Pinnacle Minerals Ltd (ASX: PIM) has announced the approval and scheduling of a significant drilling program at the Capel Mineral Sands Project in Western Australia. The program, comprising 93 air core drilling holes over approximately 2,000 metres, is set to begin on 20 May 2024. The Capel project, a brownfield heavy mineral (HM) exploration site, has already shown promising shallow mineralisation in previous drilling efforts by Iluka Resources. Noteworthy results include a mineralisation of 21 metres at 3.3 per cent HM from the surface, including 9 metres at 6.1 per cent HM from 11 metres depth. The project is strategically…
Alliance Nickel Limited (ASX:AXN) has announced that its NiWest Nickel Cobalt Project has been granted Major Project Status (MPS) by the Australian federal government. The project, located near Leonora, WA, is 100 per cent owned by Alliance and is considered strategically significant, with the potential to significantly contribute to Australia's economic growth and employment opportunities. The NiWest Project, boasting one of Australia's highest-grade undeveloped nickel laterite mineral resources, is targeting annual production of 90,000 tonnes of nickel sulphate and 7,000 tonnes of cobalt sulphate. The project is expected to create approximately 600 jobs during the construction phase and an additional…
Victory Metals Limited (ASX: VTM) has announced a significant milestone in Australia's mining sector with groundbreaking metallurgical recoveries of critical magnet metals at its North Stanmore Project in Western Australia. Achieving an exceptional recovery rate of 93 per cent, the results set a new benchmark in the rare earth sector and position North Stanmore as a leader in Australia’s critical minerals landscape. The recent leach tests conducted on beneficiated samples showcased remarkable recoveries of Praseodymium (Pr), Neodymium (Nd), Terbium (Tb), and Dysprosium (Dy). These high-purity elements are integral to advanced technological applications, including renewable energy solutions and electronic devices. Utilising…
St George Mining (ASX: SGQ) has unveiled promising new targets at its wholly-owned Destiny project in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields region. The exploration efforts have identified potential carbonatites and mafic intrusions, raising the prospect of hosting niobium (Nb), rare earth elements (REE), or nickel-copper-PGE mineralisation. A gravity survey program conducted by St George over six prominent magnetic features at the Destiny project has yielded significant results. Four of the six magnetic features have shown a high-gravity signature, suggesting they could be intrusions such as carbonatites or mafic intrusions, both known globally for hosting valuable mineralisation. These features, ranging from 0.9km…
The Queensland government has granted mining leases for a significant phosphate mine in northwest Queensland, marking a major step forward for the region's economy. North West Phosphate's Paradise South complex, located 130 kilometres northwest of Mount Isa, has been given approval, with expectations to create substantial employment opportunities and boost the local economy. The project is anticipated to generate 200 jobs during the construction phase and employ 245 workers once operational. North West Phosphate has committed to utilising local services, providing a further economic boost to northwest Queensland. Phosphorous, a key product of the mine, is essential for fertiliser production…
Rincon Resources Limited (ASX: RCR) has reported a significant breakthrough in its exploration activities at the West Arunta Project, with recent diamond drilling confirming the presence of Iron Oxide Copper Gold (IOCG)-style mineralisation. The company's second diamond drill hole at the Pokali prospect, labelled '24WADD002,' has intersected multiple zones with moderate to intense magnetite alteration, along with quartz and sulphide veining containing copper sulphides such as chalcopyrite, bornite, and traces of native copper and rare visible gold. These findings suggest the potential for a major IOCG deposit within the Pokali area. The drill core is currently being transported to Perth…
Iron ore continues to be a significant part of Tasmania’s mineral landscape, with the state’s leading operation undergoing some expansion works to ensure it maintains its annual production of two million-plus tonnes of magnetite concentrate. Meanwhile, a short-lived project to the south is ready to recommence mining once economic conditions improve. Located 60 kilometres southwest of Burnie, Grange Resources Ltd’s (ASX:GRR) Savage River has been subjected to a definitive feasibility study (DFS) into underground extraction below the north pit and its integration with the company’s current open-cut operation. According to the miner this document has revealed some robust financial outcomes.…
