced first assays from recently conducted diamond drilling at the Pegasus discovery within the company’s Auclair lithium project in James Bay, Quebec.

Cygnus Metals reported the assays to confirm thick mineralisation at Pegasus within 50 metres of surface, with a highlight intersection of

43.7 metres (true width) at 1.15 per cent lithium oxide (Li2O) from 46.4m, including 4m at 3 per cent Li2O, which includes 1m at 5.9 per cent Li2O.

Cygnus declared this result as the standout intersection it has drilled to date with impressive widths and grade comparable to other major deposits in the region and globally.

Substantial grades of up to 5.9 per cent Li2O were returned from a zone of intense spodumene mineralisation, part of a larger interval grading at 3 per cent Li2O over 4m.

“This outstanding intersection shows exactly why we are on the hunt for lithium in James Bay,” Cygnus Metals managing director David Southam said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“Despite its immense lithium potential, the area is still heavily underexplored when compared to more mature lithium terranes like Western Australia.

“This result puts Auclair on the map as potentially the next breakthrough lithium discovery in James Bay.

“Auclair clearly demonstrates all the key ingredients for a significant discovery, with regional scale, high-grades and significant thick intersections.”

Cygnus considers the results to indicate substantial potential for the larger system at Auclair which shows an optimal fractionation trend over at least 10km of strike and multiple spodumene pegmatite discoveries over 6km of strike.

Much of this trend remains underexplored where the company believes there to be potential for further discovery in the surrounding area and within the 1.6km of unexplored ground between the Pegasus and Lyra outcrops.

Lyra, which returned rock chip results of up to 6.7 per cent Li2O and is yet to be drill tested, is also thought to be shallow to moderate dipping and in the same orientation as Pegasus.

“We have only scratched the surface through recent programs and look forward to getting back on the ground in May and continuing with prospecting around Pegasus and Lyra, which were discovered just days before the end of the season,” Southam continued.

“Lyra is only 1.6 kilometres north of Pegasus and will be one of the high priority drill targets in June 2024.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE

 

Sayona Mining Defines High Potential Tabba Tabba Pegmatites

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THE DRILL SERGEANT: Sayona Mining (ASX: SYA) has completed its first exploration drilling campaign at the company’s 100 per cent-owned Tabba Tabba lithium project in Western Australia.

Sayona Mining reported the drilling identified high potential pegmatite systems containing caesium and tantalum.

Based on these results, Sayona plans to conduct deeper drilling along a 7.5km prospective corridor located immediately south of the historic Tabba Tabba tantalum mine, where recent exploration by Wildcat Resources (ASX: WC8) has also identified lithium mineralisation.

An orientation ground gravity geophysical survey has commenced to identify the prospective gabbro – sediment contact for targeting, as this is an important control for lithium mineralisation within the area.

Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling is planned after the completion of the gravity survey to test existing and new gravity defined targets within fresh rock at depth.

“We are pleased with the results of the drilling program so far, which delineated a prospective lithium corridor, as we advance our wholly owned Western Australian lithium assets,” Sayona Mining director and Interim CEO James Brown said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“These encouraging drill results at Tabba Tabba identified high potential pegmatites and provide a strong basis for us to proceed to a deeper RC drilling program.

“Given the recent discoveries in neighbouring tenements, we are excited to progress the exploration for lithium mineralisation in Western Australia.

“We look forward to continuing our exploration program in both Québec, Canada and Western Australia as we expand and diversify our global lithium portfolio.”

 

TO READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: CLICK HERE