Azure Minerals Ltd (ASX:AZS) and its Andover joint venture project partner, Croydon Gold Pty Ltd, which is part of the Creasy Group, plan to add two new tenements to the project in the West Pilbara region of Western Australia, increasing the total area to 108.8 square kilometres.
A joint application for two new exploration licences, E47/4700 and E47/4701, has been submitted, covering an additional 38.4 square kilometres over the eastern extension of the nickel-rich Andover Intrusive Complex.
Initial reconnaissance exploration has identified outcropping nickel and copper-rich rocks (gossans) and also strong bedrock-hosted electromagnetic conductors.
Targets identified
The new tenements are considered prospective for hosting nickel-copper-cobalt sulphide mineralisation similar to the Andover and Ridgeline deposits that Azure has discovered on E47/2481.
Initial work on the new tenement areas comprised desktop research, on-ground reconnaissance mapping, surface geochemical sampling and interpretation of airborne electromagnetic (EM) and aeromagnetic surveys.
Encouragingly, several targets of interest have been identified, including VC-55, a high-priority target detected by an airborne EM survey conducted by the company in 2021.
Additionally, several occurrences of outcropping gossans containing anomalous nickel and copper mineralisation were identified during reconnaissance visits.
Next steps
Azure will commence detailed on-ground exploration to assess these and other targets as soon as the tenements are granted.
Initial activities will include geological mapping, sampling and surface EM surveys, followed by drill-testing of defined anomalies.
The Ngarluma Aboriginal Corporation has agreed to the inclusion of the new licence areas in the Heritage Protection Agreement between Azure, Croydon Gold and NAC, and consequently, the tenements are cleared for grant.
Some background
Nickel-copper-cobalt deposits, prospects and geology of the Andover Project.
Azure’s exploration on E47/2481 that adjoins the two new tenements has identified multiple occurrences of nickel-copper-cobalt sulphide mineralisation, including two significant deposits at Andover and Ridgeline.
Additional nickel-copper-cobalt mineralisation has also been discovered at the Seaview and Skyline prospects where drilling is continuing.
All these mineralised zones are contained within a fertile, nickel-rich corridor that has been well defined for four kilometres from Ridgeline to Seaview.
Further exploration indicates that this prospective horizon extends for at least another six kilometres to the northeast, within which several attractive targets have been identified including VC-24, VC-31 and VC-32.
Reconnaissance during initial site visits to the two new ELAs suggests that this mineralised corridor may extend into E47/4700 and contain the VC-55 conductor and outcropping nickel-rich and copper-rich gossans.