The latest drilling blitz at McLaren Minerals’ titanium project in Western Australia’s Eucla Basin has revealed thick new intercepts of heavy mineral-rich sands coupled with an unexpected groundwater discovery and confirmation of an in-ground gypsum source.
The 40 per cent complete campaign is focused on infill drilling within a previously identified mineral sands strandline that is about 40 kilometres west of Balladonia. McLaren expects to wrap up the 6000-metre air core drill program by mid-April.
Drill samples have picked up a steady string of heavy mineral-bearing sediments that sit in paleo-marine sediments below the surface and follow a consistent trend that rises gradually to the east. The multi-layered zones are predominantly made up of ilmenite and rutile, with only small levels of “trash” minerals in the mix.
Recent holes in the project’s northern end have punched through an additional 10m of mineralised material previously not mapped, which the company says points to a bigger-than-expected resource envelope.
McLaren Minerals managing director Simon Finnis said: “It is very good to see an increase in the mineral sediment profile noted in the northern area. Finding water was unexpected but a real bonus. Gypsum was always likely to play a role in our slimes management strategy, so having a potential source within our tenement package could offer meaningful benefits from an operating cost perspective.”
Six tonnes of mineralised material taken from 69 holes across a section of the resource are intended to represent the mine’s first five years of material and have now been sent for testing at IHC Mining’s Queensland laboratory.
The test work will refine McLaren’s mine schedule and fine-tune the management of residual clay impurities, known as slimes.
Earlier lab work found that slimes could be reduced to less than 200 grams per tonne when a 3 per cent gypsum settling agent was added.
The latest drilling has also discovered gypsum in the northwest corner of McLaren’s tenement, which could significantly reduce the project’s operational costs. Grab samples have been taken for testing with further drilling planned to define a meaningful supply.
McLaren needs to confirm the quality and extent of the gypsum occurrence but says it is buoyed by its presence.
The study also confirmed ilmenite in the final product produced was of a high enough grade to be sulphate ilmenite and the rutile was typically 95.7 per cent titanium dioxide with only a 1.5 per cent iron impurity. The zircon had less than 265 parts per million uranium and thorium, which is considered low by industry standards.
In a surprise win for McLaren, three of the drill holes also struck an all-important source of pressurised saline groundwater at a depth of only 20 metres. The water sits on top of a clay base and flowed freely during drilling.
The company will run further tests but says the water discovery, if found to be suitable, could tick a critical project infrastructure box.
Although poor weather stalled the rigs for a short time, McLaren has resumed its drilling program at the project and is tracking towards a mid-April wrap-up.
Punters will likely keep a close eye out for the results of McLaren’s assay tests underway in Perth and due in a few weeks, which will help move the company a step closer to completing its feasibility studies.
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By James Pearson
