Matt Birney

Aspiring ASX-listed heavy rare earths developer Northern Minerals, has delivered on its pre-Christmas plan with 8,500m of RC drilling at its Browns Range project in WA’s East Kimberley region. The results produced some solid hits including 9m at 0.54 per cent TREO from 53m downhole and 11m at 0.37 per cent TREO from 52m in two separate holes at its greenfield Toad prospect.

Si6 Metals has kicked off an RC drilling program at its Monument gold project about 40km west of Laverton in WA following an encouraging reconnaissance rock chip sampling program. The latter returned several high-grade values including 39.3 g/t gold, 25.8 g/t, 21.3 g/t and 13.15 g/t from the Fred’s Well prospect, and 21.5 g/t, 15.15 g/t, 15.15 g/t and 10 g/t at the Perseverance prospect.

The potential of Legend Mining’s Mawson nickel sulphide discovery in WA’s Fraser Range continues to impress, with ongoing exploration expanding the footprint of the main prospect area and locating a look-a-like target a mere 2km to the south. The scene is set for a bumper year ahead for the company with recent results producing some of Mawson’s best nickel sulphide intercepts to date.

Aspiring nickel developer, Blackstone Minerals is set to spin out its Australian and US gold assets as it continues to focus the development on its Ta Khoa nickel sulphide operations in Vietnam. The company has flagged the listing of a new vehicle on the Australian Securities Exchange, based on a package of gold assets in the coveted goldfields of Western Australia.

Victory Mines has moved to full ownership of its flagship Coogee gold project in WA, with the company issuing of $1 million in shares to the company’s former joint venture partner in the project, mid-tier gold miner Ramelius Resources. The company is already capitalising on its new ownership in the high-grade project and is knee deep in a follow up drilling program across the gold-bearing Coogee Shear.

Venus Metals Corporation has jagged a couple of high-grade gold hits from a round of reconnaissance drilling at the Range View prospect nearby its Bellchambers deposit as part of its historic Sandstone gold project in WA. Notable intersections at Range View were 11m grading 4.69 g/t gold from 12m including 1m at 38.92 g/t from 20m and 5m at 9.03 g/t from 18m.

Venus Metals Corporation has returned a swag of high-grade drill hits from its Youanmi gold project in WA. A relentless drilling campaign over the resurgent project continues to deliver an abundance of gold hits including 12 metres at 6.54 grams per tonne gold from only 28 metres and 2m at 11.81 g/t gold from 53m down-hole at the new the Link discovery.

Set to be one of WA’s next gold miners, Calidus Resources has been buoyed by a clutch of solid RC infill drilling results at its under-construction stand-alone Warrawoona gold mining and processing operation in WA’s East Pilbara region that have exceeded the project’s average ore reserves grade of one gram per tonne gold.

ASX-listed Eclipse Metals has pounced on a unique opportunity in southern Greenland, securing ownership of the Ivittuut cryolite mine and its associated infrastructure. Cryolite is a specialty mineral that is used as a fluxing agent in the production of aluminium, greatly reducing energy consumption through the smelting process, however the deposit also contains a potential treasure trove of accessory minerals.

ASX-listed agribusiness developer, Alterra has tabled a double-digit IRR feasibility study for the 30-year life span of its planned 300-hectare Carpenters Avocado project near Pemberton in the South West region of Western Australia. The company also said construction of a 4.1 gigalitre dam to irrigate the project had commenced with the first 50-hectare planting due this year, subject to funding.

Emu NL has kicked off its 2021 drilling campaign at the Gnows Nest gold project in WA. The company has commenced a 9,000-metre reverse circulation across the historical mining area which is aimed at validating and building on the existing high-grade resource over the Gnows Nest mine and to begin testing the extensive gold mineralisation at the Monte Cristo prospect to the north.

Lithium Australia has entered into a joint venture with Galan Lithium that sees the latter pick up an 80 per cent stake in the Greenbushes South lithium project from Lithium Australia. As a result of the JV deal, Lithium Australia retains a 20 per cent free carried exposure to the lithium commodity while also freeing up cash to advance its downstream and battery technology projects.

ASX-listed gold and base metals explorer, Middle Island Resources has expanded its ground position surrounding the surface copper oxide mineralisation discovered at its 100 per cent-owned Barkly copper-gold project in the NT’s East Tennant mineral district. The company has broadened its footprint around the recent Crosswinds copper discovery by 26 per cent to a colossal 4,411 square kilometres by applying for two new tenements.

Mako Gold has started the new year with a bevy of more bonanza gold drill hits at the Tchaga prospect as part of its flagship Napie gold project in Côte d’Ivoire. The latest set of assays from the company’s continuing 10,000m RC and diamond drilling program were punctuated by a cracking 41m going 4.51 g/t gold from 17m and 1m at 107 g/t from 71m.

AVZ Minerals has taken another decisive step towards production, with the company’s metallurgical test work successfully generating a high-purity lithium sulphate product for potential use in the production of lithium-ion batteries. The current testing program forms a key part of the development program over its Manono lithium-tin project in the central Africa, which is also assessing the viability of downstream processing at the evolving operation.

