("Alien" or "the
Company")
Independent review of Silver &
Ni-PGM's at Pinderi Hills, Australia
Exploration is set to commence with an
experienced technical team engaged
Alien Metals (AIM: UFO) is pleased to
provide an update, further to an independent
review undertaken by Resource Potentials Pty Ltd ("Resource
Potentials"), covering recent activities and exploration works
planned for later this year at its 100% owned Pinderi Hills silver
and precious metals project ("Pinderi Hills" or "Project") in
Western Australia and the Hancock Iron Ore
Project.
Overview
The Pinderi Hills Project is located in the
world-class mining province of the West Pilbara, covering an area
of 180 square kilometres. The Project contains a unique combination
of platinum group metals ("PGM") and gold ("Au") associated with
the Munni Munni Intrusive Complex, the nearby historic Elizabeth
Hill silver ("Ag") mine and multiple nickel-copper ("Ni-Cu") and
lithium ("Li") exploration targets.
The current resource base for the Project, as
previously announced, includes:
·
Munni Munni (JORC 2004):
24Mt @ 2.9g/t PGM and gold for 2.2Moz
PGM1
·
Elizabeth Hill (pre-JORC):
46.8kt @ 2,700g/t Ag for 4.05Moz Ag2
Based on the reverse circulation drilling
program completed by the Alien team in November 2022, the Company
is confident that the resources at Pinderi Hills can be
significantly expanded and could potentially host a Tier 1 Precious
Metals and Ni-Cu project. The Australian Government-backed
Geoscience Australia 2016 report highlights the Munni Munni
Intrusive Complex as a high-priority area for a world-class
ultramafic hosted Ni-Cu-PGE Sulphide deposit and amplifies further
the Company's planned activities.
The Project is located close to major
infrastructure, 50km south of Karratha, a large mining-centric
regional city and airport that provides all the necessary support
for exploration and mining in this highly prospective
region.
Following an independent review of the Project
by Geoscientist, Dr. Jayson Meyers, Principal Consultant and
Director of Resource Potentials, Alien propose to expedite
exploration and potentially increase the resource base and find new
deposits. Dr. Jayson Meyers has previously been involved in several
discoveries in Western Australia. The Company is planning
exploration activities to take place in Q3 2024. Alien will
commence by undertaking soil geochemical surveys over the main
Ni-Cu target areas and Judy's Reef PGM trends.
Robert Mosig,
Technical Director, commented:
"Further to
Resource Potentials' review of Pinderi Hills, including encouraging
silver, base and precious metals drilling results from Elizabeth
Hills (AIM: 20 February 2023), the Company has fast-tracked plans
to develop the Elizabeth Hills Silver Mine, as well as furthering
our understanding of base metals deposits as we explore new
opportunities in the area. The region's recent history has not been
explored, so we are delighted, based on the review and the
Company's previous drilling program, to announce our plans for the
next phase of exploration in the region.
"With our recently announced strategic lithium joint venture
with Errawarra Resources (ASX: ERW), Alien can strategically focus
on its precious and base metals targets at Pinderi
Hills."
The Pinderi Hills - Located in a World Class
Geological Province
The Pinderi Hills mineral exploration and
mining licenses covering an area of 180km2 contains
highly prospective geology. Geoscience Australia, an Australian
government department, has highlighted this area as having a high
potential for intrusion-hosted Ni-Cu-PGM sulphide deposits in
mafic/ultramafic complexes. In terms of silver, previous drilling
by Alien in 2022 identified exceptional broad intersections of
native silver, as set out below.
Figure 1: West Pilbara high
potential areas for Ni-Cu-PGM sulphide deposits with the focus on
Munni Munni Complex (Geoscience Australia, 2016)
These large mafic/ultramafic complexes of the
West Pilbara are some of the most fertile rock types for
significant discoveries. The Company is moving ahead with plans for
a comprehensive, staged exploration under the guidance of
Non-Executive Director, Mr Robert Mosig, who has over 40 years of
experience in this area and explored Pinderi Hills when he was the
managing director of Helix Resources (ASX: HLX) and Platina
Resources (ASX: PGM).
