Australian Critical Minerals (ASX:ACM) is planning several follow-up work programs at the Shaw and Cooletha projects in Western Australia after identifying the iron ore strike length at both projects.
The company conducted field sampling and mapping at both projects, and as a result, identified two distinct banded iron formation (BIF) zones at the Shaw Project.
The Shaw Western BIF zone has a combined strike length of more than 7km with mapped and interpreted BIF unit widths over 100m, while the Shaw Eastern BIF zone has a combined strike length over 9km.
Australian Critical Minerals says additional field observations collected at Shaw have continued building on the concept that the BIF bearing formations are strike extensions of the Cleaverville Formation, which hosts direct shipping ore (DSO) iron ore deposits.
At Cooletha, ongoing integrated targeting is guiding the exploration team to collect an additional 189 rock chip samples of channel iron deposit (CID) mineralisation.
Field mapping, analysis, and reconstruction of paleo-drainage systems may lead to the discovery of CIDs concealed beneath tertiary or quaternary sediments.
Australian Critical Minerals says this concept will be further investigated, while the company awaits results for 221 rock chips.
Managing Director Dean de Largie says the company is busily designing a comprehensive follow-up sampling program at Shaw to convert the interpreted BIFs to mapped BIFs.
“Following the positive first exploration program with the identification of BIF and CIDs at our Pilbara tenements earlier this year, we made the decision to quickly return for a second program,” de Largie says.
“We are delighted that the results from this latest program involving additional recent rock sampling at Shaw and Cooletha has validated the interpreted potential strike lengths of both CID and BIF occurrences and identified significant widths in excess of 100m of BIFs and CIDs at the respective project areas.”
Australian Critical Minerals says it will conduct analysis and reconstruction work of the paleo-drainage systems at Cooletha to explore for concealed CIDs.
The company will also conduct a drilling program scope and access assessment at both projects.
Australian Critical Minerals’ Pilbara portfolio covers 494km2 and includes the Shaw and Cooletha projects.
Shaw, which is prospective for iron ore and gold, sits among established gold mines and new discoveries, while Cooletha covers 200km2 of potential iron ore prospectivity.
In addition to its iron ore prospects, the Cooletha Project holds over 100km2 of lithium prospectivity and includes more than 30km of observed pegmatite dyke swarms that vary in width.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Australian Critical Minerals
