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Manuka Resources Limited (“Manuka” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce it has received firm commitments from institutional and other exempt investors for up to $8 million worth of new Manuka shares (each, a New Share) via a Share Placement (“Placement”) to commence bringing the Mt Boppy Gold Mine into production within 2024.
Highlights
- Firm commitments received for $8 million to be applied towards bringing the Mt Boppy Gold Mine into production.
- Mt Boppy has an initial 5-year Mine Plan generating a forecast EBITDA of up to approximately $19 million per annum1.
- The $8 million raised will allow for the establishment of an on-site processing facility to recover gold from oxidised ore. The balance of capital required for a flotation circuit for processing of sulphide ore is to be funded from project cash flows.
- Manuka tenements in the region, including the Mt Boppy mining licenses, hold significant exploration upside. Once in production at Mt Boppy, the Company intends to aggressively explore with the aim of increasing annual gold production and extending the life of mine.
- Cash flows from Mt Boppy will support the potential restart of the Wonawinta Silver Mine, located 150km south of Mt Boppy, as a dedicated silver operation in 2025.
- The Company is targeting the release of an updated Reserve Statement for the Wonawinta Silver Mine in the current June quarter.
The Company is pursuing a staged growth strategy that is initially focused on gold and silver production and free cash flow generation from its assets in the Cobar Basin.
The Company has recently completed a sonic drilling program to firm up confidence in the Mt Boppy Resource2 and developed an initial 5-year Mine Plan that is forecast to generate an average $19 million EBITDA per annum3. The capital raising will fund the establishment and ramp up of a fit-for-purpose gold processing facility on-site at the My Boppy Gold Mine with first doré production scheduled for Q4 2024. Previously, ore mined at Mt Boppy had been transported, to and processed at, the Wonawinta Silver Mine located 150km south of Mt Boppy.
Dennis Karp, Manuka’s Executive Chairman, commented:
“We are delighted to announce this significant capital raising for the Company and look forward to launching immediately into the execution of our strategy to establish on-site processing capacity at Mt Boppy and potentially commencing gold doré production later this year.
Bringing a new processing plant at Mt Boppy online represents Stage 1 of the Company’s staged self-sustaining growth plan, that is focused initially on production and free cash generation from our Cobar Basin gold and silver projects, and subsequently development of our world-class VTM Sands Project in New Zealand.
With firm commitments toward this capital raising received and continued strength in the gold and silver markets, it is an exciting time to be a Manuka shareholder.”
Following the ramp-up of the Mt Boppy Gold Mine, the Company will look to recommence silver production at Wonawinta in 2025 with the support of cash flow generated from Mt Boppy. Previously Australia’s largest primary silver producer, the Wonawinta Silver Mine comprises an existing mine and process plant and a Resource of 38.3Mt at 41.3g/t Ag for 51Moz4 including a higher-grade component of 4.5Mt at 97 g/t Ag for 14Moz.
Wonawinta, which as recently as December 2023 was used to process ore from Mt Boppy, is currently on care and maintenance. The Company is targeting the release of an updated Reserve Statement for the Wonawinta Silver Mine in the current quarter.
Use of Placement Proceeds
The proceeds of the Placement are proposed to be used as follows:
Table 1: Use of Placement Proceeds
Placement Details
The Placement comprises the issue of approximately 133.3 million New Shares which will rank equally with the Company’s existing ordinary shares. The Placement price of $0.06 per share represents:
- a 13.0% discount to the closing price of the Company’s shares on 6 May 2024; and
- a 18.1% discount to the 5-day volume weighted average price (“VWAP”);
Each New Share issued under the Placement will come with one free accompanying option exercisable into an ordinary share in the Company at a strike price of $0.06 per share and an expiry date of 15 May 2026 (each, an “Option”). The Options are being issued for nil additional cash consideration. It is the intention for the Options to be quoted on ASX, subject to the receipt of shareholder approval, the satisfaction of all applicable ASX requirements and following the preparation and issuance of a transaction-specific prospectus.
