Breakaway to start new exploration at Eloise

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Breakaway Resources is about to embark on a new phase of exploration activities at its 100 per cent-owned Eloise exploration project in North Queensland.

The new raft of exploration activity will concentrate on the Sandy Creek copper-gold discovery and new target areas immediately along strike from the operating Eloise copper mine.

The program will comprise approximately 2,000 metres of Reverse Circulation drilling and a review of historic exploration data to define additional drill targets.

 

Eloise Exploration project location plan. Source: Company announcement

The upcoming drilling is designed to test a strong down-hole EM conductor the company considers represents a potential high-grade plunging shoot or core within the Sandy Creek Main Zone of mineralisation.

The conductor extends down-plunge from existing drill hole intercepts.

The upcoming drilling will also test the size and potential of the newly-discovered Western Zone, located approximately 100m west of the Main Zone.

Breakaway said the Western Zone could potentially be a second significant zone of potentially open-pitable near-surface mineralisation at Sandy Creek.

The company has completed a preliminary scoping review of the prospect, which it said suggests confirmation of a high-grade core within the mineralisation has the potential to significantly enhance the economics of any future mine development.

Breakaway is hopeful the delineation of additional mineralisation at the Western Zone will also enhance the economics of a future mining operation.

“Sandy Creek represents the most immediate opportunity for the company, and the next round of drilling is designed to demonstrate the prospect’s economic potential,” Breakaway Resources managing director David
Hutton said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Importantly, we will also test some very exciting targets which represent potential strike extensions of the structures and rock types that host the mineralisation at the Eloise Copper Mine.

“Drilling will commence in late April, and we feel confident that this should generate a period of significant activity and news flow for Breakaway shareholders.”

Reed increases Meekatharra Resource

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Emerging ASX-listed gold producer Reed Resources has added an additional 283,000 ounces of gold in Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource to its Meekatharra gold project.

The additional ounces represent an 8.5 per cent increase in total gold resources at Meekatharra that now stand at 3.59 million ounces.

Reed said its geological team is continuing to evaluate the numerous brownfield and greenfield targets at the Meekatharra project.

The company is hopeful this will result in further enhancement of both its Resources and Reserves in order to extend the life of the project.

The latest exploration activity program at Meekatharra has identified maiden resources at the Magazine-Grants trend and Five Mile Well deposits along with a further resource at Boomerang Deeps.

Location of Resources along the Magazine – Grants trend. Source: Company announcement

Reed said the new Resources will now be optimised ahead of detailed design and reserve estimation.

The company said it anticipates releasing an updated reserve estimate in the June Quarter 2012.

“This latest announcement further highlights the massive potential the Meekatharra group of tenements offer,” Reed Resources managing director Christopher Reed said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“We have an ongoing program to fully evaluate prospective areas of our tenement holding and are confident of further increases to the resource endowment in the coming months.”

Reed said the continued increases to the resource base at the Meekathara gold project have reinforced its recent decision to mine at Meekathara, which it based on the robust economic viability of the project.

The operation remains on target to start production in the December quarter and the company believes each new resource provides it with future production opportunities.

Carpentaria jumps to head of Port Pirie queue

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Carpentaria Exploration has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Flinders Ports.

Carpentaria said the deal provides a potential long-term handling, storage and loading solution for iron ore exports via Port Pirie.

The MOU allows for the establishment of a common user facility at the South Australian port, capable of exporting 20 million tonnes per annum of iron ore via a barge-style operation.

Commenting on the agreement Carpentaria Exploration executive chairman Nick Sheard said the agreement put the company’s Hawsons iron project (CAP 60% interest) at the front of the queue of other similar proposed iron ore projects in Australia, boosting the viability of the $3.2 billion project.

 

Location of the Hawsons project. Source: Company announcement

 

“This MOU opens the door to Carpentaria’s Braemar Iron Formation operations, including our flagship Hawsons iron project,” Sheard said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“The initiative by Flinders Ports provides the opportunity to export Hawsons’ expected initial output of 5 million tonnes per annum direct to Cape-class vessels of up to 180,000 tonnes capacity, giving Carpentaria the opportunity to ramp up production more rapidly than previously forecast.”

Sheard said the MOU would allow for a more rapid development of Hawsons as well as improving the project’s feasibility.

A large export facility at Port Pirie, serviced by the existing rail line, would also afford the company export opportunities at start-up as well as providing options for increased tonnages.

“Not having access to an existing port is a major impediment that other potential iron producers are currently facing in Australia,” Sheard said.

“This certainly puts Hawsons ahead of the pack.”

Flinders Ports chief executive officer Vincent Tremaine said the MOU was a great opportunity to expand the role of Port Pirie and to consolidate its future as a major export centre.

