Godolphin Resources has used a 5-hole diamond drilling campaign to light up rare earths mineralisation at its Narraburra project in NSW that will ultimately flow into a new year resource update. Significant intercepts from the program include 2m at 1238 parts per million total rare earth oxides, or “TREO" from 15m and on the back of the latest results the company believes a much larger rare earths system may be on offer given the strikes were acquired outside of the site’s known mineralisation.
Other notable intervals delivered through the program include a 7.1m hit going 1218ppm TREO from 38.9m.
Results from another hole include 1m at 668ppm TREO from 3m, 2m running 727ppm TREO from 22m and 21m grading 695ppm TREO from 51m.
Exploration further north returned several noteworthy hits including 1.25m at 582ppm TREO from 3m, 2.2m grading 907ppm TREO from 36m and 22m running 524ppm TREO from a depth of 54m.
Results from the 5-hole campaign form part of a more extensive 27-hole program at Narraburra. An additional set of assay results from the remaining 22 diamond holes are expected to be reported later this month.
Godolphin plans to use the incoming dataset to support its re-estimation of the project’s existing inventory up to a JORC 2012 classification. Narraburra currently holds an inferred, JORC 2004 compliant resource of 73.2 million tonnes at 1250 grams per tonne zirconium oxide, 327g/t rare earth oxides, 146g/t yttrium oxide, 126g/t niobium oxide and 118 g/t lithium oxide.
Notably, the company claims its latest batch of diamond drill results indicate it could have its hands on a much larger rare earths system in both the site’s weathered and fresh rock zones.
In addition, Godolphin argues the higher levels of rare earths mineralisation struck in the shallow weathered rock zones could provide an avenue for an economical and near-term mining opportunity. The NSW-based explorer is now looking to get a handle on the optimum extraction pathway for both the weathered and fresh rock-infused rare earths material.
Godolphin Resources Managing Director, Jeneta Owens said:“Since the initial farm-in agreement, the Company has drilled a total of 31 diamond drill holes at the Project, which can be used to update the existing Mineral Resource Estimate to JORC (2012) standards. An additional 22 of these holes, including drill holes completed within the known mineral resource, will be reported soon. Concurrently, the Company will also commence metallurgical test work to start defining the optimum process flowsheet for the Narraburra rare earths mineralisation.”
Godolphin’s Narraburra landholding includes a pair of tenements totalling roughly 350 square kilometres near the town of Temora in central west New South Wales. The company picked up the ground after entering into a two-tranche farm-in and joint venture agreement earlier with private explorer EX9 earlier this year. The deal allows Godolphin to acquire up to 75 per cent stake in the project through an exploration outlay of $3 million.
Working in the company’s favour is the fact that Narraburra has been formally recognised by the Australian Government’s Department of Industry, Science and Resources in the Government’s Critical Minerals Strategy document as a “major” rare earths deposit.
In addition, the Australian Trade and Investment Commission has flagged the operation as a “critical minerals project”. The designation means Godolphin can lean on the Government for funding, information and potentially operational support.
Rare earths are a group of 17 elements that are commonly used in the low-carbon energy sector to manufacture industrial-scale magnets for electric vehicles and wind turbines amongst a host of additional devices.
Interest in the commodity has reached fever pitch in recent times and research group P&S Intelligence has tipped revenue in the rare earths market to touch roughly US$15 billion by 2030, about double that of its 2021 figures.
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By Matt Birney
