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Odessa Minerals Limited (ASX:ODE) (“Odessa” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has recently completed a first pass review for the excellent uranium potential on its Lyndon Project, located approximately 200km south of Onslow and 200km northeast of Carnarvon in Western Australia.
Exploration planning underway for on-ground reconnaissance in the coming weeks.
Highlights of historic data* include:
- Reported Uranium grades (WAMEX/MINEDEX) up to 3,420ppm U3O8
- Ten individual uranium occurrences (MINEDEX) on the Lyndon Project
- Lyndon Project immediately adjoins Paladin Energy’s Carley Bore Uranium Project, within 1.3km of the 15.6MLbs U3O8 announced resource1
- Calcrete-hosted uranium mineralisation in carnotite (an oxide of uranium and vanadium and an important ore mineral) present at surface at the Jailor Bore, Baltic Bore and Ben Hur Prospects (Figure 1)
- Historic surface high-grade uranium rock chip samples
- Historic drilling and pre-JORC mineral resource reported in MINEDEX at the Jailor Bore Prospect
- Extensive radiometric uranium anomalies largely untested by drilling
- Paleochannel-hosted roll-front uranium target extends from Paladin Energy’s Carley Bore Project with significant VTEM anomalies at the Relief Well Prospect
Figure 1: Carnotite (uranium) mineralisation (yellow mineral) in porous sandy limestone from the Ben Hur prospect.2
*Comment on using historic data
All assay information in this release has been compiled from historic data reported in Geological Survey of Western Australia’s MINEDEX Database, public filing by previous explorers or publicly available mineral exploration reports (the WAMEX archive). In the case of Jailor Bore, a historic mineral resource is presented in MINEDEX, but cannot be reported here as it is non-JORC compliant. Information is considered as historic by nature, and while all care has been taken to review and compile previous reports, ground testing and confirmation works are yet to be completed. Further information is contained in the End note/References section of this report and JORC Table 1.
David Lenigas, Executive Director of Odessa, said:
“With the Uranium Price recently hitting a 15 year high at around $105 a pound, we pushed the button on a review of historic uranium work at Lyndon. The proximity of Lyndon to Paladin Energy’s Carley Bore Project is noted, and we believe our project has strong potential for uranium exploration and discovery. Most of these uranium targets at Lyndon are on granted tenements with heritage agreements and site surveys already in place. This will help to get exploration efforts for uranium going soon and we look forward to following up on this historic work in coming weeks.”
Lyndon Project Uranium Targeting
The Lyndon Project is located on the margin of the Carnarvon Basin and Gascoyne Complex approximately 200km south of Onslow and 200km NE of Carnarvon, in Western Australia. The project consists of over 1,000 square kilometres of exploration licenses and applications. The Company has previously conducted detailed airborne magnetics and radiometrics over a large part of the project area. As well as uranium occurrences, there are several known occurrences of pegmatites for lithium mineralisation targeting and the project has the potential for copper-gold, nickel-copper, and rare earth elements.
Project Geology & Previous Exploration
The Project area encompasses the unconformity between the eastern margin of the Phanerozoic Carnarvon Basin overlying Precambrian basement of the Gascoyne Province (Figure 2). The basement consists of Proterozoic granites, metamorphic gneisses and schists of the Gascoyne Complex. The western parts of the Project include the Palaeozoic-Mesozoic basin margin sedimentary sequences of the Southern Carnarvon Basin including the Merlinleigh Sub-Basin, marked by Devonian sedimentary carbonates; Carboniferous-Permian glacigene sediments of the Lyons Group; and the siliciclastic sequences of the Cretaceous Winning Group that were deposited coincident with NW-SE rifting.
Uranium mineralisation is found across multiple styles (Figure 3). Mineralisation at Paladin Energy’s Carley Bore Project is Roll Front-Type, hosted within the Cretaceous Birdrong Sandstone and concentrated at redox boundaries. VTEM (Versatile Time-Domain ElectroMagnetic Survey) data suggests the Birdrong Sandstone extends across the Odessa Lyndon Project, in which the Relief Well prospect is situated.3 Jailor Bore, Baltic Bore and Ben Hur prospects express calcrete-type mineralisation, where uranium is concentrated in surficial deposits of carbonate-rich material. Langer-Heinrich Mine in Namibia (Paladin Energy) and Yeelerrie Deposit in Western Australia are calcrete type deposits.4
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This article includes content from Odessa Minerals, 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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Odessa Minerals
Overview
With a total land package of over 3,000 square kilometres surrounded by some of the most promising projects and most significant lithium discoveries in Western Australia’s prolific Gascoyne Region, Odessa Minerals (ASX:ODE) is uniquely positioned to leverage a quickly emerging battery metals market to drive its fully funded lithium and rare earths exploration strategy.
