Lanthanein Resources Ltd (ASX:LNR) has discovered new ironstones during recent fieldwork to follow up on the Worldview satellite targets at the Lyons Rare Earths Project in Western Australia.
Notably, the anomalous carbonatite signature mineralisation demonstrates the potential for both high-grade REE mineralisation and larger tonnage REE and niobium within the main LI01-01 carbonatite target area.
To date, the company has identified 25 Worldview satellite ironstone outcrop targets for follow-up sampling this month.
Moving forward, an extensive pipeline of Worldview satellite and geophysical targets of ironstone trends and carbonatites under thin cover will be drill tested with a 10,000-metre drilling program starting in April this year.
Extensive ironstone targets
Lanthanein technical director Brian Thomas said: “The Lyons rare earths project has proven rare earth mineralisation within ironstones within 1.4 kilometres of the Hastings Technology Metals proposed open cuts.
“Continuing exploration has shown the occurrence of carbonatite mineralisation within our main carbonatite target at LI01-01.
“Together with the financial support of the WA Government, two of our carbonatite targets will be tested with deep diamond drill holes along their magnetic altered margins to better define the geology in an area that remarkably has no historical exploration.
“Following the drilling of the carbonatite targets, Lanthanein will continue with an extensive +10,000 metre RC drilling program to test for rare earth elements associated with extensive ironstone targets defined by both geophysics and the high-resolution Worldview satellite imagery.”
Location of satellite, ironstone targets and outcrop rock samples.
Work program
Within the Lyons Block and along the Bald Hill Lineament, numerous carbonatite intrusions have been modelled from the airborne magnetics with a similar dimension to the Mt. Weld carbonatite.
Subsequently, Worldview-3 satellite imagery was acquired to help delineate the ironstone outcrop.
Follow-up rock chip sampling of these targets identified several ironstone outcrop extending to over 1,400 metres in length at WVLY07 within the carbonatite complex.
With geological information gained from the ground-truthing, reinterpretation identified 25 high-priority outcrop ironstone targets.
Two carbonatite targets, LI01-01 and LI03-01, are planned to be drill tested in April with WA Government co-funded EIS drilling.
This drilling will be critical to understanding the mineralisation potential of the modelled carbonatites, to determine width, grade and continuity at depth and along the modelled outer magnetic rim.