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Heavy Rare Earths Limited (“HRE” or “the Company”) is pleased to report a sizeable Exploration Target at its 100 per cent-owned Cowalinya rare earth project in the Norseman- Esperance region of Western Australia.
- Conservative Exploration Target estimated for Cowalinya: 280 to 1390 million tonnes @ 330 to 1330 ppm TREO
- Exploration Target excludes recently announced Mineral Resources of 159 million tonnes @ 870 ppm TREO
- Collectively, Mineral Resources and Exploration Target occupy 45% of HRE’s total land position at Cowalinya
- Scale of rare earths inventory at Cowalinya indicates potential to underpin a long-life development
- Opportunities for straightforward conversion of Exploration Target to additional Mineral Resources via modest programs of shallow drilling
Figure 1: Cowalinya Mineral Resources and Exploration Target.
The Exploration Target is summarised in Table 1 below and shown in Figure 1. Most of the Exploration Target lies immediately to the north-west of the project’s Inferred Mineral Resources which are estimated to be 159 million tonnes @ 870 ppm TREO using a 400 ppm TREO-CeO2 grade cut-off (refer to ASX announcement 3 October 2023). The potential quantity and grade of the Exploration Target is conceptual in nature, and there has been insufficient exploration completed by HRE on parts of its Cowalinya tenement package to estimate Mineral Resources. Furthermore, it is uncertain if further exploration will result in defining additional Mineral Resources at Cowalinya.
Table 1: Exploration Target for Cowalinya Rare Earth Project.TREO = La2O3+CeO2+Pr6O11+Nd2O3+Sm2O3+Eu2O3+Gd2O3+Tb4O7+Dy2O3+Ho2O3+Er2O3+Tm2O3+Yb2O3+Lu2O3+Y2O3 Magnet REOs = Pr6O11+Nd2O3+Tb4O7+Dy2O3
HRE Executive Director, Richard Brescianini, said, “Taken together with our recently announced 159 million tonnes of Inferred Resources, today’s result of up to 1.4 billion tonnes in an Exploration Target at Cowalinya delivers a clear statement on the potential of our land holdings to host sufficient rare earths to underpin a long-life development. Of course, further drilling is necessary to convert any part of the Exploration Target to Mineral Resources, but its execution must not run ahead of one of our key downstream metallurgical work programs, the production and customer qualification of a mixed rare earth carbonate product, scheduled for completion by the end of this year.”
Figure 1 shows the area of HRE’s existing Inferred Resources (red) in the densely-drilled south-east corner of E63/1972. New Exploration Target areas are 1) in the immediately adjacent less densely drilled areas (blue) within the Resource Area (dashed blue border) and 2) further to the north-west within the four pink hatched areas containing single lines of ‘far field’ aircore drill holes (black dots). REE-mineralised intercepts in all holes along the lines clearly demonstrate continuity of the mineralised layers found to the south-east in the Resource Area.
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HRE:AU
Heavy Rare Earths
Overview
Demand for rare earth elements (REEs) is rapidly increasing. These minerals are necessary to manufacture permanent magnets, auto and fluid cracking catalysts, and are also used in emerging technologies. Much of the world’s REE comes from China, making countries investing in clean energy largely reliant on Chinese supply. However, Australia is quickly ramping up production and was the fourth-largest REE miner in 2021, providing the market with 22,000 tonnes. The country also has the fifth largest reserves globally, with 4 million tonnes.
Heavy Rare Earths Limited (ASX:HRE) is committed to supporting the transition to sustainable technologies by providing new sources of these critical minerals. HRE has 100 percent ownership of two REE projects in Australia. The flagship Cowalinya Project is located in the premier mining jurisdiction of Western Australia and has demonstrated potential for a significant rare earth resource with an ideal composition. The company raised AU$6 million in its IPO, indicating foundation investor confidence and funding campaigns to advance its assets.
The Cowalinya Project has a JORC-compliant inferred mineral resource of 28 million tonnes at 625 parts per million (ppm) total rare earth oxides (TREO). The resource has an ideal composition of 25 percent magnet REEs and 23 percent heavy REEs, and importantly also contains low concentrations of radioelements.
The company has also confirmed a substantial new body of rare earth mineralisation at Cowalinya. Assays from 215 holes from HRE’s 441-hole rare earth exploration and resource expansion drilling program in 2022 have revealed multiple high-grade REE intercepts (up to 7222 ppm TREO) and the project’s thickest mineralised intercept to date at 42 meters @ 790 ppm TREO from 12 meters in hole AC226 – within a substantial new Western Zone of rare earth mineralisation.
Heavy Rare Earths’ second project, Duke, is located in the Northern Territory and close to both road and rail. The Company plans to commence exploring the asset for heavy REE-enriched deposits similar to the Browns Range project in Western Australia in the middle of 2023.
A management team with extensive experience in the natural resources sector leads the company, with expertise in rare earth exploration and development, financial management and corporate administration. HRE’s leadership team creates confidence in its ability to bring new REEs to market to support the energy transition.
Company Highlights
- Heavy Rare Earths is an Australian exploration and development mining company focusing on rare earth assets to support the clean energy transition.
- The company has 100 percent mineral rights ownership of two assets in premier mining jurisdictions, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
- The flagship Cowalinya Project has a JORC-compliant inferred resource of 28 million tonnes at 625 ppm TREO with the highly sought-after composition of 25 percent magnet rare earths and 23 percent heavy rare earths.
- Heavy Rare Earths has confirmed a substantial new body of rare earth mineralisation at Cowalinya in 2023.
- An experienced management team leads Heavy Rare Earths with a range of expertise throughout the mining sector, including project management, corporate administration, and rare earth exploration and development.
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Rare Earth Elements in Western Australia and the Northern Territory