Battery metals such as lithium and rare earths are the foundation of the world's transition to a more sustainable future. This is why Australia is one of several leading countries that have identified these minerals as critical.
It's also why Western Australia's Gascoyne region is currently in the midst of a proverbial gold rush. Previously both under-explored and overlooked, the Gascoyne is now the target of several of the largest mining and exploration companies in the region, including Delta Lithium (ASX:DLI), Voltair Strategic Resources (ASX:VSR), Minerals 260 (ASX:MI6) and Reach Resources (ASX:RR1). There is every indication that as demand for lithium and battery metals continues to grow, activity in the region will increase even further.
Odessa Minerals’ projects in the Gascoyne Region of Western Australia totalling >3,000km2
In the middle of these mining industry titans, Odessa’s investment value proposition is noteworthy for a few reasons. Firstly, it's trading at a market cap significantly lower than the companies that surround it. The company is still at the beginning of its journey, making it an ideal investment alternative for consideration for anyone looking to get involved with lithium and the significant potential of the Gascoyne region.
In addition to being fully funded in all objectives this year, Odessa is managed by a highly invested management team that believes in the company’s full potential and strategy for success.
Company Highlights
- Driven by lithium demand, Western Australia's Gascoyne region — previously under-explored — has become a hot zone of mining exploration and development.
- Some of the region's largest and most successful mining companies have already staked their claims there, including Delta Lithium and Dreadnought Resources.
- Odessa is an exploration company still at the beginning of its development journey, with a low market cap and strong leadership.
- Odessa's land package comprises one of the largest land holdings in the Gascoyne region, with some 3,000 square kilometres of claims divided into three distinct projects, all highly prospective and incredibly promising, located in close proximity and displaying similar geology to several recent lithium pegmatite discoveries in the region.
- Odessa's leadership team are all highly invested in the company. All planned exploration and development work is well-funded for the year.
- Over 56,000 metres strike-length of pegmatites have now been mapped by geology crews on Odessa’s Yinnetharra Lockier Range tenement
- Pegmatites at over 30 metres in width are already mapped
Key Lithium and REE Projects
Yinnetharra - Lockier Range Project
Lockier Range Project is proximal to the emergent Gascoyne lithium pegmatite province
Located in Western Australia's highly sought-after Gascoyne region, the Lockier Range Project consists of a single highly prospective exploration licence that spans 125 square kilometres within Odessa's 3,000-square-kilometre Gascoyne package. The project is in close proximity to multiple significant lithium/pegmatite discoveries by Delta Lithium (ASX:DLI), Reach Resources (ASX:RR1) and Voltair Strategic Resources (ASX:VSR). In addition it is also situated in a north-south corridor of rare earth elements (REE) carbonatite discoveries by Kingfisher Mining (ASX:KFM), Dreadnought Resources (ASX:DRE) and Hastings Technologies (ASX:HAS).
Odessa recently released an interim update on its ongoing exploration program, noting that onsite geology crews have mapped over 56,000 metres of strike-length pegmatites to date and some pegmatites seen at over 30 metres in width. Having just completed 16,500 metres of strike-length pegmatite mapping at its Eastern Pegmatite Field Target and 10,400 metres strike-length of previously undiscovered pegmatites mapped at the new Central Pegmatite Field and Mt Yaragner, the team continues to map over 30,000 metres of strike-length pegmatites at its Southern Pegmatite Field target.
Following completion of the mapping programme, Odessa plans to target and identify LCT drilling targets and obtain approvals to drill.
Project Highlights:
- Exploration Work to Date: The company has already done extensive exploration work on its Lockier Range Project, identifying significant pegmatite fields and associated lithium anomalism and lithium-pathfinder elements in the process. Highlights include:
- 1,900 soil samples collected, pending results from laboratory
- 187 rock samples collected, pending results from laboratory
- Very high tenor REE in stream sediments and soils
- Extensive and promising thorium anomalies with high thorium radiometrics signatures
- Historical REE grades up to:
- 14 percent total rare earth elements (TREE) in stream sediment sample
- 3.36 percent neodymium+praseodymium in stream sediment sample
- 3.8 percent TREE in soil samples
- Rock chip sampling returned seven samples with over 1,000 parts per million (ppm) total rare earths oxide (TREO) and containing between 14 percent and 26 percent of critical rare earth oxides (CREO).
