St George Mining Ltd (ASX:SGQ) has delivered its thickest high-grade intercept to date at the Araxá Rare Earths and Niobium Project in Brazil, with new drilling returning more than 115 metres of rare earths and niobium mineralisation from surface.
AXDD016 returned 115.65 metres at 3.34% total rare earth oxide (TREO) and 0.34% niobium pentoxide (Nb₂O₅) from surface, including standout high-grade sub-intervals such as:
- 10 metres at 6.39% TREO and 0.74% Nb₂O₅ from surface
- 7.35 metres at 5.92% TREO and 0.57% Nb₂O₅ from 10.65 metres
- 2.9 metres at 9.27% TREO from 26.1 metres
Other results featured similarly broad and consistent mineralisation:
- AXDD012: 100.1 metres at 3.96% TREO and 0.40% Nb₂O₅ from surface
- AXDD013: 79.7 metres at 3.69% TREO and 0.40% Nb₂O₅ from surface
St George notes that a further 32 diamond holes are still at the laboratory, with assay results due before year-end.
Oblique section showing the latest diamond drill holes as well as other significant drilling completed in the current campaign. The latest drill holes with red labels.
The latest results extend a strong run of high-grade intersections across the project and continue to build confidence in a substantial upgrade to Araxá’s already world-class mineral resource.
Resource expansion momentum builds
Executive chairman John Prineas said the project was “delivering exactly what we set out to achieve — consistent, high-grade results that expand the project’s scale and strengthen our confidence in what already is an exceptional, world-class Mineral Resource Estimate”.
Araxá currently hosts 40.6 million tonnes at 4.13% TREO, the largest and highest-grade carbonatite-hosted rare earths resource in South America and the second-highest-grade rare earths resource in the Western world. The project also contains 41.2 million tonnes at 0.68% Nb₂O₅.
Prineas said the new holes, particularly AXDD012, 013 and 016, demonstrated consistent high grades over more than 100 metres — a key factor in upgrading resources from Inferred to Indicated.
“Results like these are highly significant because they provide confidence to upgrade Inferred resources to the Indicated category,” he said. “Importantly, they also highlight the potential to increase both the total tonnage and overall grade of the MRE.”
The company said closer-spaced drilling in previously conservative areas is now confirming high-grade mineralisation throughout the vertical profile, paving the way for potential material increases in contained metal.
The mineral system remains open in all directions, including at depth, and drilling continues around the clock with 25 more holes scheduled for completion in 2025.
Plan view map of Araxá area showing the location of the diamond drilling relative to the MRE.
Western extension emerging as new growth front
St George has also confirmed mineralisation beyond the western edge of the existing resource footprint. Step-out hole AXDD017 intersected high-grade material 80 metres west of the current boundary, opening a new zone for possible resource expansion that was not captured in previous estimates.
The company expects pending assays from several additional western step-outs to clarify the scale of this extension.
Section showing high-grade TREO intercepts (cut-off 1% TREO) and high-grade Nb2O5 intercepts (cutoff 0.2% Nb2O5) along with the existing MRE outline, showing the westward expansion of the existing MRE.
A de-risked project in a major mining district
St George acquired 100% of the Araxá Project in February 2025. Located beside CBMM’s globally significant niobium operations, the region has decades of commercial production history and established infrastructure.
The company has secured government support for expedited approvals and is participating in Brazil’s MagBras Initiative — a federal program aimed at developing a fully integrated rare earths supply chain, including permanent magnet production, within the country.
Prineas said the latest drilling is “laying a very solid foundation” for upcoming economic studies that will outline the development pathway for Araxá.
“We look forward to keeping shareholders updated over coming weeks as we advance our work at Araxá,” he said.