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This article includes content from Manuka Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
MKR:AU
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Manuka Resources Limited
Overview
Manuka Resources Limited (ASX:MKR) is an ASX-listed mining company focused on gold and silver-gold projects in the Cobar Basin, one of Australia’s most prolific producers of base and precious metals. The company has 100 percent ownership of two fully permitted precious metals projects in the Cobar Basin - the Mt Boppy gold mine and Wonawinta silver project. In addition, MKR owns the Taranaki VTM iron sands project in New Zealand.
The company revealed a phased strategy focused on delivering maximum value to its shareholders. The first phase focuses on bringing back the Mt Boppy gold mine into production, and has released an optimised production plan for the mine restart. The second phase will involve restarting mining and production at the Wonawinta silver mine, while the third phase will see the development of the Taranaki vanadium titano-magnetite (VTM) project.
The Mt Boppy gold mine was historically one of the richest in NSW, Australia and produced ~500,000oz gold at an average grade of 15 grams per ton (g/t) gold. Accordingly, the company is very excited about its exploration potential.
The current focus is on establishing a processing plant at Mt Boppy and recommence on-site gold production from Q1 2025. The ore from the Mt Boppy mine was previously being processed at the 850,000 to 1 million tpa processing plant at Wonawinta, located nearly 150 kilometres south-west of Mt Boppy. This is about to change as MKR has determined that it could save significantly on transportation costs as well as production efficiencies by building an on-site processing plant at Mt Boppy, which will materially enhance the project economics.
MKR estimates the total cost of building the processing plant to be between AU$10 million and AU$15 million. Compared to this, the annual cost of hauling ore from Mt Boppy to Wonawinta is AU$6 million to AU$7 million (nearly 50 percent of the total capex). MKR anticipates Mt Boppy to deliver total EBITDA of >AU$90 million and cash flow of >AU$80 million over a five-year mine life. It is important to note that the current market capitalization of MKR is just AU$55.1 million, much lower than the anticipated five-year EBITDA and cash flow.
The initial five-year mine plan is largely focused on the screening and processing of gold-bearing waste material above ground on the Mt Boppy mine site. The company has been processing these wastes from June 2023 to December 2023 at its Wonawinta plant and now wants to optimize the process.
The cash flows from the Mt Boppy mine will be used to fund the restart of the Wonawinta silver mine, which is currently under care and maintenance. Wonawinta contains total resources of 38.8 million tons (Mt) at 42 g/t silver for 52.4 million ounces (Moz). Within this, there is a higher-grade component of 4.5 Mt at 97 g/t silver for 14 Moz. Manuka Resources is targeting a mineral resource update for Wonawinta in Q2 2024. The Wonawinta silver project will be the largest primary silver producer in Australia and expected to be back in silver production within 12 months.
The gold and silver market appears to be in an upward trend, with prices for both precious metals hitting their all-time high in 2024, which bodes very positively for MKR.
Company Highlights
- Manuka Resources is an ASX-listed mining company focused on exploring and developing gold and silver assets in the Cobar Basin in New South Wales, Australia.
- The company’s two principal assets – the Mt Boppy Gold Mine and the Wonawinta Silver Mine – are both located in the prolific Cobar Basin. In addition, MKR holds a 100 percent interest in the Taranaki VTM iron sands project, located in New Zealand.
- The primary focus is on bringing the fully permitted Mt Boppy mine back into production by Q1 2025. The company will establish an on-site processing plant at Mt Boppy and in turn free up the Wonawinta processing plant for silver production from the Wonawinta silver mine, which was being used to process Mt Boppy ore.
- The results of the recently completed sonic drill program coupled with an updated mineral resources estimate at Mt Boppy (100 percent increase in indicated gold ounces) improve confidence in the recommencement of gold dore production at Mt Boppy.
