Asian Battery Metals PLC has identified priority drilling areas at the Oval Copper-Nickel Project in southwest Mongolia ahead of a third-phase exploration program, which will begin next month.
Phase 3 exploration will include up to 1,500 metres of diamond drilling, downhole electromagnetic surveys in these additional drill holes and regional geophysical surveys, which are planned for April to June 2025.
The primary focus of the drilling will be untested or modified DHEM conductive plates from the Phase 2 work.
It will also follow down a high gravity inversion anomaly up to 550 metres directly below the southern part of the Oval gabbroic intrusion while further focused exploration will be carried out in six step-out potential drilling target areas identified within the detailed exploration area.
A key step
Asian Battery Metals managing director Gan-Ochir Zunduisuren said: “The 2025 Phase 3 exploration program will be a key step to further evaluate the extent of the magmatic copper and nickel sulphide mineralisation in our tenement.
“Three aspects of the program are to extend the current understanding of the high-grade zone within the Oval gabbroic body, to test potential deeper continuation of the gabbroic intrusion based on geophysical data and to scout drill other anomalies within the detailed exploration area.”
Target area map on ground magnetics (AGC) with tenement boundary.
Compelling areas
Extensive regional geophysical surveys from 2022 to 2024 have delineated compelling exploration areas for drilling within the Yambat tenement area.
These areas exhibit a strong spatial correlation, with elevated copper, nickel and platinum group element (PGE) values coincident with high magnetic, gravity anomalies corresponding to IP resistivity lows.
The target area selection process integrated these geophysical data with results from soil samples collected between 2022 and 2024 and analysed by ABM geologists.
Physical property data from the samples has been integrated to improve the existing 3D geophysical models.
Priority DHEM conductive plates for testing during the Phase 3 drilling will be those that extend the high-grade mineralisation further within the Oval gabbroic intrusion and also some outside the geologically known gabbro boundary.
Depth extension targets
A gravity high anomaly identified in a revised inversion model of current gravity data will be tested during the Phase 3 drilling.
Drill hole OVD010, designed to test the anomaly during the 2024 Phase 1 program, encountered no significant mineralisation or gabbroic intrusive.
A revised gravity model, incorporating detailed topographic and drill hole data, indicates OVD010 missed the core of the gravity anomaly without fully testing it.
The technical team is studying an optimal drill hole design to test this anomaly in combination with drilling of the OVD011_EOH-A plate.
Exploration areas of interest for drilling on chargeability (IP) map.
Regional exploration
The geophysical signatures in the regional geological context may be spatially associated with the Oval intrusive, either along structural trends or parallel features.
All of these areas are concealed beneath cover or sedimentary rocks, remain untested by drilling or other subsurface exploration methods and their geological explanation is yet to be determined.
Six exploration areas have been prioritised in the Phase 3 Program for follow-up exploration drilling out of the approximately 30 areas initially defined by the geophysical surveys within the detailed exploration area in prior works.
These prioritised areas display particularly robust geophysical signatures, characterised by coincident high magnetic and gravity responses, coupled with low resistivity or low magnetic and high gravity responses with low resistivity.
In addition, two highly prospective soil anomalies have been identified through analysis of samples previously collected and processed by ABM geologists.
Their underlying geological explanation is yet to be determined and is being investigated.