Lodestar Minerals (ASX:LSR) has expanded its Virgin Mountain Heavy Rare Earth Project landholding in Arizona, US, by approximately 40%. The new ground includes a ‘high-grade’ structural corridor with rock chip assays of up to 14.68% total rare earth oxide (TREO).
The company staked an additional nine mining claims covering around 75 hectares to capture the full extent of the mapped heavy rare earth structure.
Recent rock chip sampling confirmed significant results, including 14.68% TREO with 59% heavy rare earth oxide (HREO) and 0.76% dysprosium oxide.
CEO Coraline Blaud says the results are the ‘strongest’ Lodestar has returned from Virgin Mountain.
“This confirms the exceptional grade and tenor of our xenotime-related mineralised structure,” Blaud says.
“Grades of this quality, dominated by the high-value heavy rare earths the market urgently needs, underline why we have moved decisively to secure additional ground along this highly prospective trend.”
The expanded package now comprises 32 mining claims totalling approximately 267 hectares, up from the previous 23 claims covering around 192 hectares.
Lodestar says the additional claims secure the priority strike extent of the interpreted heavy rare earth structural corridor along its mapped 5km trend.
Recent field work by the company’s US exploration team confirmed continuity of the xenotime-bearing mineralised structure along the interpreted trend.
Surface mineralisation has been extended by 175m from the Hummingbird zone, with the structure now traceable continuously from Hummingbird to sample location NGR051.
Additional rock chip results include 1.48% TREO containing 54% HREO and 1.39% TREO containing 57% HREO.
Xenotime contains a high proportion of dysprosium, terbium, and lutetium, and is currently one of only three heavy rare earth element (HREE) dominant minerals with a proven commercial processing pathway.
US agencies also consider these HREEs critically undersupplied, despite being central to magnet, defence, and clean energy supply chains.
Lodestar now plans to conduct a high-resolution radiometric and magnetic survey over the expanded project area to improve understanding of the structural architecture.
The survey will be integrated with outcrop mapping and ground-based radiometric work to generate targets ahead of an inaugural drilling campaign.
The company will progress drill permitting in parallel to ensure the project is drill-ready when targeting is completed.
Lodestar Minerals is a critical metals, gold, and base metals explorer, with assets in Chile, the US, and Western Australia.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
Images: Lodestar Minerals
