Orpheus Uranium (ASX:ORP) has added 2,735km² to its Marree Uranium Project in South Australia, following the grant of three exploration licences.
The licences comprise the 939km² Etadunna South tenement, 935km² Dulkaninna North tenement, and 861km² Dulkaninna South tenement. They are held by the company’s wholly owned subsidiary Trachre.
The new ground complements Orpheus’s existing tenure and the proposed tenement acquisition announced in June, extending its position along the western edge of the northern Flinders Ranges and into the Lake Eyre Basin.
Managing Director and CEO Clinton Dubieniecki says the licences give Orpheus a larger area over which to apply a consistent exploration approach.
“Importantly, as we integrate regional datasets, field observations, and geological learnings across the broader project, our team will be able to apply a consistent exploration model, progressively refine the most prospective parts of the system, and pursue a meaningful uranium discovery,” Dubieniecki says.
The broader Marree area contains several geological features considered favourable for sediment-hosted roll-front uranium deposits.
Uranium-enriched granites within the Mount Babbage and Mount Painter inliers are regarded as possible source rocks. The company also notes weathering and groundwater can carry uranium from the rocks into porous sediment layers, where changing chemical conditions may cause it to accumulate.
The new licences contain mapped sections of the Eyre and Namba formations, as well as older Cretaceous sediments. Similar geological units host uranium mineralisation elsewhere in the region, including at the Four Mile, Pannikin, Pepegoona, Honeymoon, Goulds Dam, and Beverley deposits.
Orpheus says it plans to combine regional data with field observations to map buried ancient river channels, permeable sandstone layers, and potential pathways for uranium-bearing groundwater.
The company notes it will then rank areas for more advanced exploration, including drilling. Any fieldwork will remain subject to heritage surveys, regulatory approvals, and land-access requirements.
Orpheus has an active Native Title mining agreement for exploration with the Dieri Aboriginal Corporation, the agent acting on behalf of the Dieri people. Orpheus says the agreement provides a pathway for seeking access to the newly granted areas through consultation and additional authority provisions.
Orpheus Uranium is an Australia-focused uranium explorer with projects across South Australia, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia.
Write to France Pinzon at Mining.com.au
Images: Orpheus Uranium
