MRG Metals (ASX:MRQ) has outlined a 1.6km2 mineralised footprint through grid auger drilling at its Adriano Rare Earth Elements Project in Mozambique.
The company completed 99 auger holes across target area two within the Adriano licence. All holes returned mineralised to well-mineralised heavy minerals, with visual estimates consistent with previously reported results from the area.
Previous auger holes returned total heavy mineral (THM) grades of 6.94% over 3m and 6.41% over 3m.
Earlier mineralogical studies of bulk samples returned valuable heavy mineral (HM) content of 32.2% of the HM concentrate, including 24.4% ilmenite, 2.3% rutile, 1.9% monazite, 1.9% zircon, and 1.8% leucoxene.
“Our low-cost exploration has enabled us to develop a sizeable footprint with further opportunity to grow to economic scale,” Chairman Andrew Van Der Zwan says.
The drilling covered mature, well-compacted terrace gravel deposits adjacent to river systems. Holes on the northern, western, and southern boundaries of the 200m grid continued to show mineralisation.
“The constituents of the valuable heavy minerals, including critical minerals contained in the monazite and titanium-bearing sands, make a low-cost simple concentrate a likely development opportunity provided scale can be reached,” Van Der Zwan notes.
MRG plans mineralogical studies on different lithologies from the grid drilling holes to compare with the bulk sample mineralogy.
Additional grid drilling will continue across the Adriano and Fotinho licences, representing a combined 13km strike length of exploration targets.
MRG Metals is an Australian critical minerals explorer with a portfolio of rare earth and heavy mineral sands assets in South Africa and Mozambique.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: MRG Metals
