Australian Mines finds two more REE prospective areas at Jequie

Auger drilling delivers TREO values greater than 400ppm at Jequie
Two key areas have been defined for follow up
Further metallurgical work may be required along with sampling and mapping

Special Report: Neighbouring Gina Rinehart-backed Brazilian Rare Earths in Brazil’s Bahia state is Australian Mines, whose latest round of auger drilling has interested near-surface intervals of saprolite and clay rich with rare earths.

The 72-hole, 500.6m drilling campaign was conducted across two priority REE-in-soil targets, delivering results such as 15m at 1720ppm total rare earth oxides, including 3m at 3055ppm TREO.

Around 69% of the assays returned TREO values greater than 400ppm and a depletion of cerium, a strong indication that the REE enrichment is likely related to ionic clay adsorption.

Australian Mines (ASX:AUZ) has earmarked the targets for follow-up exploration to expand the known footprint of TREO enrichment namely at the North Dário Meira Eluvial and South Dário Meira Eluvial areas.

Jequie background

The company acquired the Jequie project in December 2023 to expose shareholders to additional opportunities in the battery metals space with the potential for Tier-1 critical mineral discoveries.

While the company first acquired the ~826km2 Jequie project on its proximity to BRE’s Rocha de Rocha and a large 25km long thorium anomaly – a common signpost for REE mineralisation – site visits have subsequently uncovered the right ingredients for charnockites, leucogranites and weathered clay and saprolite profiles.

Subsequently, AUZ expanded its holding in the region by acquiring 17 new tenements comprising ~510km2 (51,000ha), making AUZ one of its largest tenement holders.

Going forward, Australian Mines intends to complete additional exploration programs at Jequie which may comprise geological mapping, geochemical sampling and auger drilling.

Metallurgical test work may also be completed to form a better understanding of the exploration potential.

Aussie scandium project

In January, the company nearly doubled its scandium resource at the Flemington project in New South Wales, placing the company at the centre of Aussie hopes to become a new source of the rare but critical metal.

The project’s estimated inventory has lifted from 3.7Mt at 458 ppm to 6.3Mt at 446 ppm (300ppm cut-off), with an impressive 98% of that classified as measured and indicated.

That classification means drilling has been conducted with enough density to include the resources in a future mine plan.

Plus, 90% of the resource is located within 50m at surface, presenting a compelling development opportunity for the company at a time when rising demand and Chinese control over the critical mineral (around 80% of global supply) has shone the spotlight onto Aussie production.

This article was developed in collaboration with Australian Mines, 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.