In addition, to assist and expedite the
exploration programs at Pinderi Hills, the Company has engaged
geophysical and geological consultancy Resource Potentials. This
well-known consultancy uses leading-edge techniques and
interpretive strategies led by Dr Jayson Meyers, who has run a team
of geoscientists at Resource Potentials for 24 years and served as
an Associate Professor in Exploration Geophysics at the WA School
of Mines for 10 years during that time.
Dr. Meyers has led exploration programs that
have discovered and expanded several different styles of mineral
deposits around the world, and his team has completed a
comprehensive study on the mineral potential of Pinderi Hills and
provided a recommended exploration plan.
Upcoming work programs
For the remainder of 2024, soil geochemical
surveys are planned to commence over the main Ni-Cu target areas
and Judy's Reef PGM trends. Fortunately, these two mineralisation
styles overlap, so when the surveys are completed, they will be
able to test for both styles of mineralisation in one program. The
results from the geochemical sampling will then drive the
decision-making process for the best locations for future
geophysical and drilling programs. Plans are also underway at
Elizabeth Hills to target larger silver ore bodies at depth and
along strike from the known silver deposit/mine zone.
Following our recently announced joint venture
with Errawarra, we are pleased that they have already commenced
exploration activities. Whilst their focus is on lithium, utilising
the expertise of Alien's partner, the data gathered from the
current fieldwork is expected to provide critical information which
will assist in the analysis and drill targeting for silver, base
and precious metals at Pinderi Hills.
Hancock
Project - strategic discussions update
As announced on 19 April 2024, the Company's
Hancock Iron Ore Project in Western Australia was granted a Mining
Lease (M47/1633) by the Western Australian Department of Mines,
representing a key milestone on the pathway towards development and
production.
The Company is actively progressing the ongoing
review of strategic funding options with regards to the Hancock
Project to maximise value for the Company's shareholders and
stakeholders, including various longer-term financing options,
including continued discussions with iron ore industry operators
regarding offtake funding, joint venture, debt, and equity project
funding.
For further
information, please visit the Company's
website at www.alienmetals.uk or contact:
Strand Hanson
(Financial and Nominated Adviser)
James Harris / James Dance / Robert
Collins
Tel: +44 (0) 207 409 3494
WH Ireland Ltd
(Broker)
Harry Ansell / Katy Mitchell
Tel: +44 (0) 207 220 1666
Yellow Jersey
(Financial PR)
Charles Goodwin / Shivantha Thambirajah / Zara
McKinlay
Tel: +44 (0) 203 004 9512
Notes to
Editors
Alien Metals Ltd is a mining exploration and
development company listed on the AIM market of the London Stock
Exchange (AIM: UFO). The Company's focus is on delivering a
profitable direct shipping iron ore operation from it 90% Hancock
iron ore project in the central Pilbara region of Western
Australia. The Hancock tenements currently
contain a JORC-compliant resource of 8.4Mt iron ore @ 60% Fe
and offers significant exploration upside which is targeted to
deliver a mining operation of 2Mtpa for 10 years.
These Hancock Project tenements have direct access to the Great Northern Highway, which
provides an essential export route to export facilities at Port
Hedland, from where more than 500Mt of iron ore is exported
annually (30% of global production). The Company also has an
interest in two iron ore exploration projects Brockman and Vivash,
located in the West Pilbara.
The Company owns the Elizabeth Hill
Silver Project, located near Karratha in the Pilbara, which
consists of the Elizabeth Hill Mining Lease and exploration
tenements surrounding the historical silver mine which has produced
some of Australia's highest-grade silver ore during the late
1990's. The Company also owns one of Australia's largest PGM
deposits, Munni Munni which hosts a deposit containing a historic
resource of 2.2Moz PGM (Palladium, Platinum, Gold, and Rhodium).
