WA1 Resources ready to expand on initial West Arunta success

A cashed-up WA1 Resources (ASX: WA1) enters the second half of calendar year 2023 well placed to build on already promising results in its vast Australian minerals portfolio and to potentially grab some further assets.

In unveiling its June quarter results, the company confirmed it continues to investigate and assess new opportunities to enhance the company’s portfolio.

This includes the company’s recent issue of new exploration tenement applications in the Northern Territory, located across the border from its highly-prospective West Arunta project in Western Australia.

Exploration assets remain major focus

While WA1 is keeping an eye on new opportunities, its main focus still remains its suite of exploration assets and in particular the West Arunta Project, located in the remote north-east of WA.

In a busy quarter, WA1 undertook a range of exploration activities at West Arunta to further define the base, precious and critical metal potential of the large project area which includes three granted exploration tenements covering an area of 267 sq km and two exploration licence applications.

The company’s main recent focus has been the Luni area at West Arunta where ongoing step out drilling has continued to define the lateral extent of the mineralised carbonatite.

Most notably the company has identified shallow high-grade and high-value niobium mineralisation over a 1.4 km extent.

Multiple tests underway

WA1 is now preparing to further test the multi-commodity potential that it has already identified at Luni, in particular a high-grade enriched layer which remains laterally unconstrained.

Testing includes a diamond drilling program initially focused on infill drilling and producing core samples for process test work with initial mineralogy tests identifying strong liberation characteristics of the high-grade primary niobium bearing minerals.

Drill core samples from the diamond drilling program will be used in metallurgical testing aimed at creating a conventional flowsheet design, similar to that currently used in a number of existing major international niobium mines.

The program will include the use of initial physical separation and flotation techniques targeting the production of mineral concentrates, prior to assessing the production of end-products.

The primary focus of this work will be on the niobium mineralisation, with other mineralisation to be investigated as potential by-products.

With approximately $17 million in the bank at the end of the recent financial year, WAI is well placed to accelerate activities at West Arunta and its other WA projects including Hidden Valley and Madura.

Madura negotiations underway

Located approximately 540km east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in WA’s south-east, the Madura exploration project consists of five granted exploration licences and two exploration licence applications in the Madura Province.

Little previous exploration work has been undertaken in the project area although indicators for copper-gold source and host rocks have been historically documented.

During the last quarter the company continued the process of negotiating heritage protection agreements, along with planning for potential initial exploration programs.

Historical exploration on the tenements, prior to WA1’s applications in 2021, included airborne geophysical surveys and a regional stratigraphic drilling by the Geological Survey of Western Australia.

The company believes there is potential for copper-gold mineralisation of an IOCG style and other mineralisation opportunities.

Hidden Valley survey assessment undertaken

Located 150km south of Kununurra and to the north of West Arunta, the Hidden Valley project covers 220 sq km in one exploration licence.

The company recently completed preliminary interpretation of the results of an airborne electromagnetic survey undertaken in late 2022.

To date, interpretation of the data by a private consultant suggests there are no obvious bedrock conductors, and that previously observed electrical conductivity trends are likely to represent conductive stratigraphy, deep weathering or conductive cover focused around drainage features.

WA1 is now contemplating follow-up field reconnaissance to verify the initial observations and better constrain the geology.