A West Australian junior involved in a number of exploration projects is confident it has come across an iron oxide-gold-copper (IOCG) deposit in its home state. Late last year, Miramar Resources Ltd (ASX:M2R) said that a review of historical drilling data had “potentially” revealed very significant magnetite iron opportunities at its wholly-owned Whaleshark project, which sits within the Carnarvon Basin in WA’s Ashburton region. Field work conducted in the area by Western Mining Corporation (WMC) in the 1990s whilst exploring for an IOCG intersected significant widths of magnetite-rich banded iron formation (BIF) averaging above 25 per cent iron beneath younger…
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…
Eni, a leading Egyptian Oil Company, has just announced a second light oil discovery on the b1-X exploration prospect, which is located in the South West Meleiha license, in the Egyptian Western Desert, located approximately 130 km North of the oasis of Siwa. The well in question is the second drilled well by Eni, who had plans to explore the deep geological sequences of the Faghur Basin. Approximately 7 km away from their first discovery (SWM A2-X), SWM B1-X has been drilled to a total depth of 4,523 meters. Down there Eni announced that they encountered 35 meters net of…
In partnership with Shah Deniz, BP has just announced the start-up of the new $28-billion project Shah Deniz 2, a landmark new gas development in Azerbaijan which will enable the first commercial gas delivery to Turkey. The project is set to start on time and on-budget. Shah Deniz 2 is set to be the first subsea development in the Caspian Sea, also forming the largest subsea infrastructure operated by BP worldwide. The project forms the beginning of the Southern Gas Corridor series of pipelines, delivering natural gas to the Caspian Sea and directly to European markets for the first time.…
Australian Oil and Gas company Calima Energy Limited has undertaken a strategic review of current and near-term investments in gas pipeline capacity relevant to the Montney Formation in Western Canada. “Calima is fast approaching the point where it will be drilling its first wells on the Calima Lands and it was therefore considered prudent to review the factors affecting the market both in terms of price and ease of access to infrastructure,” commented Calima Energy Managing Director, Alan Stein. The review identified over C$70 billion (approximately A$72 billion) of proposed infrastructure investments which have the potential to add over…
Nautilis Minerals Inc. has just announced the commencement of their wet-testing program for a new seafloor diamond drill rig. Nautilus’ rig, which is nicknamed the ‘Hobbit’ has met preliminary targets in a series of land-based trials, of which were largely focusing on rod handling, functional drilling and stability testing. Nautilus’ wet-test program is set to occur over a two-week period, expanding the testing parameters to include submerged operations and mechanical endurance. The Canadian registered company was the first to explore the ocean floor for polymetallic seafloor massive sulphide deposit (the sulphide deposit prospect is in Papua New Guinea and…
Global engineering firm, DRA, has successfully secured a contract with Sierra Rutile Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Iluka Resources Limited, for the expansion of its mineral sands operations in the Bonthe District of Sierra Leone. Sierra Rutile’s Gangama plant, which was originally constructed by DRA in 2016, will double its capacity to 1000-1200tph at the project’s completion. The project also includes the expansion of the Lanti front end circuit; and the refurbishment of the Lanti floating concentrator. “We are excited to continue our longstanding partnership with Sierra Rutile, which has included three feasibility studies and two engineering, procurement, and…
Lithium Power International Limited’s 50% owned Chilean joint venture company Minera Salar Blanco (MSB), responsible for developing the Maricunga Lithium Brine Project, has been awarded a key regulatory export licence by the Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission (CCHEN) to produce, market and export lithium products from Chile that are extracted from the Maricunga salar. MSB was granted a significant extraction quota on 9 March 2018 to export lithium from Chile. The quota has a term of 30 years and covers brine extracted from Maricunga, containing 88,885 metric tonnes of metallic lithium in brine or 472,868 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE).…
Construction at the US$80-million Epanko project in Tanzania is expected to commence next year. Following mining and processing, Epanko will produce a high-grade graphite concentrate. The proponent, the Australian company Kibaran Resources, is also looking at a further processing step, to produce graphite suitable for lithium-ion batteries. Because of their use in electric vehicles, such batteries present a strongly-growing market for graphite. Australia is the largest foreign investor in mining in Africa. Epanko is one of several dozen Australian projects that have progressed beyond an early exploration stage. There are many more at an early stage. According to one estimate,…