Competent
Person's Statement
The information in this announcement that
relates to Exploration Results, is based on information compiled by
Mr. Bradley Toms who is the Exploration Manager and a full time
employee of Alien Metals Ltd. Mr. Toms is a Member of The
Australian Institute of Geoscientists and has sufficient experience
which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of
deposit under consideration and to the activity that he is
undertaking, to qualify as Competent Person as defined in the 2012
Edition of the "Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration
Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves". Mr. Toms consents to
the inclusion in the document of the information in the form and
context in which it appears. Mr Toms has declared that he holds
Performance Rights in the Company.
The
information contained within this announcement is deemed by the
Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the
Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of
United Kingdom domestic law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended by virtue of the Market Abuse
(Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
The Pinderi
Hills Project - Further Technical Information
Silver and base metals
The Elizabeth Hill Silver Mine has a pre-JORC
compliant resource of c.4.05Moz of silver and it was Australia's
highest-grade silver mine. Over 1Moz of silver was produced in
1999-2000 from a shaft and on-site processing plant before the mine
was closed due to a dispute between the joint venture partners in
2000. The Elizabeth Hill Mine is now 100% owned outright by the
Company, and historical drilling, both surface and underground,
including detailed and high-quality underground development
sampling, has been compiled into a secure geological
database.
The polymetallic nature of the Elizabeth Hill
mineralisation, with recorded Pb values up to 2.09% (AMC220001),
has not been fully accounted for in previous work on the deposit.
This presents Alien with an opportunity to add credits from other
valuable metals, such as gold (Au), platinum (Pt), and palladium
(Pd), amongst others.
The main silver mineralisation is on a
structurally controlled fault contact between granite and
ultramafic rocks. The main zone of mineralisation is plunging
steeply to the south, and testing of interpreted parallel
structures is planned for future drilling.
Key assay intersections are3:
·
Copper:
o
0.4m @ 4.7% Cu, 26ozt Ag,
1.55% Ni from 1.6m in UGD041
o
0.4m @ 4% Cu, 799ozt Ag,
0.8% Ni from 3m in UGD069
o
1m @ 3.98% Cu, 12ozt Ag,
0.95% Ni from 35m in EC002
o
1m @ 3.5% Cu, 125ozt Ag,
1.06% Zn, 0.58% Ni, 0.68% Pb from 2m in
UGD063
·
Nickel:
o
0.9m @ 2.95% Ni, 65ozt Ag,
0.15% Cu from 5.1m in UGD073
o
5.2m @ 2.18% Ni, 166ozt Ag,
0.76% Cu, 0.28% Zn from 3m in UGD069
o
1.05m @ 1.90% Ni, 114ozt Ag,
1.25% Cu, from 5.05m in UGD072
·
Lead:
o
0.4m @ 9.7% Pb
from 1.2m in UGC82406
o
1m @ 4.8% Pb
from 11.9m in UGD022
o
1m @ 3.8% Pb
from 91m in EC028
o
1.1m @ 3.1% Pb
from 8.6m in UGD060
o
1.2m @ 2.05%
Pb and 723ozt Ag from 0m in UGD072
·
Zinc:
o
1m @ 2.85% Zn, 13ozt Ag,
0.16%Pb from 0m in UGC82057
o
0.95m @ 2.70%, Zn, 0.48%
Pb from 4.9m in UGD055
o
1.1m @ 2.65% Zn, 5ozt
Ag from 9m in UGD042
o
1m @ 1.06% Zn, 326ozt Ag,
0.5% Pb from 2m in UGD063
The main silver mineralisation is located south
of the Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide ("VMS") Cu/Ni/Pb/Zn anomalism,
which has been targeted with several historical reverse circulation
("RC") holes.
Figure 2: Sub Audio Magnetic ("SAM")
survey with main target areas4 at Elizabeth Hills and
surrounding area
Platinum Group
Metals
The Project contains significant platinum group
metal mineralisation. The Company understands the known
mineralisation and believes that additional discoveries can be made
in areas that have not been explored.