- A dedicated processing facility at Mt Boppy will improve the project economics and also allow for an additional revenue stream by freeing up the Wonawinta processing plant to process ore from the Wonawinta silver mine (placed on care and maintenance in February 2024).
- The cash flows from the Mt Boppy mine will be used to fund the planned restart of the Wonawinta silver mine.
- Elevated gold and silver prices should substantially benefit Manuka Resources, resulting in improved profitability and cash flows as it brings both its gold and silver projects into production.
Key Projects
Mt Boppy Gold Project
The Mt Boppy gold project comprises three mining leases, four gold leases and one exploration license, spanning an area of more than 210 sq km in the prolific Cobar Basin in New South Wales, Australia. The project was acquired by Manuka in 2019 and has a current mineral resource of 4.3 Mt at 1.19 g/t gold. This includes a combination of oxidized and transitional/fresh mineralization in the ground, as well as mineralized rock dumps and tailings.
Historically, Manuka Resources has processed its stockpiles and gold mineralized waste products through its Wonawinta processing plant. However, inefficiencies associated with trucking and processing ore at the distant Wonawinta plant has led the company to revise its strategy. It is now looking to construct a processing plant at Mt Boppy so that ore from the mine can be processed on-site. Mt Boppy has excellent infrastructure including a 48-person mine camp and is fully permitted for the proposed processing plant and on-site production.
As a precursor to the commencement of on-site production, Manuka Resources undertook a sonic drilling program at Mt Boppy to improve confidence in the mineral resource base. A 26-borehole, 506-meter sonic drilling evaluation program over the Mt Boppy rock dumps and dry tailings was completed in December 2023. The program led to a 100 percent increase in indicated resources compared to the previous estimate.
The updated mineral resource comprises 4.28 Mt at 1.19 g/t gold for 163 koz of contained gold, of which 82 percent is in the measured and indicated categories. A further high-grade subset of the resource (including open pit, rock dumps and tailings) comprising 1.8 Mt at 1.74 g/t containing 102 koz gold has been identified as a basis for future mine planning.
Following the results of the sonic drill program, MKR determined to establish a 200,000 tpa processing plant at Mt Boppy. The company estimates a five-year mine life and a total gold dore production of >48,000 oz over the initial mine life. The mine plan is fairly low in capex requirements with a total planned capital cost of AU$10 million to AU$15 million. Notably, the annual cost of ore haulage from Mt Boppy to Wonawinta plant is AU$6 million to AU$7 million. Thus, the on-site plant will offer significant cost savings and improve the project economics.
Manuka Resources anticipates Mt Boppy to deliver total EBITDA of >AU$90 million and cash flow of >AU$80 million over a five-year mine life.
Wonawinta Silver Mine Project
The Wonawinta silver mine project comprises one mining lease and seven exploration licenses spanning a total area of 920 sq. km. The Wonawinta project hosts a resource of 38.8 Mt @ 42.0 g/t silver, equating to 52.4 Moz contained silver. Within this there is a higher-grade component of 4.5 Mt at 97 g/t silver for 14 Moz silver.
The Wonawinta plant
The Wonawinta project is fully permitted with all the necessary infrastructure, including an 850,000 to 1 million tpa processing plant. The plant has been used for processing ore from Mt Boppy. The Wonawinta silver mine is currently under care and maintenance. The company is considering the possibility of resuming operations at Wonawinta, leveraging the improved silver price environment. Manuka is targeting a mineral resource update for Wonawinta by October 2024 and production in 2025.
Taranaki VTM Project
The Taranaki VTM project is located within New Zealand's exclusive economic zone, approximately 22 to 36 kilometres offshore, outside the 12 nautical mile boundary from the coastline. The project boasts a JORC resource of 3.2 billion tons at 10.17 percent iron oxide, 1.03 percent titanium dioxide and 0.05 percent vanadium oxide. It holds a mining license allowing initial extraction of 50 million tons annually, resulting in 5 million tons of VTM concentrate per year for 20 years (concentrate grade of 56 to 57 percent iron, 8.5 percent titanium dioxide and 0.5 percent vanadium pentoxide). At this extraction rate, the JORC resource provides approximately 60 years of potential mining inventory.
