PRETTY much everyone involved in mining has heard Sirius Resources’ rags-to-riches yarn by now. Much less is known about the Sirius wannabes, however, so the Metal Detective thought it was time to revisit the mystical art of nearology. The Metal Detective, By Stephen Bell
In the midst of a fairly gloomy sector that has been rocked by big project cancellations, sackings and general belt tightening, Sirius’ nickel-copper discovery has offered a ray of light for the exploration sector.
Just as young lads dream of becoming an astronaut, juniors want to be Sirius when they grow up.
Why wouldn’t they?
A little more than three months after discovery, Sirius has gone from three blokes in a shed at Balcatta to a turbo-charged mid-cap worth more than half a billion dollars at last count.
Sirius’ stellar price jump has raised hopes of a monster-sized nickel-copper deposit in the remote Fraser Range region, east of Norseman in Western Australia.
For half a dozen junior hopefuls gathered round Nova, that scale of wealth creation is still a distant dream.
Nevertheless, the dream is highly appealing, with the likes of Buxton Resources posting a 420% share price gain since Nova was unveiled.
The fact that no drilling has been carried out by Buxton or the other Fraser Range hopefuls hasn’t stood in the way of a good story.
And the tale has been illustrated by plenty of those flashy electromagnetic survey maps featuring brightly coloured anomalies, just crying out for a good thrashing with a reverse circulation drill rig.
But after reviewing various public announcements, the Metal Detective can’t find any evidence that those lovely coloured blobs will be tested any time soon.
Mind you, that’s probably good news for the nearologists – why spoil the promise of unlimited riches with a dud drillhole?
Buxton’s Widowmaker tenement, granted at the start of last month, is 22km along strike from Nova.
Last week the company announced the start of an airborne EM program, testing for potential sulphide bodies over a 165sq.km grid.
Matsa Resources is another market bolter via a tenement application over its Symons Hill prospect, 6km southwest of Nova.
Infill sampling results unveiled last week confirmed a 1.6km-long nickel-copper anomaly, the company said.
Given that the tenement is yet to be granted, Matsa must win some praise for the energy of its exploration effort.
It is even planning a helicopter–borne EM survey this month.
The newest Sirius hopeful is Boadicea Resources, which has its own Symons Hill prospect.
Since listing less than a month ago, its 20c shares are up 175% – a princely gain, especially since all Boadicea has done so far is mine the market.
Its inaugural quarterly report last week advised punters that activities to date were of a “corporate rather than technical nature”.
The new kid on the block gets top marks for a bodacious name, though.
In case you were wondering, Boadicea was Queen of the Iceni people who led an uprising against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire in Britain around AD 60.
She is immortalised by a statue, complete with chariot, outside London’s Houses of Parliament.
There is less pomp and circumstance about Heron Resources, the blue-collar Kalgoorlie nickel laterite hopeful looking to reinvent itself as a multi-pronged metals group.
Heron has certainly caught the nearology flu, judging by a presentation yesterday that reminded people it owns projects close to three recent discoveries: Nova in WA, Peel Mining’s Mallee Bull copper find in New South Wales and Straits Resources’ Avoca Tank prospect, also in NSW.
Proving the Sirius effect is alive and well, Heron’s shares promptly rose 15% on a lacklustre trading day.
Soil anomalies at Heron’s Bedonia project, 60km west of Nova, are to be surveyed by EM as a “matter of urgency” in the New Year, Heron advised.
Another hopeful, Enterprise Metals, also has a multi-nearology strategy: the Vulcan gold and base metals play 10km southwest of Sandfire’s DeGrussa copper-gold mine; and its Fraser Range prospect, roughly 30km from Sirius.
Soil sample results have identified five nickel-copper-cobalt “Nova style” anomalies and one gold anomaly at Fraser Range.
Finally, there is no bull about Sheffield Resources, which has enjoyed a 120% share price gain since late July, partly on the back of its Red Bull project, 17km from Nova.
The company, which also targets mineral sands in the Pilbara, has publicised an 8km-long “anomalous trend” from a review of historic air core drilling at Red Bull and plans a 144sq.km EM survey.
No doubt there will be plenty of market interest in the various wannabes as Sirius forges ahead with its aggressive drilling campaign well into the New Year.
Eventually one of the nearologists will crank up its own drilling rig.
MD is not a share trader but he wonders whether that ground-breaking event might represent a good sell signal.
SIR Price at posting:
$3.08 Sentiment: LT Buy Disclosure: Held