The current (2004) resource is a non-JORC 2012
compliant:
24Mt @ 2.9g/t Platinum Group Element ("PGE")
and gold for 2.2Moz PGM3
This includes 1.14Moz of palladium, 0.83Moz of
platinum, 152koz gold and 76koz of rhodium. The Munni Munni Project
is considered one of Australia's largest PGE deposits.
The Munni Munni project's geology is well
understood, and the Company has the advantage of building onto
existing mineralisation with opportunities for nearby repeat ore
shoots and untested strike extensions. Importantly, the metallurgy
test work completed previously was using historical methods, and
there are now new opportunities for improved metallurgical
recoveries at a time of heightened demand for PGM.
The main Munni Munni resource mineralisation is
on the Hunter/Ferguson Reef. Field mapping and geophysical
interpretation highlight a lower reef, Judy's Reef, that has little
or no drilling and also requires basic soil sampling to advance it
towards drill target status.
The schematic below highlights the interpreted
stratigraphic position of these two reefs.
Figure 3: Schematic stratigraphy
highlighting PGM Reef known and interpreted
locations
Figure
4, below, shows the location of the known
Ferguson and Hunter Reef and the location of Judy's Reef. It
is important to note the lack of drilling in the vicinity of Judy's
Reef. The Company reported some initial promising results (AIM:
26 April 2023) from limited RC drilling south of Elizabeth Hill
that targeted Judy's Reef. The results reported from the drilling
and geological interpretation demonstrated that a reef similar to
the Hunter/Ferguson Reef at Munni Munni is located further west of
this drilling. The reported anomalous PGE's, Ni, Cu and elevated
Chromium units are of a similar tenor form and reef-style
orientation, with a similar dip to the granite contact as seen at
the Munni Munni Resource area.
Figure 4: Geology and location of
PGM Reef locations and Ni/Cu target areas Munni Munni, Pinderi
Hills, WA - Major rock units are: Pink=granite, purple=ultramafic,
green=gabbro
Nickel-Copper
sulphide mineralisation
The mafic-ultramafic complexes mapped at
Pinderi Hills can host massive Ni-Cu sulphide deposits typically
formed along the base of an intrusion or along magma conduits to
the intrusion at its base. The Cadgerina Dyke, Figure 4, is a magma conduit for the
Munni Munni intrusion and remains untested by electromagnetic
("EM") surveying or drilling, despite having strong geochemical
anomalism.
The Munni Munni Intrusive Complex is tilted
onto its side, so the base of the intrusion is located along the
northern edge and eastern edges, where Judy's Reef West and Judy's
Reef PGM reefs form along the basal contact with the surrounding
granite. The base of the Munni Munni intrusion is largely
under-explored for intrusive Ni-Cu-PGE sulphide deposits and
requires soil geochemical surveying, mapping, EM surveying and
drilling.
The Ni-Cu mineralisation could be similar to or
much larger than that which was successfully mined in the 1990's at
Radio Hill, located c.15km to the north. Figure 5 provides an
example of the style of mineralisation being explored for a
schematic section of the high-grade Radio Hill
mineralisation.
Figure 5: Cross section of radio Hill
Ni-Cu mineralisation
Lithium
The Pinderi Hills Project contains areas
identified as highly prospective for lithium pegmatite
mineralisation. To allow the Company to focus on Ag, PGM, and Ni-Cu
exploration, it entered a joint venture with Errawarra Resources
Ltd on 29 April 2024 and the Company looks forward to providing
updates as exploration works progress.
Figure 6: Pinderi Hills pegmatite swarm
extent as at the time of JV announcement
Figure 7: Errawarra Resources currently
conducting exploration in several areas at Pinderi Hills,
W.A
1/ 2004 JORC
compliant
2/
Global Strategic Metals NL, Annual Technical Report 2014, non-JORC
2012 compliant
1moz of the resource has been mined up
until 2000-2001
3/
UFO announcement 6 September 2023