- Stream sediment sampling returned highly anomalous results including a maximum of 821 ppm TREO at 29.1 percent CREO.
- Ideally Located: Lockier Range is located in close proximity to and shares multiple geological characteristics with the following projects:
- Adjacent to Minerals 260's Aston lithium project
- ~ 8.5 kilometres southwest of Delta Lithium's Jameson lithium pegmatite discovery
- ~ 15 kilometres southwest of Reach Resources’ Morrissey Hill lithium pegmatite discovery
- ~ 25 kilometres west of Delta Lithium's Yinnetharra lithium pegmatite discovery
- ~ 40 kilometres west of Voltaic Strategic Resources' pegmatite discovery
- ~ 70 kilometres south of Hastings Technologies' and Dreadnought Resources' rare earth projects
Lyndon Lithium and REE Project
Covering 811 square kilometres of highly prospective ground for rare earth and lithium exploration, Lyndon is situated immediately to the west of Dreadnought Resources’ Yin Project. Odessa has defined seven thorium anomalies prospective for rare earth mineralisation via airborne physical data.
Gascoyne East Lithium and REE Project
Odessa's Gascoyne East project area spans 2,108 square kilometres of exploration licences. Situated at the intersection of multiple regional fault structures, the area is believed to be underlain by the Gascoyne and Glenburg meta-granitoids with a northern on-lap of Edmund Basin. Because roughly 90 percent of the region is covered by alluvial sediments, it has not been the target of detailed exploration in the past.
It is considered to be prospective for REE, lithium-bearing pegmatites, gold, copper and graphite. In order to map the bedrock between transported cover sediments, Odessa has submitted for permitting of 113 aircore holes on existing tracks. It is also scoping a combined detailed airborne gravity and magnetic survey.
Management Team
David Lenigas — Executive Director
David Lenigas is a mining engineer with a Western Australian First Class Mine Managers Certificate. He has extensive corporate experience serving at the chairman and chief executive officer level on many of the world’s leading stock exchanges, where he oversaw multiple business sectors.
Lenigas has held senior financial and management positions in both publicly listed and private enterprises in Australia, United Kingdom, Canada and Africa.
Darren Holden – Consulting Geologist
Dr Darren Holden is a geologist with 28 years of industry experience in mineral exploration and exploration technologies. He specialises in regional to local scale targeting using the integration of geology, geophysics and geochemistry.
He is currently a director of Augustus Minerals (ASX:AUG), Aurumin (ASX:AUN) and chair of OD6 Metals (ASX:OD6), as well as several private companies.
Holden has a BSc (Hons) First Class (geology) from The University of Western Australia and a PhD (history) from The University of Notre Dame Australia. Holden is a fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (FAusIMM) and a member of the Geological Society of Australia.
Zane Lewis — Non-executive Chairman
Zane Lewis is principal and joint founder of corporate advisory firm SmallCap Corporate, which specialises in corporate advice and compliance administration to public companies. He provides the board with a wealth of knowledge obtained from his diverse financial and corporate experience in previous appointments.
Lewis is also a fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia and a non-executive director of Lion Energy (ASX:LIO) and Kairos Minerals (ASX:KAI).
Lisa Wells — Non-executive Director
Lisa Wells has 26 years of experience as an exploration geologist working across various commodities including diamonds, bulk commodities, gold and base metals. She was a senior geologist at United Kimberley Diamonds, where the Phillips Range diamond bulk sampling program at Aries South in the Central Kimberley was undertaken.
Wells has significant experience with environmental and permitting approvals, as well as on-ground coordination of trial mining operations, feasibility studies and project management in a range of commodities including diamonds, gold, phosphate and base metals.
Wells is currently a non-executive director of Territory Minerals, a gold company with projects in North Queensland. She holds a BAppSc. (geology) from Curtin University.
Robbie Featherby — Company Secretary
Robert Featherby is a corporate advisor at SmallCap Corporate, a boutique corporate advisory firm specialising in providing company secretarial, CFO and transaction management services involving both listed and unlisted companies. He is also the company secretary of Victory Goldfields (ASX:1VG), Cosmos Exploration (ASX:C1X) and Volt Resources (ASX:VRC).
