Heavy Minerals identifies potential long life, tier one asset at Red Hill garnet project
Heavy Minerals has delivered an exploration target for Red Hill of 90-150Mt grading 5.4-4.1% THM.
Drilling at the Red Hill garnet project in Western Australia has identified a potential long life, low cost, tier one asset for owner Heavy Minerals (ASX: HVY).
The project sits within a developed mineral sands province with established operations and logistic routes to market.
Final assays from a maiden 48 hole aircore campaign for 1,815 metres conducted in January returned consistent thick intervals of elevated total heavy mineral (THM) grades, with some greater than 22% THM.
They included a best intersect of 36m at 8.8% THM from surface and a longest hit of 60m from surface at 6.8% THM.
Notable results
Other notable intersections from surface were 7.6% THM over 51m; 6.8% THM over 60m; 6.6% THM over 24m; 6.4% THM over 16m; 6.1% over 13m; and 5.9% THM over 15m.
Garnet percentages in heavy mineral fractions were reported to range from 65% to 80%.
Ilmenite fractions of THM were between 5% and 15%.
The results are believed to complement initial “exceptional” assays which delivered 0m to 43m at 6.2% THM with a weighted average garnet fraction of 75% and an ilmenite fraction of 10%.
Near-surface sand package
Non-executive chairman Adam Schofield said drilling has further validated the large near-surface, garnet-enriched mineralised sand package at Red Hill.
“We believe the outstanding individual results from multiple drill holes are indicative of a potential low-cost, long-life tier one garnet asset,” he said.
“It is another potentially-viable, quality resource for development which will enable us to become one of the largest global suppliers of garnet for decades to come.”
Exploration target
Mr Schofield said an exploration target has now been defined for Red Hill using cut-off grades of 3% THM and 1% THM with the resource ranging from 90 million tonnes to 150Mt of material at 5.4-4.1% THM.
The target also contains between 5Mt and 6Mt of THM and 3.8Mt and 4.5Mt of garnet.
Port Gregory location
Red Hill is located near to Heavy Minerals’ flagship Port Gregory garnet project, which has an inferred and indicated mineral resource of 135Mt at 4% THM, including 4.9Mt of contained garnet and 220,000t of ilmenite.