St George Mining Reports Brazilian Niobium-REE MRE

THE DRILL SERGEANT: St George Mining (ASX: SGQ) announced a maiden JORC 2012-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE for) the company’s 100 per cent-owned Araxá project in Brazil.

St George Mining’s Araxá project contains a substantive niobium and REE deposit located in what the company described as “the world’s premier niobium-producing region”.

Niobium
Total resource: 41.2 million tonnes at 0.68 per cent niobium

Rare Earths
Total resource: 40.6 million tonnes at 4.13 per cent total rare earth oxides (TREO)

St George explained that 100 per cent of the resource is constrained within the weathered profile at the Araxá project and 95.8 per cent of it is within 100m from surface.

The mineralisation is free digging, supporting potential for low-cost open-pit mining.

“The announcement of the initial JORC resource for the Araxá project firmly establishes St George as a significant player in the global niobium and rare earths sector,” St George Mining executive chairman John Prineas said in the company’s ASX announcement.

“Drilling at our project has intersected phenomenal grades exceeding 80,000ppm niobium oxide – or eight per cent Nb2O5 (niobium) – and around 330,000ppm or 33 per cent total rare earth oxide.

“It is no wonder that with these drill results the resource estimate now defined at the project also represents among the highest grade niobium and rare earth deposits in the world today.

“Notably, mineralisation remains open in all directions and at depth, presenting significant upside potential for resource expansion.

“The delivery of the JORC MRE marks a further significant de-risking milestone for the project by providing a strong foundation for permitting, mine planning and economic assessments and ensuring our Araxá project remains at the front of the next generation of potential niobium mining operations.”