Estrella Resources to sell off Spargoville project’s nickel rights
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Diversified exploration company Estrella Resources (ASX: ESR) has launched an independent sales process for the nickel rights over its Spargoville project located west of Kambalda in Western Australia.
The process follows the receipt of a number of unsolicited offers to acquire, or participate as a joint venture partner, in the rights.
Geolithic Geological Services will manage the sale, and administered the divestment of Estrella’s Munda gold project in 2020.
Spargoville discovery
The Spargoville project area was first discovered by Selcast Exploration in the late 1960s.
Since then, deposits 1A, 5A, 5B, and 5D have been identified and developed, and all are believed to contain remnant mineralisation.
Estrella acquired Spargoville in 2017 following the acquisition of WA Nickel Pty Ltd.
In 2018, the company completed a maiden drilling program across the project area, targeting high-grade nickel directly beneath the 5A open pit as well as an electromagnetic target between the 5A and 5B mines.
Drilling beneath the 5A pit floor returned “spectacular” high-grade nickel sulphide intercepts with accompanying polymetallic mineralisation.
Highlights were 15m at 10.45% nickel, 0.78% copper, 0.20% cobalt, 0.87 grams per tonne lead and 1.15g/t platinum from 20m; 5m at 11.32% nickel, 0.54% copper, 0.21% cobalt, 0.42g/t palladium and 0.22g/t platinum from 61m; and 3m at 12.90% nickel, 1.37% copper, 0.29% cobalt, 1.86g/t palladium and 0.67g/t platinum from 69m.
Carr Boyd focus
Estrella managing director Chris Daws said the sale of Spargoville’s nickel rights would allow the company to maintain an exploration and development focus on its flagship Carr Boyd project near Kalgoorlie, where it made a recent nickel-copper discovery at the T5 electromagnetic target.
Reverse circulation drilling at the target in late-2021 intersected 11m of mineralised basal contact zone including 5m of strong matrix-style nickel and copper sulphides.
“With our exploration program solely focused on unlocking Carr Boyd due to the exceptional results we have achieved there, we are pursuing the sales process for the nickel rights over Spargoville,” Mr Daws said.
“As evidenced by assay results from our maiden drilling campaign in 2018, Spargoville has proven to contain high-grade nickel sulphides and I look forward to updating investors as the sales process for this project unfolds.”