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EMU NL (“EMU” or “the Company”) is pleased to provide an update on recent exploration work at the Company’s newly named Yataga Copper Project1, located within the Yataga Igneous Complex near Georgetown in North Queensland.
- Recent surface Geochemical surveys have updated EMU’s Ecological modelling and identified multiple intra-pluton porphyry copper centres close to surface within the Yataga Copper Project at Georgetown in Far North Queensland.
- EMU’s consultants have advised that these porphyry centres are concentrated along a “structural belt” and modelled to be near surface and their advice is that the unusual character of these intra-pluton copper centres nay be analogous to the Highland Valley Copper Mine, where a series of porphyry copper deposits host Canada’s largest open pit copper nine which produced more than 130kt in 2021.
- Dr Gregg Morrison, Queensland-based Geological Consultant with 45 years’ experience, has accepted an invitation to be appointed Technical Advisor to the Project. His authority and significant knowledge of the metallogenic systems of northern Queensland adds substantial value to the developing discovery.
- EMU’s recent work has identified a combined area of 8km2 of copper-in-soil anomalism with significant potential for expansion.
- Additional work includes;
- a 220-line km airborne electromagnetics survey (results pending).
- A 20-line km ground-based Pole-Dipole Induced Polarisation (PDIP) and Magnetotelluric (MT) survey currently underway.
- These geochemistry and geophysics survey results will provide an optimized low risk drilling programs to be carried out in the near future.
EMU Non-Executive Chairman Peter Thomas commented:
“Whilst it is still early days, results from EMU’s field work continue to provide encouragement that this project has the potential to be a Global Tier 1 scale copper discovery.
EMU has undertaken a meticulous, methodical and measured exploration programme guided by the best available expertise. EMU has carried out important Geophysical and Geochemical survey work that is assisting Ecological assessment of what appears to be high grade surface mineralisation indicating the presence of multiple Cu-bearing intrusive centres close to surface. EMU is determined to do a professional job driven by fundamentals and first principles.
Accordingly, EMU remains focused on establishing sound compelling drill vectors that give the project its best chances of success
Prudent and diligent field and desktop work being pursued is a comparatively low-cost avenue to optimise drilling efforts.
We are absolutely delighted and honoured to have secured the services of Dr Gregg Morrison, an expert in the style of mineralisation we are encountering at the Yataga Copper Project. Dr Morrison has already added value with his input to recent exploration and modelling. His technical knowledge on ore controls and hydrothermal system Geometry will be invaluable in defining and building confidence in drill targets as we seek to unlock the potential large-scale economics of the project.
Our recent 27km2 Geochemistry field survey, has demonstrated vast copper-in-soil anomalism over an area of 8km2 in aggregate reflecting very large potential. Our exploration team believes that the abundant and pervasive surficial expression of copper cannot be explained other than that there simply MUST be a near surface local concentrated source. Our goal is to find that source.
The team is working with preliminary pXRF Geochemistry to delineate the likely mineralisation fluid- flow geometry leading to defining priority structural/geological drill targets. Meanwhile, we continue to take samples for Geochemical analysis and to gather Geophysical data directed at providing compelling vectors for drilling at Yataga and, additionally, to assess bonanza grade gold occurrences across the broader 850km2 project.
EMU will prepare an appropriate drilling program the project once its team is comfortable that a higher level of confidence in targets can be achieved.”
Exploration Activity
EMU’s discovery team has made significant progress with the latest Geochemistry field work. The termite mound sampling methodology has proven to be highly reliable and productive.
The 27km2, grid controlled pXRF (Portable X-Ray Fluorescence analyser) programme sampled 1152 termite mounds. The combined area of highly anomalous copper has been substantially extended with copper mineralisation surface expression now covering a vast area – approximately 8km2 including the original discovery prospect – Fiery Creek. (See Figure 1). The potential to extend the area of copper mineralisation even further is possible and will follow from in field geochemistry and geophysics surveys currently in progress.
The areas of copper-in-soil anomalies delineated in this first-pass programme are defined as pXRF values ranging between 150 – 76͘ ppm Cu, equivalent to 5 – 25 times the average crustal abundance (or background values) for copper in Granodiorites.
Figure 1: The termite mound Geochemical sampling programme grid with Copper (Cu) heat map overlying geology. The main Cu-zones of Fiery Creek Prospect and Yataga Valley Prospect are clearly defined. (See also Figure 4.)
