A storm is brewing at Patronus’ Thunderball deposit, showing high-grade uranium

• High-grade uranium intersected at Thunderball with samples reaching 6.51% U3O8
• Drill results suggest Thunderball is a Proterozoic unconformity deposit, opening 30km of prospective stratigraphy
• JORC resource estimate due Q4 2025 as company pursues partnership and transaction pathways

Special Report: Patronus Resources has confirmed that high-grade uranium is present at the Thunderball deposit within its Pine Creek project in the NT after returning strong drill results.

The seven hole diamond drilling program confirmed strong continuous mineralisation with notable assays such as:

• 0.63m grading 65,092ppm (6.51%) U3O8 from a down-hole depth of 90m (TB25DD004);
• 6.76m at 3636ppm U3O8 from 91m including 1m at 21,757ppm U3O8 from 96.76m (TB25DD004);
• 0.6m at 2444ppm U3O8 from 183.4m (TB25DD002); and
• 1.8m at 1999ppm U3O8 from 74m (TB25DD003).

This includes five samples from hole TB25DD004 at 88-90m and 90.63-91m that exceeded laboratory handling limits and have been sent to ANSTO for assay and uranium mineralogy.

Notably for Patronus Resources (ASX:PTN), the drill results delivered a new geological interpretation – that Thunderball is a Proterozoic unconformity replacement deposit, typically some of the largest and highest-grade deposits globally.

This opens up more than 30km of highly prospective stratigraphy that reinforces Thunderball’s potential as a significant Australian uranium asset.

“Thunderball continues to stand out as a high-grade uranium deposit, with these results confirming both the strength and continuity of mineralisation,” PTN managing director John Ingram said.

“The emerging geological model provides valuable new context to guide further exploration across the Pine Creek project.

“With assays pending – and an initial JORC 2012 MRE due in Q4 2025 – we see multiple pathways to unlock further value at Thunderball and the broader Pine Creek district.

“With this strong technical momentum, Patronus is assessing strategic options to realise value from Thunderball.

“We are actively pursuing partnership and transaction pathways to progress the project, while continuing to advance our gold, uranium and base-metal growth pipeline in WA and the NT.”

Drill program

Thunderball sits ~200km southeast of Darwin within the central domain of the Pine Creek Orogen, which hosts several globally significant uranium deposits including Ranger, Nabarlek and Coronation Hill.

Its exploration licence covers a suite of nearby uranium targets, all within a 5km radius of Thunderball which highlight strong potential for a multi-deposit development scenario.

Uranium mineralisation is structurally controlled and forms where brittle deformation features intersect pyrite-rich intervals.

Stratigraphically, the mineralisation is positioned along the same contact that hosts the Mt Bonnie and Iron Blow VMS deposits.

Two main lodes – the Upper and Lower (Main) lodes – are recognised at Thunderball with true thicknesses ranging from 0.8m to 11m.

PTN’s seven-hole program – which was carried out to test the potential extension and continuity of the Main lode as well as increase the confidence in the Upper lode – has demonstrated the Upper lode also contains high-grade mineralisation that warrants further investigation.

The program also targeted predicted plunge extensions, with four of seven holes intersecting significant uranium mineralisation across multiple zones.

Further analytical work – including additional mineralogy and geochemistry – is proposed to test the interpretation that Thunderball is a Proterozoic unconformity-related deposit hosted within a pre-existing, pyrite-rich exhalative unit.

If confirmed, this model would represent a step change in the exploration approach for both VMS and uranium systems within the Pine Creek Orogen.

Next steps

PTN is currently awaiting the full assays and uranium mineralogy of the five samples it submitted to ANSTO.

It is also integrating the new drill and re-assay results into updated 3D models to refine lode geometries and mineralisation controls to support the delivery of a JORC resource estimate in Q4 2025.

In parallel, systematic target ranking is underway across nearby high-priority uranium prospects aimed at identifying additional mineralised centres that could support a multi-deposit development scenario.

This article was developed in collaboration with Patronus Resources, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.