Resource profile points to early mining returns

The giant North West Minerals Province is heavily pregnant with massive deposits and is set to deliver its next big find. So says Maronan Metals managing director Richard Charlton. Maronan Metals managing director Richard Charlton at the Noosa Mining Conference The project is located roughly between the Cannington and Ernest Henry Mines about 64kms south of Cloncurry. The location in North West Queensland, the drill results and the company’s bullish support makes up the triumvirate said Mr Charlton, who has a decades-long career in mining operations and was head-hunted to turn an initial public offer into a mine. Maronan was in an advanced stage of exploration and the company was committing to permitting and associated studies said Mr Charlton. Related: Maronan project proves consistent performer There was a massive amount of metal in the ground including 188 million ounces of silver and the resource profile also lent itself to a revenue generating start-up phase he said. “We've got a total of over 60 million tons of resources. That's 50/50 of silver-lead and copper-gold. The silver lead is nearer to the surface and probably the higher value material, which is good because if you're developing a mine, you want the best stuff first. “That's how you're going to pay back your capital quicker. So yeah, that's 32 million tons at 6.1 percent lead and 106 grams of the tonne silver overall. “The great thing that the first round of drilling that we did just after the IPO was where we were able to, in a resource review, declare the first bit of the maiden indicated resource.” The company was able to hit the ground, or the market, running with this region called the ‘starter zone’ which ran more than 500 metres deep and contained around 11 miliion tonnes of material Mr Charlton said. “That was such a milestone for the company because you needed enough in the indicated category to be able to, within the ASX rules, speak to the public about your economics. “So that's what this drilling program we've embarked on now is targeting doing in this thing we call the starter zone. “It's up near the surface. We're trying to increase the proportion of indicated resource and it's looking like it's going well. We've reported the first six holes, the results have been where we expected getting widths and grades what we'd expected.” Deeper drilling had lent a lot of confidence to Maronan Metals said Mr Charlton. They had reported very good results including highest ever silver grade drilled on the property, which was a sample interval that went 1,520 grams of the silver he said. “Well, one of the briefs at IPO was to look at depth. How deep does this thing go? So we did drill up one off pole about and show that at 1,200 meters below surface, the mineralization continues, but it's still at the same tenor, the same sort of grades that we got up further.” It backed up the resource profile said Mr Charlton. “I like to talk about specifically just what the metals are. So there's two million tons of lead in situ, 118 million ounces of silver, which is way up there. “It's probably second behind Silver Mines. I think there's 272,000 tons of copper and three quarters of a million ounces of gold.” On top of the location and the company commitment, they had the presence of exploration manager Andrew Barker located in Cloncurry advancing the project Mr Charlton said. “We've had great relationship with landowners, traditional owners, local council, and you've got Andrew up there as well. And probably I nearly should have had that as the first priority as the first thing I'd take away is the value of having a family on the ground in town. “It's well regarded. I know that from speaking with the mayor and our landowners, they've got a point of contact and he's close to the drilling crew, all that sort of stuff. It's fantastic.”

Resource profile points to early mining returns

Industry Queensland

Related News

Dolphins make a splash with coalfields kids

Boost for critical minerals processing plans

The industrial action that helped build a city

Get access to breaking mining news, now.