Black Canyon (ASX:BCA) has launched a 3,000m reverse circulation drilling program at the Wandanya Project in Western Australia as follow-up work on manganese and iron assays from previous sampling along 1.5km of the 3km of strike.
Black Canyon, which has a market capitalisation of $11.53 million, says drilling will test outcropping iron formations that previously returned grades up to 64.3% iron.
Managing Director Brendan Cummins said the company believes there is high potential to delineate mineral resources and confirm the significance of the manganese discovery.
“Historically, the Wandanya target has never seriously prospected or drilled for manganese which has presented a significant opportunity to the company considering the abundance of widespread outcropping high-grade manganese that is located only 80km from Woodie Woodie,” Cummins says.
“This second phase of reverse circulation drilling will significantly expand the potential mineralised footprint for both manganese and iron along and across strike and we look forward to announcing the assay results as they become available over the coming months.”
Further drilling is planned to test the full 3km strike potential of the outcropping targets and cross strike width between 600m and 900m.
The timing of a third phase program will depend on the results from the current phase two program, which are expected over July and August 2025.
Wandanya’s hydrothermal manganese and iron discovery represent a new exploration model on the eastern margin of the Oakover Basin, where Black Canyon has only drill tested 240m of strike of the 3km-long target.
Black Canyon also received a co-funded grant of $122,500 under the Western Australian Government’s Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS). The grant will assist in funding for this current round of drilling.
The state government’s EIS grant is a merit-based competitive program administered by the Geological Survey and Resources Strategic Division of the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry, Regulation and Safety to encourage innovative drilling projects in regional Western Australia that can lead to discovery.
Black Canyon is a manganese developer and explorer focused on its portfolio of projects in the mineral rich exporting hub of the Pilbara region.
According to the Department of Industry Science and Resources (DISR) March 2025 Resources and Energy quarterly report, manganese is a vital component in steel making and in consumer battery applications.
Manganese also plays a key role in nickel-based electric vehicle batteries. Its use in lithium-iron-phosphate batteries is also becoming more prominent.
The DISR report outlines that demand from batteries, for consumer goods and EVs, only accounts for 2-3% of the world’s manganese consumption.
In 2023, Australia was the third largest producer of manganese ore, accounting for 15% of the global production.
Manganese currently makes up the largest portion of other critical mineral exports, though the approaching end of life of a major manganese mine is expected to see exports fall by the end of the outlook period.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Black Canyon
