Tambourah Metals (ASX:TMB) has signed a collaboration agreement with Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, to extend the application of remote sensing and machine learning across tenements within its Pilbara critical minerals portfolio.
The collaboration aims to enhance Tambourah’s ability to prioritise lithium pegmatite targets by combining CSIRO’s technical capability in remote sensing and machine learning with the company’s regional geological knowledge and exploration datasets.
Executive Chairperson Rita Brooks says through the collaboration, Tambourah hopes to expand and generate new targets and develop new technologies.
She adds that the company also aims to increase confidence in the exploration for lithium-bearing pegmatites in ‘difficult’ terrains.
“This collaboration will accelerate the identification of early-stage, high-priority lithium bearing pegmatites and other critical minerals within Tambourah’s Pilbara projects,” Brooks says.
Tambourah holds over 400km2 of tenure covering areas historically mined for alluvial tin and tantalum at Eley’s, Coondina, Haystack Well, and Kurrana.
Exploration has identified extensive pegmatite systems associated with discrete bodies of the highly fractionated Split Rocks Supersuite, with mineral assemblages including tin, tantalum, niobium, gadolinium, zirconium, and beryllium.
These pegmatites are interpreted to be the source of historic alluvial tin, tantalum, and related minerals, which have not been systematically explored for lithium.
As part of its commitment to the study, Tambourah has commissioned HyVista to complete a high-resolution hyperspectral survey over the Coondina tenements this week.
The company says the survey will provide a dataset to support the assessment of the distribution and potential of the unexplored pegmatite terrane.
Under the Pilbara lithium-caesium-tantalum (LCT) projects, the collaboration will develop and refine lithium pegmatite prospectivity maps to guide follow-up exploration.
Surface sampling and remote sensing datasets will be integrated as inputs into machine learning algorithms used for prospectivity mapping.
Tambourah was also issued a Kick-Start voucher for the program, which provides Australian start-ups and small-to-medium enterprises with funding support and access to CSIRO’s research expertise.
Tambourah Metals is a West Australian explorer focused on gold and critical minerals assets in the Tambourah Goldfields and the Bryah Basin in the Murchison region.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
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