Eclipse Metals advances maiden drilling and sampling at Ivigtût project
Eclipse Metals has completed 40-holes across the Ivigtût project in Greenland in the search for REE and other critical metals.
Eclipse Metals (ASX: EPM) has advanced a maiden drilling and sampling program at the Ivigtût project in Greenland, encompassing the historical Ivigtût cryolite mine precinct and Grønnedal carbonatite.
The company has completed 40 holes for a total 538 metres, nine of which have targeted host rocks over 111m at Ivigtût mine.
The remaining 31 holes for 427m were drilled at Grønnedal, along with the excavation of 51 pits and trenches which confirmed the highly-altered magnetic dolerite dyke to be widespread and deep-seated.
An additional five trenches were excavated on the Ivigtût waste dumps, measuring 20m long on 25m spacings.
Eclipse has since packaged five tonnes of trench samples for shipment to Australia where they will be analysed for a variety of mineralisation styles, host lithologies and grades to better understand their geochemical nature.
The dumps will also be prioritised according to grade and tonnage potential as a future source of saleable product.
Grønnedal drilling
The Grønnedal carbonatite was partially drill-tested in the mid-1900s to evaluate small-scale magnetite seams.
Recent surface samples collected by Eclipse returned significant values for a range of rare earth element (REE) minerals however the area had not been subject to systematic exploration prior to the current program.
Drilling aims to re-test known magnetite mineralisation and obtain fresh samples of carbonatite and magnetic dolerite dyke at depth to assess the REE content.
Trenching in rubble-covered areas has provided samples of in-situ rock formations.
Ivigtût exploration target
Historic production from the Ivigtût mine has been recorded as 3.8 million tonnes of high-grade cryolite for use as a flux in alumina smelting.
An exploration target of between 870,000t and 916,200t of cryolite mineralisation grading between 16% and 17.7% has been estimated to remain within the old workings.
Eclipse said it had identified the unique mineral cryolithionite at Ivigtût, providing encouragement for further exploration of the project’s potential for lithium mineralisation.
Visual estimates indicate there is substantial tonnage potential for mine waste-rock on surface containing visible cryolite, fluorite and quartz.
Presence of the zinc mineral sphalerite and lead mineral galena was also noted and will be assessed for potentially economic minerals including REE, lithium and tin.
Nine holes were drilled in proximity to the mine during the maiden program to obtain fresh samples for assessment of the geological setting and potential REE content of the Ivigtût formations.