Red Metal has burst into 2026 with a technically encouraging maiden drilling campaign at its Pulkarrimarra copper gold project in Western Australia’s red-hot Paterson Province.
The drill bit lit up a fertile geological system across both sedimentary copper and intrusion-related gold targets, while leaving a suite of compelling anomalies still to be cracked.
The four-hole diamond program delivered a strong geological signal, confirming the right rocks, the right alteration and the right mineralising ingredients, despite the absence of standout assay grades.
At Pulkarrimarra West, drilling zeroed in on Nifty-style sediment-hosted copper targets under its BHP-backed alliance, cutting thick sequences of Broadhurst Formation rocks, a proven host to major copper deposits.
One hole sliced through more than 250m of pyritic and carbonaceous shale before grading into calcareous units at depth. These sulphide-rich packages are widely seen as prime chemical traps for copper-bearing fluids. Microscopic work also revealed trace chalcopyrite within pyrite, signalling a fertile, functioning mineral system.
A second western hole hit less-disturbed carbonate rocks cut by gabbro, with the magnetic gabbro now looking like the likely cause of nearby geophysical anomalies. Notably, the company has pinpointed dome-like anticlinal structures as prime structural sweet spots where copper mineralisation could accumulate. Deeper geophysical work is now planned to better pinpoint these concealed targets.
Over at Pulkarrimarra East, the focus flipped to Havieron-style intrusion-related copper-gold systems along a major regional structure. One hole into a magnetic target intersected an intensifying zone of hydrothermal alteration at depth. The altered material included actinolite, feldspar, biotite and carbonate assemblages alongside quartz sericite veining – a classic signature of large-scale intrusion-related systems in the Paterson. While the magnetic source remains unresolved, Red Metal says the alteration halo suggests the drill hole may have clipped the outer edges of a mineralised centre.
A second eastern hole targeted an electromagnetic anomaly and intersected a granodiorite basement high, neatly explaining the geophysical response while returning no economic mineralisation. Several high conviction targets, including a standout magnetic anomaly, remain untouched, leaving plenty of blue sky for the next round of drilling.
Fresh from its late-March move to spin out a large portion of its Maronan Metals stake to shareholders, the company is tightening its capital focus and freeing up strategic bandwidth, with Pulkarrimarra now firmly framed as a cornerstone copper-gold play alongside its rare earth elements and iron oxide copper gold (IOCG) portfolio.
Red Metal Limited managing director Rob Rutherford said: “Red Metal has about $4.3 million cash at hand, and will continue to focus on advancing our unique Sybella rare earth element discovery and fulfilling our primary objective of discovering the next big copper deposits in Australia.”
Sitting in the heart of the Paterson Province, far northeast of Western Australia, the region is pulsing with pedigree. The tier-one Telfer gold mine and large Nifty copper operations sit alongside a new wave of intrusion-related gold-copper discoveries at Winu, Ngapakarra, Havieron and Minyari.
These systems appear increasingly linked to subtle, low-amplitude magnetic bullseye signatures, often associated with hydrothermal pyrrhotite or weak magnetite alteration halos – features once overlooked and now firmly in the exploration spotlight.
Rio Tinto’s Winu deposit, uncovered in 2018, already hosts more than 500 million tonnes at about 0.45 per cent copper equivalent with a higher-grade core, while Havieron, 45km from Telfer, contains 2.4 million ounces of gold and more than 100,000 tonnes of copper in reserves across a vertical kilometre.
The emerging model is clear – low intensity magnetic anomalies under cover can point to very high value systems. Red Metal believes Pulkarrimarra’s unresolved targets may sit within the same fertile corridor.
Strategically, the company is pursuing a discovery-driven playbook to unearth giant copper, copper-gold, copper-nickel and silver-lead-zinc deposits across Australia’s underexplored Proterozoic terrains. It says its approach blends advanced exploration models with leading-edge geophysics, systematic drill testing of proof-of-concept targets and a steady pipeline of new opportunities, all while leveraging partnerships to share risk and maximise exploration spend.
This strategy has landed the company with a diversified asset base, including its Sybella rare earths project in Queensland, estimated at a whopping 4.8 billion tonnes grading 302 parts per million (ppm) neodymium and praseodymium, coupled with 28ppm dysprosium and terbium.
Additionally, Red Metal has its eye on several promising hemi-style gold targets at Pardoo in WA’s Pilbara and multiple iron oxide copper gold opportunities.
The dual-track approach at Pulkarrimarra – BHP-funded sediment-hosted copper drilling in the west and wholly owned intrusion-related targets in the east – has delivered a balance of funding support and upside exposure, which the company says has allowed it to maximise exploration impact following its recent corporate reshaping.
Next steps at Pulkarrimarra will centre on refining geophysical models, deploying magnetotelluric surveys and returning to drill the highest-priority unresolved anomalies, particularly where structural architecture and alteration footprints coincide.
While the first pass didn’t deliver headline grades, Red Metal has effectively illuminated a live mineral system – and in a province known for hiding giant deposits just off target, that’s often where the first flicker arises before a far bigger fire. This is where the story begins.
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By Penny Taylor