Okapi Resources has completed due diligence on the historic Enmore gold project 30 kilometres south-east of Armidale nearby the recently revived Hillgrove gold-antimony mine in north-eastern NSW and decided to press ahead with the staged acquisition of the asset. Enmore boasts a pair of advanced walk-up drill targets that have returned high-grade gold values from rock chip sampling work and drilling undertaken by previous owners.

Comet Resources has kicked an early goal in 2021 with initial field work across its Barraba base-metal project in NSW returning high-grade copper assays. Surface sampling at the historic Murchison mine has unearthed samples grading up to 4.6 per cent copper, 4.0 per cent zinc and 0.7 per cent cobalt, confirming the high-grade nature of the mineralisation across the prospect.

Legend Mining has bounded into the new year releasing its best nickel intercept to date from the company’s Mawson discovery in WA’s Fraser Range. The drill bit has carved out a 31.1 metre string of massive sulphide core which weighs in at an impressive 2.80 per cent nickel and 2.04 per cent copper from 200.7 metres down-hole, pointing to the deeper potential of the ore system.

Calidus Resources has bought out another royalty tied to its developing Warrawoona gold project in WA’s East Pilbara region that it says will help boost cash flows from the new mining and processing operation. The company sewed up the 1.25 per cent profit royalty over the granted mining leases at Warrawoona, leaving one remaining 1.25 per cent profit royalty attached to the same tenements.

ASX-listed Venture Minerals has the drill rods spinning at its Kulin prospect, cutting some diamond core to follow up solid gold assays from trenches dug on its 100 per cent-owned ground, east of the massive Boddington gold mine in WA’s South West region. One trench uncovered 31m at 1.0 g/t gold and a second unearthed 20m at 0.6 g/t gold.

ASX-listed explorer, PolarX has struck a deal that gives it an exclusive option to acquire the historic Humboldt Range gold-silver project in north-western Nevada in the US nearby two producing mines. The Perth-based company says rock chip and grab samples taken at Humboldt Range between 2005 and 2009 maxed out at 3,384 grams per tonne gold and 2,836.6 g/t silver.

88 Energy has added a historic oil project to its armoury of petroleum assets picking up the old Umiat oil discovery that sits immediately south of its Project Peregrine on the North Slope of Alaska where planning is well advanced for the spudding of the Merlin-1 well next month. The undeveloped Umiat project hosts gross 2P reserves independently estimated at 123.69 million barrels of oil.

Surefire Resources is eyeing a rapid return to drilling at its Yidby gold project in WA’s Murchison region and is set to follow up on recent high-grade drill intercepts with a 40-hole, 6,000m reverse circulation drilling campaign in the coming weeks. Results from the prospect included an imposing 56 metres at 1.97 g/t gold from only 44 metres down-hole, proving ample incentive to accelerate the company’s exploration program over the discovery.

Victory Mines has hit the ground running in 2021 kicking off a second significant RC drilling campaign at its Coogee gold project 55km south-east of Kalgoorlie to follow up on a string of high-grade gold hits last year. One of the notable gold intersections was 12m grading 12.01 g/t gold from 93m including 3m at 35.87 g/t south of the historic Coogee open pit.

Ora Banda Mining is edging closer to production start-up at its historic Davyhurst gold project 120 kilometres north-west of Kalgoorlie, with definitive feasibility study numbers pointing to a cracking cash cow for WA’s next gold miner in waiting. The company previously indicated it was targeting a first gold pour at the redeveloped Davyhurst mining and processing operation towards the end of January.

With the world continuing to devour a bevy of 21st-century metals to feed its burgeoning renewable energy, electric vehicle and technology industries, ASX-listed Venture Minerals is ramping up its hunt for copper, zinc, gold and silver in WA while the company is also on track to commence iron ore production in north-western Tasmania early in the new year.

ASX-listed oil and gas explorer, 88 Energy says the planned spudding of the Merlin-1 well at its Project Peregrine on the North Slope of Alaska remains on track to go ahead next month. The company also hopes to drill the project’s Harrier-1 well immediately after the Merlin-1 well has been completed. Construction of the snow road to the Merlin-1 and Harrier-1 locations is under way.

ASX-listed gold explorer, Great Southern Mining has quickly shaken off any lingering after-effects of festive season celebrations and got back to business, resuming a significant RC drilling program at its Mon Ami and Cox’s Find gold projects near Laverton in WA.

ASX-listed base metals and gold play, Si6 Metals has identified a string of polymetallic anomalies at its flagship Maibele North project in Botswana while the company’s deep diamond drill hole continues its journey to approximately 550 metres depth targeting nickel sulphide mineralisation.

ASX-listed Estrella Resources enjoyed a stellar ride on the bourse in the wake of arguably one of the most exciting base metals discoveries last year at its Carr Boyd nickel project 80km north-north-east of Kalgoorlie. An open letter to shareholders by Chairman Les Pereira published this week suggests 2021 may prove even more of a hit.

Fresh from being awarded an “investigation” permit for its San Jose lithium project in Spain, Infinity Lithium’s proposed development of a mining and processing operation at San Jose with an estimated pre-production CAPEX of US$309 million has been given a big vote of support by key strategic investor EIT InnoEnergy.

ASX-listed clinical-stage oncology group, PharmAust has extended its pre-clinical studies collaboration with the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute as they work towards determining how effectively PharmAust’s Monepantel drug combats cancer cells.