Australian Rare Earths (AR3) has added 50 million tonnes to its Koppamurra rare earths project in South Australia.
The project’s mineral resource estimate (MRE) now boasts 236 million tonnes (Mt) at 748 parts per million total rare earths oxide (TREO), up from 186Mt.
The higher-grade portion of the resource increased by 70 per cent, with 68Mt grading over 1000 ppm TREO.
“This substantial increase in the mineral resource estimate, coupled with the improved grade and higher-grade tonnage, reinforces our belief in the project’s potential to become a strategically important, long-life supplier of critical rare earths,” Australian Rare Earths managing director and chief executive officer Travis Beinke said.
“The updated mineral resource estimate has underscored the significant potential for a shallow, higher-grade subset of the broader rare earth deposit.”
With exploration ongoing, AR3 believes there is significant growth potential, as the current resource only covers two per cent of Koppamurra’s 7400-square-kilometre tenure.
“The latest mineral resource estimate continued to incorporate our improved understanding of the mineralised geological package, as well as incorporating element specific variography analysis,” IHC Mining Geological Services manager Greg Jones said.
“Targeted infill drilling by AR3 has identified thicker packages of mineralised clay while at the same time, tightening up the previously identified high grade areas.
“IHC Mining consider this mineral resource estimate to be a significant further improvement over the previous mineral resource estimate and an additional improvement to the overall JORC classification confidence.”
As AR3 advances its flagship Koppamurra project, the company has secured approval for its second exploration program for Environment Protection and Rehabilitation (EPEPR) at the Overland uranium project in South Australia.
This second EPEPR expands the company’s exploration area by an additional 773 square kilometres, covering southern sections of the project.
With both EPEPR applications now approved, the company is set to begin its first phase of drilling at Overland in mid-October 2024.
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