Brisbane based polymetallic explorer Superior Resources has expanded its tenement portfolio at its Dido/Big Mag project, part of its greater Greenvale project, located around 210 kilometres west-northwest of Townsville in Queensland to a massive 1,158 square kilometres of prospective nickel-copper-PGE ground.
The company believes the newly granted exploration leases hold the potential to host Voisey’s Bay or Julimar-Gonneville style magmatic sulphide systems.
The newly acquired landholding originally caught the eye of Anglo American Exploration in 2004 following an Australia wide ‘Voisey’s Bay-style’ targeting program. Voisey’s Bay is a proliferous nickel mine in Canada near the bay of the same name. Anglo ranked the Dido batholith in the top 10 of 100 priority targets across Australia at the time.
Ultimately Anglo American conducted limited drilling, however it did confirm the presence of mineralisation with hits including 133m grading 0.12 per cent nickel and 105m at 0.14 per cent nickel with internal sections grading up to 0.58 per cent nickel, 0.28 per cent copper, 290ppb palladium and 220ppm platinum.
Academics were also consulted at the time to get their two cents worth with findings showing “striking similarities to those that host the world class Lac des lles palladium and platinum deposit”.
Additionally, over 40 magnetic and electromagnetic conductor targets were identified on the tenure by Anglo American with only two drilled. Inexplicably, the positive drill results were not followed up leaving Superior with no shortage of initial targets to direct the drill heads.
Superior is also the beneficiary of enormous amounts of modern exploration data that was generated by Anglo on proven nickel-copper-PGE magmatic sulphide terrain. Included in the vast amounts of data handed over is a large compository of high-resolution airborne geophysical surveys totalling more than 5,070 line-kilometres in addition to numerous petrographic and academic studies on key rock types.
Planning is now underway to further the geophysical interpretation of airborne electromagnetic and induced polarisation survey data to identify additional targets. Field inspections of priority areas and preparation of drill programs will then follow.
As is often the case with large company’s including Anglo American, gems can be swept under the rug if they don’t fit the company’s multi-tiered business model. With that in mind, Superior now has its hands on a large inventory of high quality data and plenty of targets primed to feel the hard edge of the drill bit.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@wanews.com.au
By Matt Birney
