Special Report: As it heads towards its ASX debut after closing its IPO offer on target on 4 December 2020, Torrens Mining has outlined a substantial value proposition which includes a flagship project in Victoria’s golden heart.

Torrens Mining Limited (ASX:TRN pending) is focused on exploration for gold, copper and cobalt, and 100% owns the Mt Piper gold project – ~1600km2 of land prospective for gold just 30km south-east of Kirkland Lake Gold’s (ASX:KLA) Fosterville Gold Mine.

The project also includes the tenements immediately east and south of TSX-listed Mandalay Resources’ Costerfield mine.

It’s highly prospective territory in which to own a project – in Q1 of 2020 Fosterville produced at a grade of 42.4 grams per tonne, while Costerfield produced at 12.6g/t. These results placed them first and sixth respectively in a list of the highest-grade gold mines globally which was recently compiled by Mines and Metals.

It’s particularly fertile ground, so it makes sense that exploration at Mt Piper will be focused on structurally-controlled gold-antimony similar to that found on the neighbouring projects.

Among the prospects to stand out at Mt Piper is Northwood Hill, where previous drilling from the 1990s delineated a 5km-long gold trend which returned assays of up to 3.78g/t from as shallow as 23m. Northwood Hill is currently under application.

Once the IPO is done and listing takes place, Torrens’ management said it would be very active at Mt Piper. Plans for the new year include geological mapping, geochemical sampling, geophysics and drilling on the Company’s gold projects in Central Victoria and Eastern Victoria, the Elizabeth Creek copper-cobalt project in South Australia and the Laloki copper-gold project in Papua New Guinea.

Torrens will be valued just shy of $23 million on listing, a substantial discount to the $100-million-plus market capitalisation of the majority of its peers in the Victorian region.

Torrens
Pic: The location of Torrens Mining’s Victorian tenements relative to other companies in the area. Credit: company supplied.

Torrens also holds a second Victorian gold project – Club Terrace – which presently comprises one granted exploration licence and one exploration licence application.

Located mostly on forestry land in a state forest immediately abutting the New South Wales-Victoria border to the north, the project covers much of the region’s Combienbar Fault. Torrens said it would look to undertake a comprehensive desktop review and database development, mapping and sampling programs, an airborne geophysics program and scout drilling. 

JV base metal exposure

In addition to its Victorian gold interests, Torrens also owns a 49% stake in the Elizabeth Creek copper-cobalt iron oxide copper-gold project in South Australia under a farm-in agreement with recently listed Coda Minerals (ASX:COD).

Elizabeth Creek has indicated an exploration target at the Emmie Bluff prospect of 46 to 77 Mt at 0.34 to 1.56% Cu, 5 to 18.9 g/t Ag and 16 to 64 ppm Co with significant exploration potential in the same postcode as BHP’s globally significant Olympic Dam copper mine. Coda as exploration farmin partner is actively exploring for both Zambian style copper-cobalt and IOCG copper deposits on the Elizabeth Creek tenure.

Coda is currently earning its way to a 70% interest in Elizabeth Creek, having spent around $5.6 million of a required $6.62 million spend to get there. Coda also has an option to buy an additional 5% for $1.5 million, a move which would leave a 75:25 split.

Torrens is currently being free-carried in Elizabeth Creek to a maximum spend of $8.62 million, at which point it will contribute to project spend equivalent to its ownership stake.

Coda’s $8.5 million IPO was oversubscribed in September, attracting $12.5 million worth of bids in 24 hours.  Coda remains fully committed following its listing. It is funding an aggressive exploration campaign at theEmmie Bluff copper-cobalt-silver prospect, within the Elizabeth Creek project. Drilling is presently underway on site with both diamond and RC rigs being used.

Torrens has a finger on the pulse in PNG as well, where volcanogenic massive sulphide targets at its Laloki copper-gold project will be the subject of airborne electromagnetic testing, subject to the grant of an exploration licence currently under application.

Neil Young famously sang that he was a “miner for a heart of gold”. Torrens will be looking to uncover its own golden heart as it sails with lofty goals and prospective projects into 2021 and beyond.

Further information is available in the prospectus issued by Torrens dated 13 November 2020. The public offer under the Torrens prospectus has now closed.

 

This article was developed in collaboration with Torrens Mining Limited, 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.

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