Bryah Resources makes high-grade manganese find near Mount Labouchere

Reconnaissance sampling near Bryah Resources’ (ASX: BYH) Bryah Basin project in central Western Australia has discovered manganese mineralisation within the project’s Horseshoe formation, recording grades as high as 54% manganese.

The sampling program focused on the north-western extensions of Horseshoe, in an area of interest identified from satellite imagery near the Mount Labouchere prospect.

A zone of outcropping manganese was found and a total of seven rock chip samples were collected from the area, three of which recorded grades of 45.4%, 49.9% and 51.4% manganese.

Another sample collected from an area 500 metres to the north of the Brumby Creek prospect assayed what Bryah referred to as “an outstanding” grade of 54.5 manganese – the highest recorded by the company this year.

Identified in August during an airborne versatile time-domain electromagnetic (VTEM) survey, the Brumby Creek area is believed to have a conductive anomaly response lying along the axis of the Horseshoe syncline and coinciding with the alignment of a creek at the base of a broad valley.

The high-grade rock chip sample was taken from outcropping manganese close to this creek.

Bryah said the discovery of high-grade manganese in outcrops within Horseshoe demonstrates the whole of the formation – from the Mudderwearie and Devils Hill prospects in the south-east through to Mount Labouchere in the north-west – is prospective for high-grade manganese mineralisation.

The reconnaissance sampling program commenced in March with the aim of identifying manganese occurrences and generating targets for follow-up exploration and drilling.

Channel-style deposit

The Mt Labouchere manganese occurrence lies within the Horseshoe formation and is

indicative of channel-style manganese deposition, consisting of cemented pisolites and more angular manganese lithics, overlying massive consolidated manganese.

Although thinly bedded (up to 2 metres), Bryah said the occurrence has potential to be a shallow paleochannel deposit amenable to simple mining.

Managing director Neil Marston said the reconnaissance results will allow the company to undertake an extensive shallow drilling program of several newly-identified manganese targets in the new year.

“Given our dominant landholding over the Horseshoe Range, [we have] an excellent opportunity to define shallow economic manganese resources in the near future,” he said.

At midday, shares in Bryah Resources were steady at $0.098.