The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Index (ASX: XSO) closed at 3,447.20, up 36.20 points or 1.06% for the session, extending its five-day gain to 48.10 points or 1.42%.
Against a firmer backdrop for small-cap resource stocks, several ASX-listed explorers have updated the market on drilling, field programs and project advancement across lithium, gold and copper assets in Brazil, Peru, Australia, New Zealand and Namibia. You can read about the following and more throughout the day.
Solis Minerals advances Brazil lithium targets, secures Peru drilling approval
Solis Minerals Ltd (TSX-V:SLMN, ASX:SLM, OTCQB:SLMFF, FRA:08WA) has selected a diamond drilling contractor ahead of a planned June 2026 drilling campaign at its Mandacaru lithium prospect in Brazil’s Araçuaí–Salinas Lithium Valley.
The company intends to complete an initial 2,000-metre scout drilling program at Mandacaru before moving drilling activities to the Campo Grande prospect.
Recent field activities confirmed both projects as high-confidence, drill-ready lithium-caesium-tantalum (LCT) pegmatite targets, supported by coherent lithium soil and auger anomalies alongside elevated LCT pathfinder elements.
Solis said a former Rio Tinto senior geologist involved in the original identification and advancement of the projects had recently supported the exploration team, while land access agreements for Mandacaru had now been finalised and negotiations at Campo Grande were progressing positively.
In Peru, the company also confirmed its Cinto Copper Project had received final drilling approval.
Nexus Minerals reports high-grade gold hits at Wallbrook
Nexus Minerals Ltd (ASX:NXM, FRA:YAK) has reported strong initial reverse circulation drilling results from the Clement Prospect within its Wallbrook Gold Project in Western Australia.
The results form part of a broader 22,000-metre Mineral Resource Estimate definition drilling program underway at the project, located about 140 kilometres northeast of Kalgoorlie.
The first 10 RC holes from a planned 33-hole campaign returned broad high-grade gold mineralisation, with assays reaching up to 26.53 g/t gold.
Nexus said the results supported the potential for a maiden mineral resource at Clement and could contribute to growth across the wider Wallbrook resource inventory.
The company said drilling to date had confirmed a multi-lode mineralised system, with ongoing work aimed at defining the extent of mineralisation within the interpreted prospect envelope.
Critical Resources confirms gold mineralisation at Lammerlaw
Critical Resources Ltd (ASX:CRR, FRA:9S70) has reported first-pass field geochemistry and mapping results from its Lammerlaw Gold Project in Central Otago, New Zealand.
The work forms part of the company’s initial ground-based evaluation of targets generated through an earlier desktop review, which identified Devils Creek, Stony Creek and the TZ3–TZ4 Structural Boundary as priority areas.
Critical Resources said Devils Creek was considered the most historically developed hard-rock gold prospect within the permit area, with historical records and LiDAR interpretation identifying small adits, pits and trenches associated with lode-style mineralisation.
Rock-chip sampling returned the highest-grade assays around the Devils Creek workings and interpreted mineralised trend, confirming gold mineralisation in outcrop and float material.
The company said the results provided direct support for its exploration model at the prospect.
Askari Metals begins field work at Namibia’s Uis Project
Askari Metals Ltd (ASX:AS2, FRA:7ZG) has started its Phase I field program at EPL7626 within the company’s wholly owned Uis Project in Namibia’s Erongo Region.
The project is considered prospective for polymetallic mineralisation including tin, tantalum, rubidium and lithium and lies adjacent to the operating Uis Tin Mine owned by Andrada Mining Ltd.
Askari said EPL7626 sits contiguous with Andrada’s operation, which hosts a JORC-compliant mineral resource estimate of 77.51 million tonnes grading 0.79% lithium oxide, 0.15% tin and 82 parts per million tantalum.
The current field program includes geological mapping, rock-chip sampling and a licence-wide soil geochemical survey being undertaken by the company’s Africa-based exploration team under the guidance of senior exploration geologist Boniface Katanga.