King River Resources’ (ASX:KRR) June quarter high on action across portfolio

Highlights

• King River Resources completed RC drilling over its Tennant Creek Gold Project during the June quarter.
• Metallurgical testwork is underway at the Speewah Vanadium Project.
• The company is committed to capitalising on emerging HPA opportunities.
• KRR boosted its financial position with a final instalment from a government grant.

Speciality minerals and gold explorer King River Resources Limited (ASX:KRR) has released its quarterly report for the period ended 30 June 2022. The report entails significant development activities across the company’s projects in Australia.

King River has a diversified asset portfolio focused on gold, high-purity alumina (HPA) and vanadium. Besides exposure to a traditional hedging metal, the company is also eyeing to tap lucrative opportunities in the evolving green metal sector.

KRR operates gold-focused assets, including the Mt Remarkable Project in Western Australia and the Tennant Creek tenements in the Northern Territory. The Tennant Creek comprises several gold projects, including Tennant East, Rover East, Barkly/East Tennant and Kurundi.

Tennant Creek Project tenement locations (Image source: KRR website)

Gold exploration delivers encouraging results

During the June 2022 quarter, KRR carried out an RC drilling campaign over its Tennant Creek asset targeting the Kurundi Main prospect. A total of 34 holes were drilled for a total depth of 1,223m over Kurundi Main. The prospect has returned high-grade gold values up to 17.25g/t during a previously announced rock chip sampling program. The gold find was made along a 2km trend, which had never been drill tested.

KRR focused its 2022 drilling campaign over this 2km-long trend and intersected a 1-5m quartz vein. Samples from 14 holes have returned high-grade gold assay results.

Map showing drill hole locations at Kurundi (Image source: KRR update, 18 July 2022)

Assay results from the rest 20 holes are pending along with portions of unassayed hole sections of those 14 holes. Initial results have confirmed the presence of a continuous vein structure at depth within a broader shear zone.

Further drilling is being planned with a focus on the 2km interpreted strike extent. The drilling program will test mineralisation extensions to the main zone, north and south of the workings and depths.

Apart from Kurundi Main, KRR has drilled three RC holes over the Tennant Creek East. The objective was to test gravity and magnetic targets delineated at the Lonestar Trend area. Two of the holes intercepted structures and alterations, which indicate the drilling was done close to or within the Mauretania/Hopeful Star Corridor.

HPA project makes headway

Through its wholly owned subsidiary High-Purity Metals, KRR operates the HPA Project. The company aims to commercialise the 5N Aluminium Precursor and 4N HPA opportunities.

The company recently put a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) for a 2000tpa 5N plant on hold due to increased market interest in HPA, which has exceeded significantly the planned production capacity.

The company continued to advance laboratory test works during the quarter. The test works are part of the engineering component of the DFS, which aims at improving the ARC HPA process. Further work on the project will progress once results of these test works are received.

Speewah vanadium project to tap emerging opportunities

During the quarter, KRR continued its metallurgical testwork on the Speewah Project. The company has been advancing on the testwork in collaboration with the Hydrometallurgy Research Group of Murdoch University.

Potential products from the project will be V₂O₅, Ti₂O and iron. V₂O₅ is the main component of vanadium redox flow batteries used in energy storage projects, while Ti₂O has many applications, such as in the paint industry. Iron is an evergreen base metal required in several industries.    

The testwork resulted in a vanadium extraction of 81% at 1100⁰C. Further testworks are in progress to optimise the process and increase the vanadium extraction percentage.

Strong financial footing

KRR received the final instalment amount of the grant from the NT government under the Geophysical and Drilling Collaboration Program. The company received AU$16,415.5 during the quarter.

At the end of the reported period, KRR announced a cash balance of AU$2,945,395.        

KRR shares were trading at AU$0.018 in the early hours of 19 July 2022.