“Carpentaria’s projects have the potential to generate significant iron ore exports, and we are determined to ensure this wealth benefits the local region,” Tremaine said in the Carpentaria release.

“We are excited by the potential in this agreement, and welcome Carpentaria’s commitment at this stage to using the facilities of South Australia’s second-largest port.”

Carpentaria has previously announced a positive pre-feasibility study for Hawsons, which highlighted the benefits for the company of established infrastructure being only 60 kilometres south-west of the mining community of Broken Hill and 40 km from the east-west railway line.
 
The PFS also indicated potential for a highly profitable mine producing up to 20mtpa of high grade iron concentrate, with a three-year, 5mtpa start-up option.

Hawsons has an Inferred Magnetite Resource of 1.4 billion tonnes at a Davis Tube Recovery (DTR) of 15.5 per cent iron (12 per cent cut-off) and an Exploration Target of 6-11Bt at 14 to 17 per cent DTR, including up to 1.9Bt of high-grade magnetite concentrate.

Sundance and Equatorial sign MOU

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: ASX-listed Africa-focused iron ore chums, Sundance Resources and Equatorial Resources have signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

The MOU will examine how Equatorial may gain access to the rail and port infrastructure associated with Sundance’s Mbalam/Nabeba iron ore project in West Africa.

 

Proximity of Sundance Resources’ Mbalam/Nabeba project to the Badondo
project as well as to other neighbouring prospects along the proposed
rail corridor. Source: Sundance Company announcement

The MoU also covers other opportunities for regional co‐operation between the two Australian‐based companies.

Equatorial owns the Badondo iron project in the north‐west of the Republic of Congo.

Badondo is located approximately 90 kilometres south‐west of Sundance’s Nabeba deposit and its proposed rail infrastructure.

Equatorial has much confidence in the Badondo project and has set it a global exploration target of between 1.3 and 2.2 billion tonnes of iron mineralisation.

Sundance said as part of the MoU, it will advance discussions with Equatorial regarding the potential for access to the Mbalam infrastructure.

This could be via direct investment or by a haulage services agreement.

The MoU with Equatorial follows Sundance’s recent announcement of the finalisation of a MoU with Core Mining, which owns the Avima project, which is located 65km west of the Nabeba deposit.

Sundance currently plans to transport ore from the Mbalam/Nabeba project deposits in the Republic of Congo and Cameroon via a dedicated rail line to a custom‐built iron ore export terminal at the Port of Lolabe in Cameroon, both of which are proposed to be constructed by Sundance.

“Sundance is leading the development of a world‐class iron ore region and our first mover advantage with having our DFS complete and project funding on the table from Hanlong and CDB demonstrates that we are ready to start unlocking the potential of this area,” Sundance Resources chairman George jones said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“We strongly believe that regional cooperation by way of infrastructure sharing is a logical and pragmatic approach to fast tracking development for the benefit of everyone involved, including the Governments and people of these countries.

“Sundance has now formalised discussions on this issue with three neighbouring project operators, Legend Mining in Cameroon and Core Mining and Equatorial Resources in the Republic of Congo, and we are in talks with others.

“These discussions highlight the growing number of options coming onto the table in respect to project development scenarios and the funding and use of related infrastructure that Sundance is planning to build in the foreseeable future.”

Venture doubles Mt Lindsay Resource

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Venture Minerals has announced a maiden resource statement for the recently discovered Riley Creek direct shipping ore (DSO) deposit at the company’s Mt Lindsay project in Tasmania.

The new resource has resulted in Venture doubling the overall DSO resource base at Mt Lindsay to 4.4 million tonnes at 57 per cent iron.

 

Project locations. Source: Company announcement

Venture fast-tracked the Riley Creek DSO project since it made the discovery in November last year.

Four months later the company has delivered a maiden resource, which it claims has the potential to generate substantial early cashflow over and above the revenue opportunities provided by it already defined Livingstone DSO deposit.

“The Venture team has delivered an excellent result which has the potential to generate substantial revenue in the very near future,” Venture Minerals managing director Hamish Halliday said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“I have been impressed with the speed with which we have delivered this exciting new opportunity, particularly considering we only had the tenement granted in June 2011.

“Additionally, shareholders need to bear in mind that the run of successes the company has experienced with its DSO projects is over and above Ventures flagship tin/tungsten deposit, where the company is nearing completion of a Bankable Feasibility Study on one of the world’s largest undeveloped tin projects.”

Venture completed a maiden resource and scoping study at the Livingstone DSO deposit last year.

The company said the addition of the new Riley Creek deposit has substantially strengthened its DSO resource base.

Riley Creek is close to existing infrastructure and the resource is at surface indicating the deposit will have a very low strip ratio.