The project is anticipated to sit in the lowest quartile of the iron ore production cost curve. The next step for Manuka is to complete a bankable feasibility study on the project.
Management Team
Dennis Karp – Executive Chairman
Dennis Karp is a former commodities trader with nearly four decades of corporate experience. He started his career in 1983 and worked in HSBC until 1997 before moving to Tennant, one of Australia’s largest physical commodities trading companies with operations in Asia and Europe. He was a principal shareholder of Tennant Metals until 2010 and a managing director until December 2014. He founded ResCap in December 2014. Since then, he has participated in diverse resource projects and investment opportunities across base metals and bulk commodities. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Cape Town.
Alan Eggers – Executive Director
Alan Eggers has over 40 years of experience in the mining sector. He is a geologist and was the founder of Summit Resources, which became an ASX top 200 company and was acquired by Paladin Energy in 2007 for AU$1.2 billion. Throughout his career, he has held director positions at numerous companies. He holds a Bachelor of Science, Honours, and Master of Science degrees from Victoria University of Wellington. He is recognized as a fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists and holds memberships in AusIMM and the Australian Institute of Geoscientists.
Anthony McPaul – Non-executive Director
Anthony McPaul possesses over 40 years of expertise in mining and mineral processing. He has overseen a diverse array of operational projects, spanning from base to precious metals, in both surface and underground mining operations. He has directly managed all facets of production and scheduling. He served in senior leadership roles at various companies, including CRA, Denehurst, MIM and, more recently, Newcrest. McPaul is currently the chairman of the NSW Minerals Council Board and Executive Committee, and he is also a member of the newly established Mineral Industry Advisory Council.
John Seton – Non-executive Director
John Seton is a lawyer with extensive experience in the mineral resources sector. He has served as director in several ASX and NZX listed companies. He holds a Bachelor of Laws from Victoria University, Wellington, and a Master of Law (Honours) from the University of Auckland and is a chartered fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Directors.
Haydn Lynch – Chief Operating Officer
Haydn Lynch has over 25 years of experience in M&A, capital markets and private equity. He has been involved in executing several domestic and cross-border transactions in various sectors including metals and mining, and industrials. He has held leadership roles in global investment banks, including Bankers Trust Australia, Investec Bank, RBC Capital Markets and Southern Cross Equities. He has undergraduate degrees in mechanical engineering and economics from the University of Queensland and a Master in Commerce from the University of New South Wales.
Rod Griffith – Mining and Technical Consultant
Rod Griffith has over 30 years of experience in the mining industry, both in Australia and internationally, working in senior management roles, including as chief operating officer and general manager. He has significant Central Western NSW experience with KBL Mining, Silver City Minerals, Girilambone Copper and Cobalt Blue, across a number of commodity groups and mining styles. He earned a Bachelor of Civil Engineering and Surveying from the University of Newcastle, along with a postgraduate diploma in mining engineering from the University of Ballarat.
Phil Bentley – Chief Geologist
Phil Bentley has over 40 years of experience in the mining industry across New Zealand, South Africa, and Australia, holding senior geological roles as well as senior management and director positions. He has worked as a Chief Geologist at Randgold Resources and Randgold & Exploration, Global Head of Exploration at Trafigura Mining Services, and Principal Geologist Africa at CSA Global South Africa. He is a Qualified person under NI 43-101 (Canadia) and JORC (Australia) and is a Fellow of the South African Geological Society. He holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Geology at Victoria University of Wellington. He also has a Masters of Science in Economic Geology at Victoria University of Wellington and a Master’s of Science in Mineral Exploration from Rhodes University, Grahamstown South Africa.