IND Establishes HPQ Exploration Target at Pippingarra Project
Highlights
- IND’s recent RC drilling program informs a Maiden High Purity Quartz (HPQ) Exploration Target at the Pippingarra Quarry Project.
- Drilling is planned for the exploration target area and to test several quartz occurrences mapped across the wider Mining Lease area.
- IND plans to commence work on a HPQ Mineral Resource Estimate in parallel with metallurgical testwork being conducted by potential offtake partners and third-party mineral processing laboratories.
- A 300kg Pippingarra quartz sample crushed from existing quarry stockpiles sent to China in late 2023 produced a >GG.GG4% SiO2 end product following standard HPQ processing1.
- A further 24 tonne bulk sample comprising crushed quartz rock has been shipped to China for processing, metallurgical test work, and assessment by potential offtake partners.
Figure 1: IND Pippingarra Quarry Project location and infrastructure.
In October 2023, IND announced the agreement of binding terms2 with North West Quarries Pty Ltd (NWQ) for an exclusive option to acquire an 80% interest in the non-construction material mineral rights.
Jeff Sweet, Managing Director of Industrial Minerals, commented:
“Following on from one of our potential offtake partners in China achieving a processed High Purity Ǫuartz product grading >SS.SS4% SiO2, we are extremely positive about the potential to supply Pippingarra quartz into high-end quartz markets.
“The Pippingarra Exploration Target is limited to an area where IND completed RC drilling in late 2023, to the east of the existing open pit. There are several quartz outcrops mapped across the broader Mining Lease area that will also be drilled with the intention to include these untested HPǪ target opportunities in the upcoming Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for Pippingarra.
“Our motivation to commence work towards a MRE is to leverage our unique position of having an active mining operation at the Pippingarra Ǫuarry. We believe this will give potential offtake partners the confidence to enter into offtake agreements with IND, knowing that we can rapidly advance to be mine ready and have a suitable mine life to support long term supply needs.”
Maiden High Purity Quartz Exploration Target
Table 1: Pippingarra HPQ Exploration Target range.
The potential quantity and grade of the Exploration Target is conceptual in nature, and there has been insufficient exploration to estimate a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the estimation of a Mineral Resource. The Exploration Target has been prepared and reported in accordance with the 2012 edition of the JORC Code.
The Exploration Target is based upon the Reverse Circulation (RC) Drilling program completed by IND in December 2023. Drilling was conducted on a 50m x 50m spacing. From this, holes INRC003 – INRC009 recorded thicknesses of white crystalline quartz over widths from 12m to 20m as reported in the Table 2 below.
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This article includes content from Industrial 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.
Positive Findings from Newmont Ti Benchmarking Study
Highlights
- Titanium industry expert TZMI completes titanium benchmarking study on the Salazar Critical Minerals Project
- Study identifies Newmont as a standout from its peers in terms of Ti and TREO in-situ grade
- Benchmarking study is highly encouraging and supports validating flowsheet for production of titanium minerals from Salazar
Salazar Critical Minerals Project Ti Benchmarking Study
Following successful characterisation testwork of Ti mineralisation at the Newmont Deposit area1, West Cobar Metals engaged international titanium expert TZ Minerals International Pty Ltd (TZMI) to complete a benchmarking study of the Newmont resource.
TZMI is a global, independent consulting and publishing company which specialises in all aspects of the mineral sands, titanium dioxide and coatings industries2.
The Newmont resource3 and characterisation data was used by TZMI to benchmark the Salazar project deposit against several existing operations and potential new projects under development using publicly available information and TZMI estimates. The outcomes of the benchmarking are shown in Figure 1.
The benchmarking study shows that the Ti contained within the Newmont deposit has promising potential for economic extraction and that the Newmont resource is positioned favourably amongst peer resources in respect of both Ti and rare earth element content.
Figure 1 : Salazar Project (Newmont deposit) benchmarking
The relative positioning of the Newmont Inferred Ti and rare earth element resource is very positive for West Cobar, with relatively high insitu TiO2 grades and TREO grades compared to its peers. The Ti levels of the resource (on a whole rock basis) compare very favourably to both developing and operating projects.
TZMI concluded that “In terms of final ilmenite product quality, the composition of the magnetic fraction (comprising predominantly ilmenite) shows some promise with TiO₂ levels as high as 48.5%. This suggests the ilmenite is likely present as primary ilmenite … the CaO, MgO, V₂O₅, Cr₂O₃ in the magnetic fraction all seem relatively low which is positive and likely to be within the accepted levels for ilmenite used in sulfate pigment production.”
