Junior explorer Todd River Resources (ASX:TRT) has 800 rare earths samples from its Pingrup Nickel-Copper-Platinum Group Elements (PGE) Project in Western Australia on standby to be assayed pending the results of ongoing metallurgical testwork.
The company, which has a $7.17 million market capitalisation, says it recently re-assayed samples from 10 aircore holes in the project area, with the work highlighting anomalous rare earth element (REE) values. These holes initially targeted nickel-copper-PGE mineralisation, but analyses revealed several areas hosting REE anomalism.
As such, Todd River then made the call to further re-assay samples from the Greenfire and High Noon magnetics targets, with the results showcasing ‘thick’ intersections of ‘strongly anomalous’ total rare earth oxides plus yttrium oxide (TREYO). This includes a peak result of 3,620 parts per million (ppm) TREYO.
At the Greenfire prospect, the re-assaying of 37 holes returned REE-enriched clay-rich saprolite intervals up to 27m thick, including a 24-metre intersection grading 1459 ppm TREYO in hole PNAC0099 and a 21-metre intersection at 1162 ppm TREYO in hole PNAC0089.
Meanwhile, at High Noon, the company says it has uncovered a ‘well-developed’ clay horizon, with the top TREYO assays from this prospect being 27m at 1338ppm TREYO in hole PNAC0130 and 29m at 1057ppm TREYO in hole PNAC0110.
All up, Todd River re-assayed 50 holes across 7 traverses where end-of-hole anomalous values were identified. The results of this work have ‘significantly’ expanded the anomalous zones across the Pingrup instructions.
The company will now conduct metallurgical testwork before the end of 2023 to explore the potential for REE recoveries from the material.
If the testwork produces positive results, Todd River will re-assay the remaining 800 samples from the project area.
Todd River Resources Managing Director Will Dix says after expanding its previously identified anomalism through the re-assay work, the company is confident that it has a ‘robust’ enough footprint to justify the characterisation testwork on the clay and saprolite material.
“We are working through a number of options for this, and once we have commenced that work, we will look at how we maximise the value from the current samples and where we need further information for drilling post this year’s grain harvest.
“…we will look at how we maximise the value from the current samples and where we need further information for drilling post this year’s grain harvest”
In the Northern Territory at Mt Hardy, all surface preparation is complete for the upcoming drilling program that has unfortunately been delayed by several weeks. We now expect to be drilling in the second week of August and will update the market accordingly.
We are excited to be back drilling at Mt Hardy for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the targets we have generated there, I am confident we will have some excellent results to share with the market once they are received.”
Todd River’s Pingrup Project lies within exploration licence E70/5954, which covers roughly 240km-square within the Corrigin Tectonic Zone, about 300km southeast of Perth.
Alongside Pingrup, the company owns a string of base and precious metals projects across Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Todd River had $2.46 million cash at hand as of 31 March, according to its latest quarterly report published on 28 April.
Write to Joshua Smith at Mining.com.au
Images: Todd River Resources Ltd
