American Rare Earths (ASX: ARR) has received assays confirming high-grade ore in the western portion of the Cowboy State Mine (CSM) deposit in Wyoming.
The drilling at CSM area marks the first phase in the multi-stage development of the larger Halleck Creek deposit in Wyoming, which boasts a 2.34 billion tonne JORC resource containing 7.48 million tonnes of total rare earth oxides.
The 2024 drilling campaign confirms the presence of higher-grade ore in the western section of the Cowboy State Mine (CSM) deposit, particularly near Red Mountain. As part of this effort, WRI intentionally defined the eastern boundary of the Red Mountain Pluton (RMP), where lower assay results were observed.
With the eastern extent of the CSM deposit now defined, additional drilling will focus on higher-grade zones near Red Mountain. This area includes drill hole HC24-RM035, which reported an impressive average grade of 4,393 ppm TREO over 299.1 metres.
The 2024 drill campaign was completed under budget, allowing for four additional reverse circulation (RC) holes to be drilled before demobilising the rigs. These new holes, totalling approximately 730 metres, are expected to be completed within the next week.
“We are very pleased with the 2024 drilling campaign results, which have defined the eastern portion of the Cowboy State Mine (CSM) deposit and confirmed that higher-grade material is concentrated to the west, within the Red Mountain area,” CEO, Chris Gibbs, said.
“These additional drill holes will help us update our resource model and define mine plans for CSM. As the first phase of our development program, CSM has the potential to be the next rare earth mine built in the USA, outside of Mountain Pass.
“With 2.34 billion tonnes of JORC resources at Halleck Creek, we believe this project has the potential to be one of the largest rare earth developments in North America, supporting the nation’s growing demand for critical minerals.”