Prospect Ridge Resources
Investor Insight
Prospect Ridge Resources' compelling investment value proposition stems from the company's robust growth ambitions driven by its highly prospective assets near the renowned Golden Triangle region, and a management team with substantial technical expertise.
Overview
Prospect Ridge (CSE:PRR,OTC:PRRSF,FRA:OED) is a precious metals exploration company focused on key projects in Northern British Columbia near the prolific Golden Triangle. The Golden Triangle in northwest British Columbia has been a hub for mineral exploration and mining endeavors for over 150 years. The company owns 100 percent of both the Knauss Creek property and the Holy Grail property.
The Knauss Creek property resembles the high-grade mineralization found in the historical Dorreen mine. Exploration at Knaus Creek has revealed high-grade mineralization comprising gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. The Copper Ridge zone, which is in the southern part of the Knauss Creek property, is particularly interesting. In 2023, a total of 241 samples were collected from this area which extended the Copper Ridge mineralized zones over an east-west strike length of 1,550 meters, a north-south strike of 850 meters, and a height difference of 470 meters.
Prospect Ridge Resources has also completed an inaugural drilling program at the Copper Ridge zone to test high-priority targets covering an area of 1,550 metres by 850 metres.
The other property, Holy Grail, has also historically produced high-grade gold and silver from placer mining. Prospecting results at the Holy Grail property showed exceptional promise, uncovering significant discoveries of gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc.
Prospect Ridge benefits from a team of professionals boasting extensive expertise in geology and mining. The company is led by Micheal Iverson, CEO, who has more than three decades of experience in mining exploration. The management team has a proven track record of executing several successful exploration and development projects, including Fortuna Silver Mines and NioGold Mining’s Marban project.
Company Highlights
- Prospect Ridge is a Canada-based exploration and development company with two highly prospective land packages in British Columbia.
- The company’s two key assets are the Knauss Creek property and the Holy Grail property, located near the renowned Golden Triangle region in northwestern British Columbia. The Golden Triangle has historically been known for abundant precious and base metal discoveries, with numerous active mining projects and ongoing resource exploration.
- The flagship Knauss Creek property has revealed high-grade surface samples up to 78.9 g/t gold, 4,740 g/t silver, 29.4 percent copper, 33.33 percent lead and 4.10 percent zinc. The Copper Ridge zone is particularly interesting, where a 1.5-km strike zone containing high-grade gold-silver-copper trends were discovered.
- The company has completed an inaugural drilling program to test the drill-ready target Copper Ridge zone as well as other targets.
- Prospecting results from the Holy Grail property are exceptionally promising. They reveal noteworthy discoveries of gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc.
- Prospect Ridge is led by a proven team of executives with more than 100 years of combined experience leading several successful exploration and development projects, including Fortuna Silver Mines and NioGold Mining’s Marban project (sold to Oban Mining, now Osisko Mining).
Key Projects
Knauss Creek Property
The Knauss Creek property, situated 35 kms north of Terrace, BC, spans 2,944. It has excellent infrastructure access, proximity to Highway 16, numerous logging roads traversing it, and the Canadian National Railway passing through.
The property is home to the historical Dorreen mine. Various showings on the property, including the Jay Veins, Hugin, Kandy and Copper Ridge, contain gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc mineralization. The current focus is on the Copper Ridge zone, a high-grade polymetallic mineralization zone spanning 1,500 meters.
Assays from outcrop samples gathered during the 2023 prospecting season have revealed numerous high-grade gold, silver and copper findings. Highlights from rock outcrop sampling, include:
- Sample W489444 contains 6.70 grams per ton (g/t) gold, 4,610 g/t silver, 2.23 percent copper
- Sample W489424 contains 15.9 g/t gold, 987 g/t silver, 0.29 percent copper, 17.55 percent lead, 6.99 percent zinc
- Sample W501837 contains 0.49 g/t gold, 134 g/t silver and 29.4 percent copper
- Sample W501812 contains 2.14 g/t gold, 264 g/t silver and 10.35 percent copper
Consequently, the Copper Ridge zone has been extended, now measuring an east-west length of 1,550 meters, a north-south strike length of 850 meters, and a vertical difference of 470 meters. Field data suggests the veins follow a north-south orientation and dip towards the east.
