Qld government grants to help Red Metal drill big copper-gold targets

Red Metal is poised to unlock the vast mineral potential of its Queensland copper-gold projects, thanks to two collaborative drilling grants worth a total $400,000 from the Queensland Government. 

The funds are set to spearhead the company’s proof-of-concept drilling program at two highly prospective iron oxide-copper-gold projects at its Gulf and Three Ways prospects. 

The company says its high-impact drill testing on geophysical targets in the Mount Isa terrain will be the first deep testing of the prospects, which are in a region renowned for hosting world-class base metal deposits. 

Red Metal has zeroed in on its GT9 target at Gulf, a compelling gravity anomaly that mirrors the scale and intensity of BHP’s giant Oak Dam copper-gold deposit in South Australia. Oak Dam has 1.4 billion tonnes of resources, including 220 million tonnes at 2 per cent copper and 0.5 grams per tonne (g/t) gold. 

Historic drilling at Gulf has already uncovered hematite breccias - key indicators of IOCG systems - lending weight to the company’s bold claim that the “must-drill” target suggests the potential for a game-changing discovery akin to Oak Dam.

At Red Metal’s Three Ways project 100 kilometres south of Gulf, the company is preparing to drill a 1.7km-long magnetic target, which coincides with a strong conductance anomaly that Red Metal says is indicative of Mount Isa-style sedimentary-hosted copper mineralisation. 

Located in a newly identified basin near a major fault zone, Three Ways copper sulphidic host rocks and proximity to a regional structure make it a prime property for big-scale base metal deposits. 

Heritage surveys for both projects are slated for June, paving the way for drilling to kick off in August. 

Red Metal’s managing director Rob Rutherford recently noted: “If we hit a huge IOCG breccia, it could be a write-your-own-cheque scenario for a junior like us.”

The Queensland Government’s funding underscores the state’s commitment to fostering its critical minerals future, particularly copper, as the region braces for the closure of Glencore’s Mount Isa copper mines later this year. 

Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory all offer collaborative exploration grants, which can offer a huge fill up to mining juniors wanting to drill high-risk exploration projects in remote, well-covered areas.

Also important for the company, its 44 per cent stake in ASX-listed Maronan Metals could soon be churning cash as well. Maronan yesterday unveiled a significant resource update for its silver-lead-copper-gold project near Cloncurry, Queensland. 

Infill drilling of the project’s shallow starter zone has more than doubled the indicated silver-lead resource to 5.3Mt at 5.2 per cent lead and 116g/t silver. A maiden indicated copper-gold resource was simultaneously released featuring 1.6Mt at 0.77 per cent copper and a healthy 0.67g/t gold. These sit within much bigger global inferred resources of 33.1Mt at 6 per cent lead and 108g/t silver and some 32Mt grading 0.85 per cent copper and 0.63g/t gold respectively.

Maronan has a scoping study underway, but its project’s proximity to the world-class Cannington mine 90km away and its near-surface mineralisation position it as a near-term development opportunity, complementing Red Metal’s expansive portfolio of riches.

Not to be overlooked, Red Metal’s flagship Sybella rare earths project near Mount Isa continues to loom large as a globally significant asset. Recent testwork confirmed Sybella’s exceptional heap leach potential, with high recoveries of magnet rare earths such as neodymium and praseodymium (up to 81%) using minimal acid and ultra-low iron impurities. 

The project’s colossal 4.8Bt resource, grading 302 parts per million (ppm) neodymium-praseodymium and 28ppm dysprosium-terbium across an 8-square-kilometre area, offers a low-capex, long-life opportunity that could position Red Metal as a key player in the global rare earths market. That’s if the company can square away its all-important metallurgical refining process. 

As Red Metal advances its Gulf and Three Ways drilling programs, alongside Maronan’s development milestones and Sybella’s massive resource potential, the company is entering a pivotal chapter in Queensland. With plenty of world-class potential projects, having multiple chances to land the big one would seem the strategy for the all-upside Red Metal.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au