Neometals reveals ‘encouraging’ nickel sulphide assays at Mt Edwards
Neometals has uncovered 5m at 9.63% nickel during drilling at Armstrong.
Neometals (ASX: NMT) has received what it describes as “encouraging” results from drilling at the Armstrong deposit within its Mt Edwards nickel sulphide project in Western Australia.
Drilling, sampling and down hole electromagnetic surveys were carried out at Armstrong and a recently acquired exploration licence during November and December last year.
The program involved 11 reverse circulation holes for 2,083m and uncovered thick intercepts and high-grade nickel sulphide mineralisation.
Wider intercepts were 34m at 1.94% nickel, and 24m at 1.13%.
Within the broader intercepts were numerous higher-grade intervals such as 6m at 8.11% nickel, including 5m at 9.63% nickel; and 10 at 1.65% nickel, including 4m at 2.42% nickel.
“These strong results from Armstrong continue our success in identifying massive nickel sulphide mineralisation within our existing inventory,” Neometals managing director Chris Reed said.
Drilling at Armstrong, which lies on a mining lease, was designed to infill and test extensions to the deposit’s existing mineral resource of 320,000t at 2.6% nickel for 8,180t of contained nickel.
Follow up work at the deposit will involve diamond core drilling to gain a better understanding of the deposit’s structural orientation and metallurgical properties.
Over at the newly acquired, yet to be name licence, drilling and down hole electromagnetic surveys were carried out.
The new tenement is 2km directly north and along strike of Mincor Resources’ Cassini mineral resource.
At the new tenement 1m at 1.18% nickel was intersected.
Although a small interval, Mr Reed said it was a “successful discovery” of nickel sulphide mineralisation along strike from Cassini.
He added it provides encouragement that the company’s “extensive tenement package around the Widgiemooltha Dome is one of the most prospective areas for greenfields nickel discoveries”.
Further work at the new tenement will include ground geophysical surveys to expand on the geological knowledge gleaned from previous work.
Mt Edwards nickel project
Located 90km south of Kalgoorlie, Mt Edwards includes 46 granted and pending mining tenements spanning 50km of strike over the Widgiemooltha Dome, which has hosted several historical nickel mines.
The project has global resources of 7.7Mt at 1.7% nickel for 130,480t of contained nickel.
“In preparation for a strengthening nickel market in the medium term, driven by increasing demand in the battery materials sector, Neometals will undertake mining studies and develop a pipeline of short lead time nickel sulphide resources,” Mr Reed said.