Resources Top 5: This ASX nickel stock has gained 360pc since listing in December

WA nickel explorer Desert Metals has gained ~360% since listing on the ASX at 20c per share
Frontier Resources announces highlight 1m at 148g/t gold and 413g/t silver from trench sampling in PNG
Zeus (shell), Genesis (gold) and Tempest (gold) up on no news

Here are the biggest small cap resources movers in early trade, Monday May 31.

DESERT METALS (ASX:DM1)

(Up on no news)

WA nickel explorer Desert has gained ~360% since listing on the ASX at 20c per share in December last year.

The Rob Stuart-led explorer announced it had hit magmatic massive sulphides in the first two holes at the ‘Innouendy’ prospect on May 4. Assays are pending.

“Several years ago, the company staked ground on the hypothesis that the Narryer Terrane was prospective for intrusive Ni-Cu-PGE deposits,” Dr Stuart says.

“The intersection of magmatic massive sulphides in intrusive rocks validates the exploration model and the company’s methodology.

“While we are, of course, awaiting assays, these results have us excited about the potential for the rest of the winter work program, our drilling campaign and the Narryer Terrane in general.”

ZEUS RESOURCES (ASX:ZEU)

(Up on no news)

This sleepy Chinese-backed shell company is looking for copper gold assets in Laos, a jurisdiction which abuts hot mess Myanmar to the west, and China to the north.

“The company has rejected several feasibilities of identified assets, but the Board intends to continue efforts to identify projects in this region,” Zeus said April 28.

Despite a dearth of news, the $5m market cap company has gained 225% over the past 12 months.

FRONTIER RESOURCES (ASX:FNT)

This ~$7 million market cap tiddler is focussed on high grade gold exploration in PNG.

Today it announced a highlight 1m at 148g/t gold and 413g/t silver from trench sampling at ‘Kimono Central’.

Trenching is a relatively simple and cheap way for explorers to get deeper lithological (rock properties), structural and assay info under areas of shallow soil cover.

It looks exactly how you think it would:

Frontier says the program confirms continuity of high grade gold within a 360m-long zone at ‘Kimono Central’ where two drill targets (KC North and South) have been identified.

Frontier is currently planning to mobilise to the ‘Saki’ prospect on June 7 to continue with its surface trench sampling program.

The stock is up about 50% over the past year.

GENESIS RESOURCES (ASX:GES)

(Up on no news)

One of Argonaut’s potential junior takeover targets for 2021.

In early May Genesis unveiled a visible gold intercept of 5m grading 60.7 grams per tonne (g/t) from 265m at its 1.6Moz Ulysses project in WA.

Managing director Michael Fowler said more drilling was needed to evaluate the exact size of the find.

“A standout drill intercept of 5 metres at 60.7g/t gold is always going to make investors sit up, particularly when it is located beyond the known resource envelope within a potentially entirely new mineralised position,” he says.

~$9.4 million market cap Genesis is down ~40% over the past 12 months.

TEMPEST MINERALS (ASX:TEM)

(Up on no news)

This $6 million market cap gold, copper and lithium stock has ~8 exploration projects scattered across WA.

In early May it got “encouraging” but unremarkable results from drilling at ‘Messenger’, where historic drilling intersected 2m @ 228.92g/t gold from 10m (including 1m @ 451g/t).

The company was prepping to drill the ‘Euro’ project which has also recorded high grade, large scale gold in historical drilling by others (including 15m @ 2.3g/t from 20m).