Andrew Duffy

Si6 Metals has expanded its Brazilian footprint, snatching 300 square kilometres of new ground prospective for rare earths in the State of Minas Gerais. The newly-acquired turf, dubbed the Pimenta project, sits in the north-east of the State and has thrown up some head-turning radiometric anomalies over 26km of untested strike. It adds further ground to the Brazilian JV it shares with Foxfire Metals.

Battery materials recycler Neometals has earned a promotion from the United States’ over-the-counter “Pink Sheets” market to now be eligible to trade on the top tier – the OTCQX Market Group’s “Best Market”. It means US investors can now get behind the West Perth-based company with more confidence as the Best Market qualification is underpinned by strict financial criteria regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Resource definition drilling is underway at Everest Metals Corporation’s Mt Edon critical mineral project in WA’s Mid West region in a bid to firm up the existing rubidium exploration target to mineral resource status. The target is between 3.2 and 4.5 million tonnes with a grade of 0.23 to 0.35 per cent rubidium – numbers the company hopes to swell in its looming maiden mineral resource estimate.

Aurum Resources has revealed a glimmering suite of wide gold hits from a recent diamond drilling campaign at its Boundiali project in West Africa’s Côte d'Ivoire – peaking at 90m going 1.16g/t from 143m. The new assay collection also includes 59m at 1.42g/t gold from 68m with 13m at 3.92g/t and 23m at 1.36g/t from 293m featuring a 5m chunk going a solid 3.32g/t.

Askari Metals’ latest auger drilling campaign has revealed encouraging total rare earth oxides hits as high as 4505ppm at its 100 per cent-owned Red Peak project in Western Australia’s Gascoyne region. It comes just a week after its neighbour Krakatoa Resources set the ASX alight with a 130 per cent share price jump after it discovered a new niobium-rare earths target.

Meeka Metals says a $180,000 WA Government grant is a glowing endorsement for its 100 per cent-owned “kilometre-scale”, gold-rich Circle Valley project near Esperance in Western Australia’s deep south. Previous drilling at the project has thrown up impressive gold drill hits as high as 16m at 1.5g/t drilling is scheduled to begin in the second half of this year.

Novo Resources will kick off 4km of RC drilling next week to follow up on high-grade gold hits reaching up to 6m at 6.12g/t at its Nunyerry North prospect, about 150km south-west of Port Hedland in Western Australia. Results from the company’s maiden drill program turned heads, with other intercepts running as high as 11m at 2.52g/t from 22m including a 6m chunk at 4.19g/t.

Image Resources has revealed a compelling prefeasibility study for its 100 per cent-owned Yandanooka mineral sands project north of Perth in Western Australia, showing an annual EBITDA of $277 million for more than eight years and a capital payback of just 15 months. The project is modelled to produce 1.04 million tonnes of heavy mineral concentrate during its 8.2-year mine life.

Si6 Metals has detailed plans to kick off its third drilling program in Brazil’s renowned “Lithium Valley”, with 20 auger holes to be plunged as the company homes in on lithium and rare earths soil anomalies going as high as 103ppm lithium and 710ppm TREO in the Padre Paraiso prospect area. The area has proven to be highly-prospective for lithium and rare earths.