AUS
NZ
UK
CA
USA
IND
Highlights
- Petratherm’s shares rise 61% to 33 cents following promising drill results.
- High Heavy Mineral concentrations with rutile and leucoxene identified in the Rosewood Prospect.
- Titanium mineralisation in the Gawler Craton region, critical for various industries including electric vehicles and steel production.
Petratherm Limited (ASX:PTR) has seen its shares surge by 61%, reaching 33 cents, following the announcement of maiden drill results from its Rosewood Prospect, located within the Muckanippie Project in South Australia’s northern Gawler Craton. The encouraging results, drawn from an initial 101 samples across five drill holes, have sparked significant market interest.
The drilling, which has so far covered 1,697 metres over seven traverses, revealed high concentrations of Heavy Minerals (HM), including high-value titanium minerals like rutile and leucoxene. The mineralisation appears to be part of a fluvio-deltaic marine placer system, with the surrounding Muckanippie Suite’s titanium-bearing basement rocks providing a local source for the placer deposits.
Key Findings and Implications
The results from the Rosewood Prospect indicate the presence of high-grade titanium minerals, with a probable strandline and a second high-grade HM zone identified. These results are notable for their continuity across drill holes, despite the wide spacing of 200 to 400 metres between them. The mineral assemblage includes significant levels of rutile (19-21%) and leucoxene, key minerals in various industries such as electric vehicle production, battery storage, wind technology, and steel alloys.
Additionally, preliminary tests confirm that the heavy mineral fraction can be recovered using standard Heavy Liquid Separation (HLS) methods, which is a positive indication for potential commercial extraction.
Further Exploration and Future Results
The results reported are from just five of the 50 drill holes completed to date, with assays from an additional 45 holes expected over the next 3 to 6 weeks. These assays will provide further clarity on the scale and quality of mineralisation across the expanded 8km x 2km area being explored at the Rosewood Prospect.
CEO of Petratherm, Adam Wooldridge, has indicated that the company is confident in the continuing potential of the Muckanippie Project. The increasing demand for titanium in various critical industries, as well as its strategic importance for countries like Australia, the US, and the EU, adds further value to this discovery.
