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Mining
Here are the biggest small cap resources winners in early trade, Wednesday June 14.
GRE is on a tear after exploration at its Ruth Well lithium project in the WA Pilbara produced 22 reconnaissance rock chip samples from a pegmatite bearing zone up to 200m wide and along strike for a tasty 6km, showing grades of up to 1.65% Li2O.
The work was part of a broader recon program targeting potentially prospective areas that were identified following an assessment of historical data and aerial imagery.
GRE executive director Thomas Reddicliffe said the team is very encouraged by the high-grade lithium assays from the reconnaissance program at Ruth Well.
“The West Pilbara region is continuing to attract significant interest from listed companies and investors, and GreenTech has secured a strategic and highly prospective foothold,” Reddicliffe said.
“To date we have traced the pegmatites for 6km and onto our adjoining tenements. This appears to be a significant mineralising event the extent of which both laterally and along strike is yet to be determined.
“This discovery in WA’s new lithium hot spot, combined with the company’s advanced Whundo copper project, where we recently reported a significant resource upgrade, positions GreenTech as a rapidly emerging critical metals business with an advanced project pipeline.”
A further 40 recon samples have been collected along the 6km strike length of the pegmatite zone identified and have been dispatched to the lab for analysis with results pending.
After receiving those results the company said it would conduct additional detailed mapping and sampling prior to drilling.
GRE has also engaged with Obsidian Metals Group to lead its lithium exploration and development strategy in WA.
Shares in the ~$5.8m market-capped junior were up a whopping 280% in early trade today.
After an extensive 10-month long due diligence process, Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Magnetite Holdings has decided to pour $4 million into LCY’s Mt Bevan JV with Hawthorn Resources (ASX:HAW) to help fund exploration for lithium and other non-iron ore minerals.
The investment gives Hancock a 7.5% interest in the project, with $2.4m cash being paid to LCY and $1.6m to Hawthorn.
As part of the agreement, Hancock may fund additional exploration and development activities up to the tune of $22m and earn an additional 43.5% of the project, making it the owner.
In a three-stage farm-in approach, Hancock will need to spend up to $5m on exploration within 12 months to earn an additional 7.5%; spend up to $7m on drilling within a further 12 months to earn an additional 20%; and deliver a pre-feasibility study on the project within an additional 18 months at an expected cost of ~$10m.
If Hancock meets all three earn-in requirements, it will hold a 51% interest in the project and Legacy Iron and Hawthorn will hold 29.4% and 19.6% respectively.
“The signing of this agreement is a significant step in the development of the Mt Bevan project as it moves further towards commercialisation, LCY CEO Rakesh Gupta said.
“We welcome Hancock into the project and look forward to working with them and leveraging their expertise in the area, and the development of this project.”
The $108m market-capped junior is up 17% today.
The NSW iron ore developer has announced a strategic review action plan that reduces capital costs under a proposed new Phase 1 mineral processing configuration for its Hawson’s iron ore project near Broken Hill.
The positive outcome enhances its business case for the project and will support a bankable feasibility study (BFS) to produce 11 million tonnes per annum (mtpa).
The developer also delivered promising results from drilling shallower iron ore, producing a grade greater than 9% DTR mass recovery as part of its Stage 2 drilling and assaying – with results pending.
HIO executive chair Bryan Granzien said Hawsons had substantially completed the action plan and is confident in moving forward.
“We will determine a preferred strategic pathway once we have validated the feasibility of Stantec’s refined process design and assessed the laboratory results from the drilling samples. This pathway could include securing a strategic investor to help fund a modified BFS,” Granzien said.
“The Stantec process validation work required to de-risk a modified BFS is scheduled to start before the end of June and the results will underpin any decision to proceed with the modified BFS, which could then be completed within a further 12 months.”
HIO has a market cap of ~$43m, with shares rising up 15% today in early trade.
LKY has entered an agreement to purchase the highly prospective Mojave REE project from Enigma Strategic Minerals (ESM), which owns 201 mineral claims making up the North and South Block of the project area.
The project is adjacent to the giant high-grade Mountain Pass Mine owned by MP Materials, the largest producer of high-grade rare-earth materials in the Western hemisphere, delivering approximately 15% of the global rare earth supply.
Locksley MD Steve Woodham said the deal gives the company’s shareholders exposure to the burgeoning rare earths sector in a location within eyesight of one of the world’s richest rare earth deposits.
“This transaction brings together highly skilled teams both in Australia and the USA with a view to expanding on existing strong exploration targets,” Woodham said.
“Multiple high-grade carbonatite veins have been identified and will be followed up as part of the imminent exploration program.
“The directors of the company are of the view that the proposed transaction will create a significant opportunity to expose shareholders to an underexplored and highly prospective region with a proven history of REE production.”
LKY has a market cap of just $4.2m, and shares in early trade have shot up 33% on today’s announcement.
FRS is getting the drill out for the first time at its Forrestania lithium project in WA, intending to complete up to 4,000m of RC drilling across three prospects: Calypso, South Iron Cap East and Giant.
At Giant, drilling will test the down-dip extent of high-grade lithium mineralisation which had previously shown 10m at 1.49% Li2O.
“We are extremely excited to see what this latest drilling program will uncover across three of our highest priority targets,” Forrestania Resources MD Michael Anderson said.
“The drilling represents a carefully refined and targeted program – a testament to our exploration strategy which is continually being optimised through results analysis, investigation into historical data and observations in the field.
“We remain confident that the Forrestania project remains highly prospective for a significant lithium discovery.”
The market has reacted kindly to the news from the $4.5m market-capped explorer, with shares up 20% so far today.
While Locksley Resources is a Stockhead advertiser, they did not sponsor this article.
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