Venture said these characteristics combine with the company having already identified a total transport solution for its DSO to suggest the company is in a good position to deliver substantial early cashflow.

Trafford strikes again at Death Adder

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Trafford Resources has compiled new data from recent field reconnaissance carried out on the Death Adder IOCG target located in the north of the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.

Trafford has claimed to have discovered an outcropping, massive, hematite rich breccia it considers to most likely be of hydrothermal origin.

The outcrop was discovered near a small prospecting pit situated 1.1 kilometre to the east of the main 10.5km long Death Adder gravity anomaly.

 

Death Adder IOCG target showing magnetics and gravity and position of
Olympic Hill prospect. Inset shows details of Olympic Hill with results
from recent sampling. Source: Company announcement

Trafford said the outcrop is associated with a separate, shallow gravity anomaly and has named it the Olympic Hill prospect.

Assays from the outcrop returned:

–    1.44 grams per tonne gold, 12.5 grams per tonne silver and 41 per cent iron.

“Gravity modelling in the Olympic Hill area suggests that the source of the gravity high is closer to the surface than the main Death Adder anomaly to the west,” Trafford Resources said in its ASX announcement.

“The anomalous silver and gold returned from outcrop samples further supports a shallow source.”

The latest results follow on from the company’s recent announcement of the Death Adder IOCG target where it indicated coincident gravity and chargeability highs as well as anomalous copper in soils in proximity to a magnetic feature have defined an exciting new exploration target.

Hydrothermally altered hematite breccias are known to be associated with all known IOCG deposits in South Australia such as Olympic Dam, Prominent Hill, Carapateena etcetera,” Trafford said.

The company considers the discovery of such an outcrop in the same area as the Death Adder target to be significant.

As a result Trafford will now include the Olympic Hill target as part of a larger scale drill program it anticipates will begin as soon as it is able to source suitable drill rig.

MacPhersons releases Nimbus JORC maiden

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: MacPhersons Resources has released the maiden JORC-compliant mineral resource statement at the company’s 100 per cent-owned Nimbus silver-zinc project.

The Nimbus project is located eight kilometres east of Kalgoorlie’s SuperPit gold mine.

 

Nimbus tenement location plan, 8km east of the Kalgoorlie SuperPit. Source: Company announcement

 

The maiden Inferred Resource includes:

–    2,130,000 tonnes at 125 grams per tonne silver for 8,555,400 ounces silver; and

–    2,130,000 tonnes at 1.32 per cent zinc for 28,100 tonnes zinc.

MacPhersons said the maiden resource statement relates only to the Nimbus discovery and East deposits.

It does not include any other silver-zinc deposits occurring across the company’s tenements.

The statement also excludes the assessment of gold, lead, copper and other metals in the resource blocks.

Silver and other metals in the tailings and stockpiles currently under assessment have not been included either.

“The Directors are pleased with the maiden resource of 8.6 million ounces of silver and 28,000 tonnes of zinc, and the potential for resource growth from the various additional unclassified mineralisation zones currently being drilled,” MacPhersons Resources said in its ASX announcement.

MacPhersons said the resource blocks start immediately from outcropping mineralisation and have been modelled to only 260m below surface.

This is despite the mineralisation remaining open at depth and having been intersected at deeper than 300m.

At 125g/t silver, MacPhersons said the resource is considered high-grade, however the company also pointed out the existence of further zones of much higher grade.

“A number of historical and current 2011-2012 diamond drillholes have intersections exceeding 2000 grams per tonne silver; however a top cut of 2000 grams per tonne was applied to the primary mineralisation,” the company said.

MacPhersons recently acquired approximately 125 square kilometres of tenements at Kalgoorlie, making the company one of the largest tenement holdings, after the Barrick – Newmont Joint Venture (KCGM), within 10km of Kalgoorlie.

Finders inks takeoff agreement with Standard Bank

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Finders Resources has signed an off‐take agreement with Standard Bank for up to 60 per cent of all copper cathode produced from the company’s Wetar copper project in Indonesia.

Standard Bank will subscribe for US$5.5 million of equity in Finders in exchange for the right to buy up to 40 per cent of the Wetar copper off‐take.

Finders said it will use the funds as part of the Wetar copper project financing of near‐term capital expenditure requirements.

Standard Bank’s equity investment will be in the form of a mandatory convertible note, which will convert into ordinary shares in Finders at the end of six years.

However, if it feels it would like to do so, Standard Bank may elect to convert into ordinary shares in Finders prior to that date.

The conversion price for the first tranche is 42.7 cents per share.

Standard Bank will pay prevailing market prices for the copper cathode produced at the Wetar copper project for the life of the mine.

