Metalicity Increases WA Zinc Footprint
Metalicity Limited (ASX: MCT) recently increased the company’s zinc presence in the northwest of Western Australia with the purchase of two under-explored projects.
Metalicity strengthened its zinc project pipeline with the acquisition of the high-grade Napier Range zinc project and the Emanuel Range zinc project.
The combination of the two projects equals the Lennard Shelf zinc project, located in the Lennard Shelf of the Kimberley Region, WA.
Metalicity views Napier Range as a low capital and near term producing zinc production opportunity, while Emanuel Range represents an early stage but highly prospective zinc exploration project with an extensive 30 kilometres strike of largely untested targets.
The company believes these projects will complement the development of its large scale long life Admiral Bay zinc project, located in the adjoining Canning Basin of the Kimberley Region.
The Admiral Bay zinc project is one of the world’s largest undeveloped zinc projects and contains an extensive mineralized corridor over an 18 kilometre strike.
Metalicity has established a JORC Code 2012-compliant Inferred Mineral Resource at Admiral Bay measuring 170 million tonnes at 7.5 per cent zinc equivalent (ZnEq) (4.1 per cent zinc, 2.7 per cent lead, 25 grams per tonne silver) at a cut-off grade of 3 per cent zinc plus lead (Zn+Pb).
This includes a higher-grade zone of 20 million tonnes at 10 per cent ZnEq at 7.7 per cent ZnEq cut-off.
“The acquisition of the Lennard Shelf zinc project provides more than one focus for the company,” Metalicity managing director Matt Gauci told The Resources Roadhouse.
“It delivers one near-term zinc producing asset and one highly prospective zinc exploration asset that will be of significance in our future development.
“The Napier Range zinc project is a potential high-grade, low-capital, near-term zinc development project that complements the pathway for our 100 per cent-owned Admiral Bay zinc project.
“We have already had positive results from field work, exploration targeting and base case financial modelling at Napier Range and we are keen to commence an aggressive exploration program to determine the project’s capacity to provide a source of cashflow for our ongoing advancement of the long-life Admiral Bay zinc project.
“At the same time, we will be seeking new discoveries at the Emanuel Range zinc project.”
The Napier Range zinc project is the most advanced of the recent acquisitions consisting of two granted mining licenses, an exploration license application and a granted general purpose license.
It comes with an already established JORC 2012 compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) at the Wagon Pass deposit, measuring 750,000 tonnes at 5.8 per cent zinc, 7.2 per cent lead, 54g/t silver (13.6% ZnEq).
It also hosts an adjoining Exploration Target Range (ETR) of 100,000 to 200,000 tonnes at 10 to 15 per cent zinc equivalent.
At Napier Range, Glencore and Teck (via Lennard Shelf Pty Ltd (a 50:50 joint venture) retain an option to earn a 51 per cent participating interest in the Wagon Pass tenements if a new JORC Inferred Resource has been discovered, by either completing and sole funding a Feasibility Study, or spending $20 million on the assessment of the inferred resources.
A report by independent geological consultant CSA Global, determined that extensions to the Wagon Pass deposit, and additional deposits, are considered likely if the project were to be systematically explored.
The report outlined nine targets, one for resource extensions to the Wagon Pass deposit and eight further targets, adding that that the area is underexplored.
Metalicity has a program of resource and exploration drilling planned for the March Quarter within the Wagon Pass deposit.
The drilling will also test along the four-kilometre strike extent at Napier Range, subject to requisite approvals and completion of the wet season.
As the Wagon Pass mineralisation is still open to the west, part of the upcoming drilling will entail two holes designed to test the N1 target area for a potential western and north-western extension of the mineralisation.
The holes are vertical and have been designed to test the Lower Napier Dunr5 and 4 units hosting most of the Wagon Pass mineralisation.
“Wagon Pass is of particular interest in that the mineralisation indicates there could be potential to extend the current resource to west of the deposit,” Gauci said.
“Although the remaining eight targets are located further south, they are sitting mostly in analogous settings to Wagon Pass.
“The CSA report noted that the drilling had occurred in the project area, but many of those drill holes did not test the favourable Lower Napier stratigraphy.”
The remaining eight targets are located further south, and along strike of the Wagon Pass deposit, mostly in analogous litho-stratigraphic settings within that favourable Lower Napier stratigraphy.
Metalicity agrees with CSA in that the area has been under-explored for additional deposits of the 0.5 to one million tonnes size.
“The targets for the upcoming program were selected based on having similarities with the existing Wagon Pass deposit in terms of interpreted stratigraphic position, overall geological setting, geophysical character, and proximity to exploration drilling and rock ship sampling results,” Gauci explained.
“The 750,000 tonnes ‘footprint’ of the existing Wagon Pass Mineral Resource guided the anticipated range in size of the targeted mineralisation, of between around 0.5 to one million tonnes per target.”
The Emmanuel Range zinc project is less advanced, but by no means any less-important.
It consists of one exploration tenement and two tenement applications near the Pillara, Kapok, Cadjebut and Goongewa Mines, in the Emmanuel Range of the Kimberley Region.
All the Emmanuel Range tenements cover the prospective stratigraphy and structural positions, in very close proximity to existing deposits or mines.
For example, E04/2453 is located less than two kilometres from the Pillara deposit, the largest Lennard Shelf lead-zinc discovery.
Funding for the upcoming drilling has been secured through a recently completed private placement to Australian and international institutional and sophisticated investors.
The placement was co-lead by Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. and Paradigm Capital Inc to raise $2.61 million via the issue of 58.25 million shares at 4.5 cents per share, with a 1 for 2 free attaching option exercisable at eight cents with a five-year term.
Besides being used to undertake resource and exploration drilling at the Napier Range project, the cash will also be put towards progressing Pre-Feasibility Studies (PFS) at the Admiral Bay project.
It will also be of assistance as the company undertakes due diligence and evaluation of a dual listing on the TSX Venture Exchange.
“The placement resulted in a number of key North American institutional funds joining our register, which is encouraging as we complete due diligence and evaluation of a TSX Venture Exchange listing,” Gauci said.
“It also allows us to concentrate on drilling and feasibility studies on our 100 per cent-owned Napier Range and Admiral Bay projects, while considering a spin out of our cobalt and lithium projects.”
Metalicity Limited (ASX: MCT)
…The Short Story
HEAD OFFICE
6 Outram Street
West Perth WA 6005
Ph: + 61 8 9324 1053
Email: info@metalicity.com.au
Website: www.metalicity.com.au
DIRECTORS
Andrew Daley, Matthew Gauci, Chris Bain, Mathew Longworth