Rio Tinto will soon commence planning for the wind-down of operations and the eventual closure of New Zealand Aluminium Smelters (NZAS) following the conclusion of its strategic review which highlighted that the business is no longer viable given high energy costs and a challenging outlook for the Aluminum industry. As a result, NZAS has given Meridian Energy Limited notice to terminate the power contract, which will end in August 2021, when the wind-down of operations is expected to complete. The strategic review concluded that the smelter, which has made Rio Tinto an underlying loss of NZ$46m in 2019, is not…
Norwegian-based international energy company, Equinor, is leading a project to develop one of the UK’s – and the world’s – first at-scale facilities to produce hydrogen from natural gas in combination with carbon capture and storage (CCS). The project, called Hydrogen to Humber Saltend (H2H Saltend), provides the beginnings of a decarbonised industrial cluster in the Humber region, the UK’s largest by emissions. H2H Saltend supports the UK government’s aim to establish at least one low carbon industrial cluster by 2030 and the world’s first net-zero cluster by 2040. It also paves the way for the vision set out by…
Following the recently completed resource estimation for the Santa Comba tungsten and tin project in Spain, Rafaella Resources Limited has updated the mineral resource estimate for the project by 103 per cent. The increase demonstrates the outstanding potential of the Project and underpins the mine plan and feasibility studies currently underway. The company intends to recommence drilling numerous prospects once the feasibility study is completed to add both tonnage and grade to feed the future expansion of the project. Rafaella’s Managing Director Steven Turner said the resource update significantly increases the level of confidence in the Santa Comba Project and…
Rio Tinto, Turquoise Hill and the Government of Mongolia have reached an agreement on the preferred domestic power solution for Oyu Tolgoi that paves the way for the Government to fund and construct a State-Owned Power Plant at Tavan Tolgoi, Mongolia. The agreement, which is a revision of the Power Source Framework Agreement (PSFA) signed in 2018, states that the parties will work towards finalising a Power Purchase Agreement by the end of March 2021. In addition, the amended PSFA sets a proposed timetable for development, with the construction of the coal-fired power plant set to begin no later than…
Anson Resources Limited is planning to commence exploration on its uranium and vanadium lodes claims at its Yellow Cat Project in Utah, USA. The 85 Lode claims, which were pegged by the company in 2019, form a prospective exploration land package for both uranium and vanadium rich mineralisation which covers an area of 708 hectares. Anson advised that a recent review of historical drilling programs at Yellow Cat identified high-grade uranium and vanadium mineralisation results. They noted that the 38 per cent increase in uranium spot price recorded over the past three months, together with high-grade historical results and recent…
Mineral exploration and development company, Kodal Minerals plc, has provided an update on the progress of the Bougouni Lithium Project Mining Licence application in Mali and an update on its gold exploration properties in Mali and Cote d'Ivoire. The Bougouni Project covers an area of 350km2 and is located approximately 180km south of Bamako, the capital of Mali, and benefits from established infrastructure via a sealed road from Bamako. According to Kodal, the Feasibility Study accompanying the Mining Licence application has been accepted by the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum of Mali. The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum confirmed that no…
Equinor (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) and SSE Renewables, the two companies behind the world’s largest offshore wind farm Dogger Bank, have just revealed plans to build a new Operations and Maintenance Base at the Port of Tyne in the UK. The Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a 50:50 Joint Venture between Equinor and SSE Renewables. Construction of the wind farm, led by SSE Renewables, officially commenced in January 2020 and as operator for the operations phase, Equinor will construct this new Operations and Maintenance base, and operate the wind farm for its expected life of more than 25 years. The overall wind farm comprises three…
