Liontown Resources Limited (ASX: LTR) has completed an initial phase of ground-based exploration work at its 100%-owned Moora Nickel Project, located north of Perth in Western Australia.
Results are pending for a recently completed gravity survey and auger sampling programme conducted by Liontown which also includes the first ever field assessment of the large gravity anomalies underlying the western part of the Project area.
Due to extensive shallow cover and strong weathering, Liontown believes geophysical surveys will be required to better delineate the prospective mafic-ultramafic units.
Further work will be planned once data is received for the above work. It will most likely comprise shallow air-core drilling to define anomalous nickel-copper zones within the prospective units, moving-loop electro-magnetic surveys to define possible massive sulphides and deeper Reverse Circulation /diamond core drilling to test any targets identified.
Liontown secured the Moora Nickel Project in 2018 as part of its generative exploration strategy for battery metals, after recognising the potential of this region to host magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE massive sulphides.
The coincidence of large mafic/ultramafic intrusions located close to a craton margin is analogous to magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE occurrences elsewhere in the world including the Nova, Savannah and Nebo-Babel deposits in Western Australia.
The company has three, granted, contiguous Exploration Licences (ELs) covering a total area of 467 sq. km. Liontown has agreed to pay consulting group Armada Exploration Services, which assisted with the generative work, $1 million cash and a 0.5% NSR if it discovers an economic mineral deposit (and makes a decision to mine) within the ELs.
Liontown’s exploration concept has been validated by Chalice Gold Mines’ discovery of high-grade Ni- Cu-PGE mineralisation in the same geological terrain at Julimar, located ~95km south of the Moora Project.
Exploration for nickel and copper is consistent with Liontown’s corporate focus on battery metals. Field work commenced at Moora following the completion of intensive resource definition drilling at the company’s flagship, world-class Kathleen Valley Lithium-Tantalum Project, where work is now transitioning to Perth-based metallurgical test work and mining studies as announced recently.
Government geological mapping within the Moora Project area indicates a series of mafic-ultramafic intrusions spatially associated with large, dense bedrock features clearly visible in the regional gravity data.
This geological setting is similar to those which host Chalice’s Julimar nickel discovery and the historic Yarawindah Ni-Cu-PGE occurrence being actively explored by Cassini Resources Limited.
Historical exploration at Moora has been limited to the central part of the Project area and has largely comprised surface sampling and shallow RAB drilling (see Appendix 2 for details of historical exploration).
In 1968, Poseidon NL recorded a number of significant nickel intersections in drilling at Moora including: 9m @ 0.62% Ni from 0m; 11.5m @ 0.60% Ni from 1.5m; and 21m @ 0.57% Ni from 1.5m.
