ENR (ASX) Ann: Thick carbonatite intersected between Crean and Hurley

Originally posted by salpetie: ↑

Deep with thin zones of reasonable grade just above fresh bedrock which is probably similar to 2023 RC drilling. Technical success with assays pending for diamond drilling at Hurley and elsewhere.
Yes there is a long intersection of carbonatite due to drilling nearly down dip of a 240+- wide dyke. Grades below 100m need to be Mountain Pass equivalent to be of significant value IMO. Might end up being a phosphate prospect rather than Nb....

Surface projection of the zone shows it is around 200-250m wide and dipping slightly south sub parallel to drill holes.

Limited data suggests the DDHs intersected the carbonatite south of where it might be expected. The poorly defined widths from 2023 RC holes do seem to match today's announcement for scale and perhaps grade.
Faults are easy to use as explanations for poor data. Might be real as the Stromness EIF intersection was stated as the logic for these DDHs.

Overlaying my rough early section with today's.. Holes drilled south rather than north though in hindsight N might be more appropriate.
ENR were lucky holes 283 and 4 clipped the carbonatite.
The diamond holes appear to have defined the south margin but the northern one might be a bit tenuous. Looks like a fenite alteration margin in 442D with a transition to carbonatite around 150m that gives a single point of information.
First time I have heard the mention of Permian sediments in this immediate area. Not too surprising given the complexity of the Canning Basin margin throughout this area especially around Lake MacKay and to the north.

Permian sediments probably mean some glacial sediments which were part of a global event. [Evidence for these all over Australia with some in the Paterson province.]

[Brings back memories of drilling ultramafics in Northern Canada. As with carbonatites these tend to be softer than the host and the glacial ice sheets can gouge them out preferentially. Nasty cover to drill through with some boulders >>1m and then back into soft sediments.]

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Regional

Hoschke to Hurley
Nearly 8 Kms of strike with intersections of dyke like carbonatite varying along it. Hoschke c10m true thickness to almost 500m on the section with EAL007. Very rapid changes adjacent to this section.
Grades vary as well
Holes 91-93 provide a probable southern limit between 2023 DDHs 7 and 8. Lack of follow up to AC on the section with hole 93 suggests moderated to low grades at best. Hopefully better.

More regional on mag and gravity

Magnetics with dump of drilling and some logistics.
IMO there is probably another fault sub parallel and just to the north of the EIF. Sharp margin of "green higher mag south" and blue lower mag to the north.
Complex area with multiple faults as mentioned in announcement.

Gravity

Falcon survey data with WA1 ground surveys in south and not much available at good resolution to west other than Pachapadra of WA1.
The Steller target shows up as an interesting peak with limited gravity texture (other than lows) to Hurley.

A perennial teaser is how does P2 relate, or not, to Hoschke - Crean - Hurley (and some yet to be found prospects)?

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"A perennial teaser is how does P2 relate, or not, to Hoschke - Crean - Hurley (and some yet to be found prospects)?"... I had a quick look at the mag the other day for the hell of it, and drew some lines as geos are want to do. The big NE striking faults like Elephant Island, and NW striking faults like Stormness are obvious and dominate the picture in the Arunta...

What struck me was that the carbonatites besides P2 have so far been found clustered along more west-east striking trends, at the end of major NE striking faults like Elephant (so far at least). On a basic structural setting, it's not unusual imo that faults splay in areas where major faults are slightly offset to join, or at least form, with different orientations to satisfy the structural forces and movement at work. Below is what I saw, with a flattening at the edn of Elephant around the Hurley to Hoschke and further along to Mcllroy.... and also at the end of the NE fault that intersects Stormness and seems to flatten W-E along Green, Luni and Emily (carbs sitting either side of structure).

Assuming these faults were activated during extensional forces, with normal fault movement north block down along Elephant, maybe the same for Luni, possibly the most extensional or dilatational low-pressure part of the NE striking faults the carbonatites intruded up are those parts more W-E striking? If the compression was roughly W-E and the maximum extension roughly N-S, then the NE striking Elephant fault would be marginally compressional, but more W-E would be maximum extensional...

Makes me quite like the weak mag high NE of P@ (red dashed circle) located possibly at the intersection of Elephant Island W-E jog, the P2 NE fault extending west, and the NW striking fault west of Stormness (Stormness repetition?). Hasn't been identified as an official target yet... suppose it would be too much to ask if it's a winner carb to call it the 2ic Deposit

GLTAH