Neometals Limited has delivered a stellar set of early metallurgical results from the company’s Ironclad gold deposit, part of its Barrambie project in Western Australia’s Murchison region, revealing a lovely set of recovery numbers.
Initial testing delivered up to 71 per cent gravity recoveries and overall gold recoveries of up to 98 per cent, all achieved using conventional, low-risk processing methods.
The outstanding results suggest Ironclad could shape up as a clean, uncomplicated operation built to pump out gold and serious cashflow in equal measure.
The test program, which was carried out by Independent Metallurgical Operations in Perth, examined material from three separate sections of the Ironclad deposit.
Samples from the shallowest layer, called zone one, came from weathered rock containing networks of quartz veins. The middle section, zone two, consisted of weathered rocks with gold found in shears and veins, while the bottom layer, zone three, represented partly weathered and partly fresh material that also contained gold in shears and veins.
Each sample was tested for gravity recoverable gold and cyanide leaching under standard industry conditions - and the results didn’t disappoint.
Zones one and three posted near-perfect recoveries of 95 and 98 per cent respectively within just eight hours of leaching, while even the slower-leaching zone two sample returned an encouraging 80 per cent. The company now plans to fine-tune the process even further, squeezing out every last ounce of value from the second sample.
Interestingly, one of the samples also showed traces of tellurium - a promising sign that Ironclad could host a well-developed and potentially large gold system.
Neometals Limited managing director Chris Reed said: “It’s a great first step that reinforces our confidence in the Barrambie Gold Project as we advance the development of Ironclad. The presence of tellurium in a composite sample supports the potential for a well-developed gold system at Ironclad.”
The metallurgical test work comes hot on the heels of a busy exploration phase across Neometals’ vast 505-square-kilometre Barrambie project, which spans 40 kilometres of the highly prospective Barrambie Greenstone Belt.
The company has already completed more than 3,200 metres of reverse-circulation drilling at its historic Golden Treasure mine and Barrambie Ranges prospects, with a further 3,400 metres underway at Ironclad and additional holes planned for the nearby Mystery mine later in the month.
First assay results are due this quarter, kicking off a round of data crunching and planning, set to finish by March next year. After that, Neometals will dive into a fresh phase of metallurgical testing, upgrade its existing 13,000-ounce Ironclad resource and shift gears into detailed mine design.
Although Barrambie is best known for its world-class titanium riches, it is fast emerging as a promising new gold district. The ground hasn’t seen any serious gold exploration since the 1990s, yet the signs are impossible to miss.
A chain of old mines across the belt once produced 27,000 ounces at a whopping average of 27.8 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, suggesting that with the use of modern exploration techniques, there is still plenty of gold in the ground.
In 2024, Neometals set its sights high with an exploration target stretching 40 kilometres across Barrambie’s strike zone. The company believes the ground could conceal between 8 and 10.5 million tonnes of ore grading from 1.3g/t up to 2.3g/t- a prize that could hold between 335,000 and 775,000 ounces of the precious yellow metal.
That potential is now being backed by hard technical data. With high recoveries, rapid leaching times and simple metallurgy, Neometals is building a compelling case for a modern revival of one of the Murchison’s forgotten goldfields.
If the next batch of assays from the rotary truth teller continue the trend, Barrambie’s Ironclad deposit may yet prove to be exactly that - the ironclad foundation of Neometals’ next mining chapter.
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By James Pearson
