Joint venture partners Covalent Lithium, Wesfarmers and Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (SQM) have opened of the Mt Holland lithium mine and concentrator project. The Mt Holland lithium project consists of an open-cut mine and concentrator, located 110km southeast of Southern Cross in the Wheatbelt region, and a refinery currently being constructed in the Kwinana Industrial Area. With an expected cost of $2.6 billion, the project is supporting 1,000 jobs during construction and 350 jobs during operations. Mt Holland will produce 380,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate per year, which will be refined into 50,000 tonnes of battery-quality lithium hydroxide.…
BMG Resources Limited has announced promising results from its ongoing exploration review of the Dragon project neighbouring WA1 Resources’ site in the West Arunta region of Western Australia. Multiple targets showing structural and magnetic features have been identified at the Dragon Project — features similar to those that represent mineralised carbonatites at WA1 Resources’ ground and the nearby Aileron Project of Encounter Resources. BMG’s Dragon Niobium-REE Project is immediately adjacent to and shares a 30-kilometre-long border with the West Arunta Project of WA1 Resources. BMG Non-Executive Chairman John Prineas said: “Our ongoing review of exploration data for the West Arunta…
Pantera Minerals Limited has announced a substantial expansion of its Smackover Brine Project in North America, with the acquisition of 3,553 acres, representing a 26 per cent increase in leased acreage. The company's total net leased acreage now surpasses 17,000 acres. The bulk of the new acreage comes from a key lease with a mineral owner covering 2,194 acres, placing Pantera in a unique position of strength. This expansion not only enhances the project's scalability but also consolidates Pantera's control, with 100 per cent ownership of the project now under its purview. Pantera, the sole junior company listed in the…
A West Australian-based lithium explorer looks well-positioned to capture significant upside when the alkali metal’s market moves into its anticipated recovery mode. In 2023, Global Lithium Resources Ltd (ASX:GL1) spent a great deal of its corporate time sizing up its wholly-owned outcropping Manna pegmatite project in its home state of WA, completing a large-scale 60,000 metre reverse circulation and diamond drilling campaign which covered infill and extensional targets. The junior also started metallurgical and geotechnical programs that have since carried over into 2024. Located around 100 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the state’s Goldfields, Manna currently enjoys an indicated and…
Hillgrove Resources has commenced production of its first copper concentrate from the Kanmantoo mine in South Australia, following the successful completion of the processing facility; both milestones were met within the company's target timeframe of Q1 2024. The transition from explorer to producer makes Hillgrove Resources one of only a few copper producers on the ASX. Hillgrove Resources CEO and Managing Director Lachlan Wallace said: “Operations will be bedded down at Kanmantoo as we ramp up to steady stage production and our attention will turn to growing the business by converting future exploration and development opportunities.” “The project is well-positioned…
In mid-February a Perth-based dual-listed resources house took a major step towards establishing a sovereign national graphite project which entailed a ‘mine to market’ capability and integrated operations located within its home state of Western Australia. In doing so, it moved further towards its goal of becoming a significant player in the global processed graphite market. International Graphite Ltd (ASX: IG6) has just completed the successful wet commissioning of its new $1.5 million, 200 tonnes per annum graphite micronising plant in the coal mining town of Collie in WA using imported graphite concentrates. To be known as the Collie BAM…
An ASX-listed junior is looking to expeditiously dual-track its two lithium projects during the coming year, with the Perth-based Future Battery Minerals Ltd (FBM) targeting deposits in both Western Australia and the US state Nevada. In WA, the prize is its wholly-owned Kangaroo Hills, located just 17 kilometres south of the historic gold town of Coolgardie, where a high grade lithium-caesium-tantalum pegmatite discovery has so far returned an assay of 29 metres at 1.36 per cent lithium. Meanwhile, in southern Nevada, the aptly-named Nevada Lithium Project (NLP), in which the junior has an 80 per cent interest, is a large-scale…
Zinc exploration and development company, Superior Lake Resources Limited, has announced the results of a Bankable Feasibility Study (BFS) for the Superior Lake Project, located approximately 200 kilometres east of Thunder Bay in the province of Ontario, Canada. The project spans an area of 175 square kilometres and consists of two deposits – Winston Lake and Pick Lake. It is owned by Ophiolite Holdings Pty Ltd, an Australian incorporated entity. Superior Lake owns 70 per cent of Ophiolite and recently announced transactions to acquire an additional interest of 15 per cent in Ophiolite. Since acquiring an interest in the project,…
Chesser Resources Limited has received first assay results from a recently completed Phase 2 Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling program at the Diamba Sud project in Senegal. Covering 53.2 square kilometres over the gold-bearing Kédougou-Kéniéba Inlier, Diamba Sud is the company’s flagship project. It consists of two blocks referred to as DS1 in the north and DS2 in the south. The Phase 1 drilling program completed earlier in 2019 successfully intersected significant gold mineralisation in fresh rock at all four target areas. The Phase 2 Drilling program within DS1 was completed in mid-July, with a total of 26 RC holes drilled for…
Rio Tinto’s Resolution Copper project in the US has achieved a major permitting milestone with the release of an independently prepared Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the project. The rigorous review, conducted by the US Forest Service over a six year period included broad public engagement. Resolution, one of the most significant undeveloped copper deposits in the world, started the US permitting process in 2013 and the US Forest Service has conducted a comprehensive independent review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The publication of the DEIS triggers a further public consultation process over a 90 day period,…
Lake Resources NL (Lake) has discovered multiple lithium brines over a zone of 144 metres (from 172 – 316m) at its 100 per cent owned Cauchari Lithium Brine Project in Argentina. Lithium values from 340 to 538 mg/L were returned from multiple high flow brines with low Mg/Li ratios of 2.73.0. The brine zones and target sand horizon were intersected higher in the sequence than expected. The hole was terminated at 460m due to less permeable clay horizons from 326m, although conductive brines were intersected at 356m and 386m. Detailed sampling with a packer instrument has commenced from 387m up…
Rio Tinto will reduce the annual carbon footprint at its Kennecott Utah Copper operation, located southwest of Salt Lake City in Utah, U.S. by as much as 65 per cent by purchasing renewable energy certificates and permanently shutting its coal power plant. Kennecott’s electricity needs will now be paired with 1.5 million megawatt hours of renewable energy certificates supplied by Rocky Mountain Power, primarily sourced from its Utah allocated portfolio including wind power from Wyoming. The change will reduce the annual carbon footprint associated with the operation by over one million tonnes CO2. Rio Tinto chief executive J-S Jacques said…
Western Australian based company AVZ Minerals Limited's (AVZ) 60 per cent owned Manono deposit has been confirmed as the largest measured and indicated lithium resource in the world. The Manono Project is located approximately 500 kilometres north of Lubumbashi in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo in central Africa. The project covers approximately 88 square kilometres and hosts lithium pegmatites with a strike length of over 13 kilometres. AVZ has announced a 41.7 per cent increase in Manono’s combined Measured and Indicated Resources, up from 189.8 Million tonnes (Mt) to 269.0 Mt. ANZ has stated that overall tonnage…
A second, larger diamond drill rig operated by Foraco Argentina SA has progressed drilling to a depth of 141 metres at Lake Resources NL (Lake)’s 100 per cent owned Cauchari Lithium Brine Project in Jujuy - a province in Argentina’s remote northwest. Located adjacent to world-class brine projects either in production or under development, the new round of drilling aims to unlock further value from the emerging project. The larger diamond drill rig is targeting a sand horizon estimated between 350-450 metres deep and is set drill to 500 metres. Two rigs are now operational at Cauchari and reporting results…