Subject to certain conditions, Standard Bank has also committed to subscribe for a further tranche of US$5.5 million of equity on the same terms as other investors in an equity raising to be launched to fund the construction of the Wetar copper project.

This will result in Standard Bank securing rights to a further 20 per cent of the Wetar copper off‐take.

The off‐take agreement follows a commitment by Standard Bank to participate in the US$138 million project finance facilities for the Wetar copper project.

“Standard Bank is a respected international bank and is experienced in funding resource projects around the world,” Finders Resources managing director Chris Farmer said in the company’s announceemt to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“They have made a significant long term commitment to Finders through both debt and equity funding, after extensive due diligence and review.

“I am delighted to further entrench the partnership between Finders and Standard Bank and look forward to working closely with them over the long term.”

Tennant Metals has been previously appointed marketing agent for 40 per cent of the Wetar copper off‐take.

The appointment of Standard Bank means Finders has now secured partners in relation to 100 per cent of its Wetar copper off‐take.

Spitfire serves Woodie Woodie maiden

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Spitfire Resources has announced a maiden Inferred JORC resource for the Contact and Contact North deposits at the company’s South Woodie Woodie manganese project in the East Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The 11.3 million tonnes at 15 per cent manganese combined initial Inferred Resource is the result of drilling conducted by Spitfire during 2010 and 2011.

 

Contact & Contact North combined deposit summary at 10.1 per cent manganese cut-off. Source: Company announcement

 

The company’s initial campaign in 2010 included 54 RC holes drilled on the Contact area, while the 234 RC hole 2011 campaign covered infill and definition of Contact as well as the Contact North deposit.

Spitfire said it is confident further drilling could add extra tonnes to the Contact North deposit , where it has read geological interpretations to suggest there is potential for high-grade mineralisation beneath the deposit’s current definition.

“This is just stage one of our manganese inventory build-out at South Woodie Woodie,” Spitfire Resources managing director John MacKenzie said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Geologically the region is proven via the Woodie Woodie mining operation to be one the world’s most prospective for the production of quality manganese ore.

“Spitfire’s initial JORC Inferred Resource and highly encouraging metallurgical test results from the Contact and Contact North deposits, re-affirms the enormous potential of the South Woodie Woodie project.”

Spitfire believes both the Contact and Contact North deposits have demonstrated ability to upgrade to 40 per cent manganese grade through a basic beneficiation process.

The company announced Contact North lump upgrading to a best grade of 46.1 per cent manganese in February 2012.

The recent success at Contact and Contact North has encouraged the company to believe the South Woodie Woodie geological setting holds significant potential for multiple additional deposits.

Spitfire is set to commence a large-scale Gradient Array IP (GAIP) survey program this month.

The new GAIP program will cover more than 100 square kilometres of prospective ground and will focus on areas adjacent and north of the Contact deposits.

To date Spitfire has only GAIP surveyed 29sqkm’s of the South Woodie Woodie project which covers more than 2,200sqkm’s.

Spitfire will wait on the results of the GAIP survey before proceeding with a further 10,000m to 15,000m of exploration drilling.

Spitfire has increased its resource target range to 20 to 30 million tonnes grading 15-20 per cent manganese.

Elementos continues to drive Mercedes

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THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Elementos Limited continues to receive god news from its Mercedes project in northern Chile.

The company has announced further results from an on-going mapping and geochemical sampling program at the project.

Twenty-one rock-chip samples of exposed mineralisation in outcrop and artisanal mine workings in the Ignacia and Mecha prospects situated within the Mercedes project, have returned high-grade copper values with anomalous silver and molybdenum.

 

Distribution of copper sample results across the project area. Source: Company announcement

 

Highlights of the rock chipping program include:

– One kilometre long mineralised trends in the Mecha and Ignacia prospects;

– Initial sampling at Ignacia assaying up to 3.5 per cent copper, 22 grams per tonne silver and 9 grams per tonne molybdenum, with ten out of eleven samples over 1 per cent copper; and

– New sampling at Mecha assaying up to 2.7 per cent copper, 35 g/t silver, with eight out of ten samples over 1 per cent copper.

Elementos said it has also identified three distinct styles of copper oxide mineralisation at the Ignacia and Mecha prospects.

“The consistently high copper values, variety of mineralisation and widespread distribution all reinforce the potential to identify significant volumes of near-surface copper oxide mineralisation across the project,” Elementos Limited said in its ASX announcement.

“The mapping and sampling programs are continuing over the near-surface high-grade targets, as well as the deeper porphyry prospects, to aid in the generation of drill targets.”

The company is now waiting to receive results from a recently completed airborne magnetometry survey.

Elementos also has ground surveys planned, which it anticipates should provide a rapid indication of the size and extension of the structures and mineralised bodies, as well as enabling it to developing geological models for drill testing.