Brazilian Critical Minerals’ (ASX:BCM) Ema Project has been recognised as a “globally significant rare earth project”.
Brazilian Critical Minerals appointed Brazil-based consulting firm GE21 Consultoria Mineral to update the mineral resource estimate by incorporating assay results from extensional drilling across a 101-hole program.
The updated mineral resource estimate is 1.07 billion tonnes at 732 parts per million (ppm) total rare earth oxide, which is 46.4% higher than the 500ppm cut-off.
Ema’s indicated resource also jumped by 58% to 392 million tonnes at 773ppm total rare earth oxide.
These updates have given Brazilian Critical Minerals “high confidence” in the resource expansion and are touted to significantly de-risk future development.
Since mineralisation is near the surface and “highly amenable” to in-situ recovery, the low-cost extraction methods responsible for most global ionic clay rare-earth elements supply can be adopted.
“With over 1 billion tonnes defined and a substantial increase in high-confidence indicated material, we are rapidly de-risking the project while maintaining strong exposure to high-value magnet rare earths,” Managing Director Andrew Reid says.
“Ema’s scale and near-surface geometry, combined with its suitability for in-situ recovery, position it as a potential low-cost, long-life supplier at a time when secure, Western rare earth supply has never been more critical.”
Brazilian Critical Minerals now plans to complete its Bankable Feasibility Study and secure both offtake agreements and permits.
Brazilian Critical Minerals is a mineral exploration company with assets mainly in Brazil’s Apuí region.
Write to Richard Szabo at Mining.com.au
Images: Brazilian Critical Minerals