The interpretation suggests the zone comprises a network of mineralized veins arranged like a ladder hosted within a dioritic intrusion.
The company has completed an inaugural drilling program to evaluate drill-ready targets like the Copper Ridge zone, the Leon’s Legacy and Dorreen Mine showings.
Holy Grail Property
The Holy Grail property is located 10 km north of Terrace, BC, and forms a horseshoe that encloses the fully owned Knauss Creek property in its southeastern part. It currently spans 70,109 hectares. The property is easily accessible via a highway, multiple serviced roads, logging roads, and ATV trails that cross cut it.
Prospecting results from the Holy Grail property displayed remarkable potential through substantial findings of gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. Key highlights of the results include:
- Grab sample C362354 returned 28.0 g/t gold, 56.9 g/t silver and 2.03 percent copper on the 4 Shore showing
- Grab sample C362357 returned 13.7 g/t gold, 39.9 g/t silver and 1.33 percent copper on the 4 Shore showing
- Grab sample C363353 returned 0.37 g/t gold, 58.7 g/t silver and 3.43 percent copper on the Maroon Creek showing
- Grab sample C363092 returned 6.7 g/t gold, 21.1 g/t silver, and 0.12 percent lead on the Iceberg showing.
Management Team
Michael Iverson – CEO and Director
Michael Iverson has over three decades of experience in public and private capital markets. He also has significant experience in the mining industry, having founded Niogold Mining and Fortuna Silver Mines. At Niogold, he spearheaded the acquisition and exploration of an expansive land parcel in Val D’Or, leading to the company's acquisition by Oban Mining, presently known as Osisko Mining , at a substantial premium to its market capitalization. At Fortuna, he played a vital role in the company's prosperous evolution into a silver producer with operational mines in Peru and Mexico. Iverson, over his entire career spanning three decades, has achieved, in aggregate, market capitalizations in excess of $1 billion.
Yan Ducharme – President and Director
Yan Ducharme is a professional geologist with over 25 years of experience in greenfield and brownfield exploration projects in Quebec, Ontario, Africa and South America. He was on the exploration team at SEMAFO and Cambior/Iamgold and was an exploration manager at NioGold (then vice-president exploration), Canadian Malartic, SOQUEM, and Wesdome Gold Mine. He worked in underground mines and open pits. Ducharme obtained a masters in earth sciences from the University of Quebec in Montreal.
Jasmine Lau – CFO
Jasmine Lau is a seasoned finance and accounting expert with a wealth of experience as a CFO in the mineral exploration and resource sector, having worked on projects across the globe. She was employed in internal audit at Teck Resources and Deloitte, where she focused on audits of public mining and resource companies. Lau is a CPA, CA, and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia.
Simon Ridgway – Chairman and Director
Simon Ridgway is the CEO of Rackla Metals, a Vancouver-based junior gold exploration company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange since September 2011. He is also the CEO, president and director of Volcanic Gold Mines, a Vancouver-based company engaged in gold and silver property acquisition and exploration.
Michael Michaud - Director
Michael Michaud is a professional geologist with over 30 years of experience. He is an expert in developing and executing regional and mine-site exploration strategies across diverse deposit types in North and South America, Africa, Asia and Europe. Michaud is the vice-president of exploration at Wesdome Gold Mines. He also held roles at several firms, including Iamgold, St Andrew Goldfields, SRK Consulting and North American Palladium. Michaud holds an honors B.Sc. from the University of Waterloo and an M.Sc. from Lakehead University.
Toby Lim - Director
Toby Lim has been a practicing solicitor since 1997, focusing on corporate and securities law. He received a Bachelor of Commerce degree with honours from the University of British Columbia in 1992, followed by a Bachelor of Laws degree from Osgoode Hall Law School in Ontario in 1996.
