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http://portlincoln.yourguide.com.au/news/local/general/exploration-stepping-up/1235367.html

A DRILLING rig is on standby in Perth ready to operate near Coomunga at Lincoln Minerals’ Gum Flat iron ore project.
Lincoln Minerals managing director Dr John Parker recently gave a presentation at the Lower Eyre Peninsula District Council meeting in Cummins.

He said a drilling rig from India is in Perth and will be on Eyre Peninsula at the start of May.

He said drilling would continue at the company’s Gum Flat project right to the end of the year through to early 2009.

Lincoln Minerals’ Gum Flat project is a joint venture with an Indian company, Mineral Enterprise Limited, which is providing funding for the exploration.

Lincoln Minerals has interests in nickel near Cleve, uranium north east of Kimba, and iron ore targets near Coomunga, Wanilla and Cummins.

“We have a fairly large interest on Eyre Peninsula,” Dr Parker said.

The company shares tenements with Centrex Metals, and also has a joint venture with InterMet Resources for iron ore and uranium.

This year the company plans to spend $6 million on Eyre Peninsula, most of which is looking for iron ore at Gum Flat, Wanilla and the Cummins region.

Dr Parker said gravity surveys at Gum Flat have shown there is a 200 million tonne deposit of magnetite iron ore.

Lincoln Minerals will be doing a vegetation survey in the area and a hydrogeological study because the western area overlaps with the Uley South groundwater basin.

“Hopefully by three quarters of the year we’ll have a fairly good idea of what we’ve got and start a feasibility study into the mining operation,” he said.

Dr Parker said the company aims to mine between 5 and 10 million tonnes of ore a year, which would be crushed, separated to concentrate the magnetite, and transferred in a slurry via a pipeline from Coomunga to Port Lincoln.

“Our preferred option is the main wharf but there are issues,” he said.

Between 15 and 30 ships each year would come to export the ore.

Dr Parker said Lincoln Minerals’ iron ore interests near Wanilla and Cummins are in the “very early stages”, but could potentially have double the amount of iron ore than that at Gum Flat.