Aruma Resources is set to up the ante in its pursuit of rare earths at its Saltwater project in the Pilbara in Western Australia. The company holds 80km of strike and has tabled previous assays of up to 11 per cent rare earths.
Aruma plans to use surface mapping and sampling before geophysical surveys to better define drill targets for unconformity hosted heavy rare earths similar to those in the Athabasca Basin in Canada and the Tanami based Browns Range project under construction by Northern Minerals. Dreadnaught Resources is also having early success on its ground adjacent to Aruma using the same mineralisation model.
The explorer’s Saltwater project covers over 450 square kilometres with 80km of prospective strike some 100km southwest of Newman. Aruma pegged the ground for the gold potential of the Nanjilgardy fault known to host over 6 million ounces of gold elsewhere along its strike including the Paulsens and Mount Olympus deposits. Since then the company has conducted two previous RC drilling campaigns looking for gold. However, a change in focus is now on the horizon after assessment of historic exploration uncovered high-grade rare earths, uranium and base metals results from previous explorers. Costean results from the Nobbys prospect previously returned up to 3.1 per cent copper, 1.4 per cent lead, 1.5 per cent vanadium and 2 g/t gold.
The company plans to pursue a multi-commodity exploration focus whilst aggressively going after the rare earths potential at Saltwater.
The Northern Mineral’s Browns Range project demonstrates the prize with its Wolverine deposit hosting 4.85 million tonnes going 0.86 per cent total rare earth oxides which contain a massive 89 per cent of the valuable heavy rare earth elements. Dreadnaught has also had early rock chip success at its Bresnahan tenements which sit adjacent to Aruma with results up to 1.33 per cent total rare earth oxides with a high 30 per cent neodymium-praseodymium content in an unconformity setting.
Further south in WA at its Salmon Gums gold project near Esperance WA Aruma recently completed two geophysical surveys. A detailed aeromagnetic survey was undertaken across the known width of the greenstone sequence and a ground gravity survey was completed over the advanced gold prospects at Thistle and Iris. The results will be used to scope the full extent of the Salmon Gums greenstone and enhance the lithological and structural understanding at the Thistle and Iris prospects.
Aruma discovered Norseman-style high-grade gold at Salmon Gums in 2022 including 5m at 50 g/t gold from 43m. Follow-up drilling showed the greenstone belt was wider than previously thought and the company decided to conduct a detailed aeromagnetic survey to determine the exact boundaries of the gold prospective rocks. The 100m by 50m gravity survey grid at Thistle and Iris enabled identification of geology changes across the strike of the greenstone belt in very fine detail with felsic and mafic rock units giving very contrasting signals.
Aruma has a portfolio of four Western Australian gold projects located at Salmon Gums and Carter Well in the Yilgarn Craton and at Melrose and Saltwater in the Pilbara. The Mount Deans lithium-tantalum-rubidium project is located between Kalgoorlie and Esperance.
The 100 per cent owned Mt Deans lithium-rubidium project is located near Norseman, in the lithium corridor of south-eastern Western Australia. The lithium corridor is known as such due to the fact it hosts significant deposits such Mt Marion with 51.4 million tonnes going 1.45 per cent lithium oxide, Bald Hill holding 26 million tonnes grading 1.0 per cent lithium oxide and Buldania hosting 14.9 million tonnes at 1.0 per cent lithium oxide. Aruma believes its Mt Deans pegmatites sit within the same host rocks and structures as these renowned lithium deposits.
Aruma’s diverse and highly prospective WA portfolio of gold, lithium and rare earths projects reflects careful ground selection. The company is primed to launch into some high impact exploration at Saltwater where the rare earths search will soon be underway in earnest. Watch this space.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Matt Birney