Jacques Brunelle – Director
Jacques Brunelle has over three decades of involvement in the North American mining sector. He has held executive positions as president and director in publicly traded companies, including Niogold Mining, where he served in 2003, culminating in a successful acquisition by Osisko Mining in 2016. Throughout his career, Brunelle has raised substantial funds for exploration and equity financing initiatives in both public and private enterprises.
Bradley Scharfe – Director
Bradley Scharfe has over 25 years of experience in North America's capital markets. Scharfe has led financing endeavors throughout his career and assembled robust companies across various sectors, including resources and commodities. He specializes in raising, deploying and managing venture capital for companies in their early growth stages. Previously, Scharfe served as a venture capital stockbroker with Canaccord Capital, a leading Canadian investment firm. Scharfe holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto, where he majored in commerce and economics.
TEM | Yalgoo Update - Further Excellent Iron Results
Key Points
- Additional high-grade magnetite iron intercepted in RC drilling
- Consistent intercepts over >2 km of drilled strike length
- Identical outcropping geology mapped over a 5 km total strike length
- Potential for a large-scale iron ore deposit nearby other world-class processing facilities
Remorse Target
High-grade iron
In addition to the lab results for the first drillhole previously reported 1, the Company is pleased to announce the completion of drilling and that follow-up results in subsequent drillholes confirm the presence of high-grade iron at the Remorse Target. New results include:
WARDH00180 16m @ 32.6% Fe from 93m (pXRF)
WARDH00169 20m @ 32.3% Fe from 120m (pXRF)
and 11m @ 30.8% Fe from 182m (pXRF)
WARDH00166 7m @ 32.8% Fe from 96m (Lab)
WARDH00171 8m @ 30.1% Fe from 130m (pXRF)
* Portable XRF (pxrf) results are not comparable in reliability to authorised laboratory results and should be not relied on for quantitative purposes outside indicative demonstrations of potential order of magnitude of enrichments.
Background
TEM has completed the first phase of RC drilling at the Remorse Target of its flagship Yalgoo Project. In total, 21 RC holes were drilled for 4,005m. Samples have been Boxscanned (pXRF) and submitted to the lab and final assay results are expected in December 2024.
The previously reported iron intercept from the first hole drilled at Remorse was WARDH00160 of 32m @ 30.0% Fe from 96m (including 7m @ 37% Fe) (Lab).
The Remorse Target is part of Tempest's broader Yalgoo Project which spans over 1,000 square kilometres of prospective terrain for base metals, precious metals and iron ore.
Figure 01: Section through iron mineralisation WARDH00180
Figure 02: Section through iron mineralisation WARDH00169 and WARDH00163-165.
All samples collected have been analysed using a Boxscan unit which includes a mounted portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF). Although not as accurate as laboratory analysis, pXRF data when collected in a quality and consistent manner can also exhibit high accuracy and precision. The pXRF data has been compared with assays received to date (>800 samples) and has an average variance of -4.2% and a median of -4.3%. The results indicate the accuracy is considered acceptable for current exploration reporting purposes (and potentially an overall slight underestimation by pXRF).
Remaining assay results are due in December and are expected to correlate strongly with the pxrf results announced.
As previously advised, the drill program design was focused on the strong base metal geochemical anomaly exhibited at the Remorse Target 2. The planned holes were focused strongly on testing the 'hanging wall' stratigraphy at Remorse and were not initially focused on the newly identified iron layer. However, the program did result in the 4 most northerly drill holes intercepting the main magnetite layer and numerous holes intercepting adjacent magnetite-rich layers.
The widely spaced drilling shows continuity and consistency over more than 2 kilometres and identical iron-rich stratigraphy outcrops can be traced over an extensive 5-kilometre zone correlating with the original Remorse Target footprint.
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This article includes content from Tempest Minerals Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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