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This article includes content from West Cobar Metals 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.
High Grade Copper Rock Chips to 18% on New Targets at Ti-Tree
- Two new prospects, Tiberius and Claudius, have returned high-grade copper and significant silver assays in rock chips from recent field work
- High grade assays up to 17.8% Cu and 282g/t Ag have been discovered on the Tiberius zone, currently 3m wide and extending for over 200m along strike.
- Claudius, 11km south of Tiberius, comprised of several parallel zones over a 100m by 300m area, returned grades up to 6.6% Cu and 86g/t Ag.
- The discovery of these prospects, 30km northwest from Copper Ridge which contain historic workings not marked on GSWA maps, highlights the significant prospectivity of the Gascoyne region.
- Further field work is being planned to determine the extent of these new discoveries.
Andrew Ford, GM Exploration
“These results highlight the potential of this underexplored area to host as yet undiscovered mineralisation. Less than 5% of the 3,600 sq km area of the Ti-Tree Project has had any previous exploration, and to discover unrecorded historic mining areas is very exciting. These results are a credit the Augustus geological team.”
Figure 1 Location of the Tiberius and Claudius prospects
Tiberius
Reconnaissance field work conducted on the Ti Tree Project’s northwestern tenement has discovered high grade copper and silver mineralisation (Figure 3) in two areas. Tiberius, the northern target comprises a quartz-sulphide vein system up to 3m wide and outcrops for over 200m (Figure 5).
A shallow shaft has been dug on the vein system (Figure 2). Another vein set was identified 600m along strike east-northeast of the main vein increasing the potential size of the target. The high grade veins contain both oxidized copper, high silver grades, lead sulphide and anomalous gold (Table 1).
Claudius
The Claudius prospect is located 10km to the southwest of Tiberius, comprised of quartz veined brecciated and silicified granite with mineralised veins mapped over a 100m x 300m area. The main area of outcropping mineralisation has been trenched by prospectors and rock chip sampling returned strong copper mineralisation in an iron rich siliceous vein. Silver was consistently elevated (up to 86g/t) with associated gold anomalism to 0.68g/t (Table 1, Figures 4 and 6).
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This article includes content from Augustus Minerals, 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.
From the Bronze Age to the Green Revolution: Mining's Timeless Role in Shaping Humanity's Future
During his presentation at the annual Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada convention, mining industry figure Mark Cutifani recounted the role the mining sector has had in humanity's past and will play in its burgeoning future.
“I'm focused on how we might catalyze new conversations around mining and its contribution to society,” he told listeners at the annual event, which took place in early March. “It is through our great pioneers and innovators that we continue to transform our work, and its value to society in so many different dimensions”
In simple terms, everything we use and make is derived from materials like metals and minerals, noted Cutifani.
Minerals used in electric cars compared to conventional cars.
Chart via the International Energy Agency.
In his view, while technical discussions about improving industry practices are essential, it's also crucial to help people understand the significance of the mining industry in the functioning of society as a whole.
For example, the average smartphone uses 13 metals and minerals, while electric vehicles require seven, including copper, lithium, nickel, manganese, cobalt, graphite, zinc and rare earths.
Mining's key role in the world's future
Cutifani went on to highlight how metals and minerals contribute to the health of our waterways and oceans.
“The provision of clean water is an absolute necessity to sustain life as we know it. We need minerals to purify, pump, use and recycle water. (We are) an industry that uses about 3 percent of the world's water to support everything else that happens on the planet. We are overwhelmingly a positive for global water balances,” he said.
In addition to water, the mining of phosphate and potash is imperative to global food supply, according to Cutifani, because without the valuable fertilizers they produce, “we could only feed half the planet.”
Even though there may be debates about eliminating certain products like fertilizers, he said it's essential to understand the broader implications and consequences of such decisions on global food security.
Beyond food security, metals and the alloys they produce have allowed us to curb urban sprawl through skyscrapers and high-rise residential towers that require steel and concrete, both of which are produced using mined and quarried materials. While we often hear of the vast amounts of metals needed for the energy transition, Cutifani noted that the energy transition debate tends to overlook other critical global issues like water, food security and shelter.
In his view, addressing global challenges will require the consideration of all fundamental human needs. It's essential to broaden the conversation and recognize the interconnectedness of various societal issues.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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