Modelling of the surface mineralisation indicates the presence of multiple Cu-bearing intrusive centres close to surface. Planned geophysical surveys to be conducted during September and October are targeted to “nap” the 3-dinensional aspects of the mineralised pluton and provide information on mineral pathways and mineralisation signatures. The surveys will provide a depth component to the surface field data collected to date, enhancing the definition of the erosional level of the mineralised system and the depth extent of the pluton roof and the location of the stocks and dykes that are the source of mineralisation.
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This article includes content from EMU NL, 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.
EMU:AU
Navigating Uncertainty: How Trump's Tariffs Are Affecting the Gold Market
Read on to learn how tariffs have affected the gold market and price so far.
How have tariffs affected the gold price?
The gold price has been on the rise since the beginning of the year. After briefly touching the US$3,500 per ounce level in May, it has pulled back and was trading just under US$3,400 as of Tuesday (August 26).
Gold price, January 1 to August 26, 2025.
Chart via TradingEconomics.
Although some of its increase is attributable to the points mentioned above, a significant portion is owed to a lack of information surrounding US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies.
Initially there was no clarity on what or who was being tariffed, or when the levies would ultimately be implemented, and investors started to move into gold for greater stability and portfolio diversification.
Uncertainty about whether gold would be tariffed also had an effect, prompting traders in the US to import physical gold; this created a price differential between New York futures and the London spot price.
Concerns dissipated as the Trump administration began to nail down tariffs, but were reignited once again when US Customs and Border Patrol posted a ruling on July 31 indicating that the 39 percent tariffs against imports from Switzerland would include 1 kilogram and 100 ounce gold bars.
The news caused spot gold to spike more than 3 percent, from US$3,290 to US$3,398, and sent December futures to an all-time high of US$3,549. Meanwhile, traders halted imports of Swiss bars.
After several days of turmoil, Trump said the ruling was incorrect, and the bars would not be included in the tariff measures being applied to other Swiss imports; the gold price then retreated.
How would gold tariffs have impacted the market?
Gold functions as both a commodity and an essential part of the world’s financial system.
One kilogram and 100 ounce gold bars are used to back futures trading, and regular shipments of the metal are needed to settle contracts once they come due. A 39 percent tariff on gold from Switzerland would have been particularly disruptive, as Swiss refineries account for approximately 70 percent of the world’s gold.
According to the UN Comtrade database, in 2024, Switzerland exported more than 1,400 metric tons of unwrought gold worth more than US$106 billion, representing nearly 30 percent of the country’s total exports. Tariffs would have forced US buyers to pay a significant premium for the precious metal versus buyers in London or Shanghai.
Because gold is often used as a store of value in times of uncertainty, any kind of disruption could have had broader implications for investors looking to add stability to their portfolios.
In an email to the Investing News Network (INN), Lauren Saidel-Baker, CFA, an economist with ITR Economics, explained that gold stands out as a unique investment mechanism:
“There are psychological nuances to gold, which is commonly viewed as a safe store of value during uncertain times and an inflation hedge. Overall, the tariff would have added another facet to the already elevated policy uncertainty."
If the tariffs had remained in place, the US gold price would have had to rise to around US$4,700 per ounce to cover levies, while international prices would have remained closer to the US$3,500 mark.
“Tariffs have already complicated supply chains across industries, and this gold tariff would have been another example of added cost and complexity — but in this case, one with the potential to more directly impact investment activities,” Saidel-Baker went on to explain, emphasizing that US investors would have felt the pinch.
Could gold tariffs happen in the future?
Given Trump's unpredictability, especially when it comes to tariffs, it's possible that gold levies could enter the conversation again. However, by and large experts agree that the matter is closed.
“I think it’s pretty clear at this point that there’s no intention to put tariffs on physical gold imports, and I think that would be very damaging and destructive if they did,” Stefan Gleason, CEO of Money Metals, told INN.
Keith Weiner, founder and CEO of Monetary Metals, offered another perspective, saying that although the gold tariff threat is over, the tumult could have long-term effects on the market.
"Once you've put the scare into everybody, you can't just say, 'Oh, sorry, just kidding.' You can't really do that. And so now we've done damage, and we'll see what happens to that spread over time. We'll see how users of the futures market adapt. There are other markets in the world that would be competing for," he explained.
"This hedging business, you know, maybe it moves to Singapore, maybe it moves to Dubai, maybe it moves to London, and the US loses not only a little more trust, but also a little bit of volume on what had been the biggest — or what is currently the biggest — futures market," Weiner added to INN.
Market participants will be watching closely for future impacts on the yellow metal.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.