Encounter Resources (ASX:ENR) has begun diamond drilling at the Emily Deposit after aircore drilling returned further ‘high-grade’ niobium intersections ending in mineralisation.
Results from Emily include 7m @ 3.1% niobium pentoxide (Nb2O5) from 41m to end of hole and 16m @ 2.4% Nb2O5 from 93m within 67m @ 1% Nb2O5 from 65m to end of hole.
At the Green Deposit, infill drilling returned 19.7m @ 5.3% Nb2O5 from 76.2m within 92.4m @ 2% Nb2O5 from 74m. Additional results include 33.7m @ 3.8% Nb2O5 from 39m within 76.4m @ 2.3% Nb2O5 from 39m.
Both deposits are located within Encounter’s Aileron Project in the West Arunta region of Western Australia.
Executive Chairman Will Robinson says ‘high‑grade’ niobium intersections at Green and Emily continue to build momentum for the project.
“High-grade niobium intersections at Green and Emily continue to build, with Green delivering some of our highest grades to date within potential starter-pit areas,” Robinson adds.
“At Emily, drilling continues to expand the footprint of near-surface, high-grade mineralisation ahead of the next resource estimate update, and these results support the potential to bring Emily forward in the development schedule.”
The Emily deposit hosts an inferred mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 3.5 million tonnes (Mt) @ 1.9% Nb2O5 within 14Mt @ 0.93% Nb2O5. Green hosts an inferred MRE of 19Mt @ 1.6% Nb2O5 within 100Mt @ 0.71% Nb2O5.
Diamond drilling is now underway at Emily to test the depth extent of mineralisation below aircore holes that have consistently ended in mineralisation.
Encounter has drilled over 40,000m at Aileron in 2026, with a further 30,000m planned using three operating rigs.
The Aileron Project hosts a combined inferred resource of 120Mt @ 0.77% Nb2O5, containing a ‘high‑grade’ resource of 26Mt @ 1.7% Nb2O5 across the Green, Emily, and Crean deposits.
Encounter Resources is an Australian explorer advancing a portfolio of copper and critical minerals projects across Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Unsplash
