Australia heavy uncommon earths-focused firm Northern Minerals (ASX: NTU) (Northern Minerals or the Firm) is happy to announce a big improve within the dimension of the Mineral Useful resource Estimate (MRE) for the Wolverine deposit on the Firm’s Browns Vary Heavy Uncommon Earths Mission, within the East Kimberley area of Western Australia.
Highlights
- The Mineral Useful resource Estimate (MRE) for the Wolverine Deposit – the flagship heavy uncommon earths deposit at Browns Vary – has elevated 13% in tonnes to 7.3 Mt @ 0.96% Whole Uncommon Earth oxides (TREO) for a 15% improve in contained metallic to 70,500 t when in comparison with the 2022 MRE2, 3.
- Importantly, the Measured and Indicated Assets complete 5.0 Mt @ 1.13% TREO for 55,400 t of TREO, which in comparison with the 2022 MRE3 leads to:
- a 47% improve within the tonnes
- a 20% improve within the TREO grade, and
- a 75% improve within the TREO metallic tonnes
- This up to date MRE integrated outcomes of over 23,000 m from the 58-hole infill diamond drilling packages carried out in late 2022 and 2023-24.
- This MRE marks a big step within the growth of the Browns Vary Mission and can kind the premise of the revised mining engineering part of the forthcoming Feasibility Examine.
Wolverine is the biggest and most vital heavy uncommon earths deposit at Browns Vary. The upgraded MRE is the results of a extremely profitable infill program accomplished throughout Wolverine in late 2022 and 2023/24, comprising 58 diamond holes for 23,286 m. The first objective of the infill program was to improve MRE tonnes from Inferred into the Measured & Indicated classes to tell an replace to the Feasibility Examine (FS).
The profitable final result of the MRE improve work delivered a 15% improve in Wolverine’s complete useful resource to 7.3Mt @ 0.96% Whole Uncommon Earth Oxides (TREO) for 70,500 t of contained metallic tonnes. Importantly, the proportion of the MRE within the Measured and Indicated classes has shifted considerably to five.0 Mt at 1.13% TREO for 55,400 t of contained metallic tonnes, a rise of 75% in comparison with the 2022 Mineral Useful resource Estimate (2022 MRE).4
Desk 1: Comparability of 2022 Mineral Useful resource estimate with 2025 Mineral Useful resource estimate above a 0.15% TREO cut-off grade.
Browns Vary is a globally important heavy uncommon earths venture containing excessive grades of dysprosium and terbium, that are important for high-performance everlasting magnets utilized in electrical autos, wind generators and specialist defence purposes. Northern Minerals has a long- time period provide and funding partnership with Iluka Assets (ASX: ILU) to provide Iluka’s Eneabba uncommon earths refinery, at the moment under-construction.
Commenting on the upgraded Wolverine MRE, Northern Minerals’ Managing Director and CEO Shane Hartwig stated:
“We’re extraordinarily happy with this upgraded Wolverine Mineral Useful resource Estimate, which has elevated each the general quantity of uncommon earths tonnes in addition to confidence ranges within the deposit as we progress down the trail of growing a mining operation at Browns Vary.
This up to date MRE is the results of important work undertaken by the Northern Minerals workforce, supported by exterior consultants. It included designing, implementing and analysing intensive drill campaigns since 2022 in addition to an in depth re-logging and evaluation of historic drill core to develop a geological area and sub-domaining method for the estimate.
The profitable final result of the work over the previous two years has resulted within the re-classification of a lot of the Inferred part of the 2022 MRE into the higher-confidence Measured & Indicated classifications. The infill program was partly funded by the Federal Authorities’s Important Minerals Growth Fund.
Right now’s MRE improve for Wolverine marks an essential milestone within the proposed growth of a commercial-scale mining operation at Browns Vary, notably as we proceed discussions with events in relation to funding choices. Our workforce is within the technique of incorporating this upgraded Wolverine MRE into mine planning and manufacturing scheduling to find out the last word venture form for the Mission and allow the FS to be finalised.”
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