Eclipse Metals Ltd (ASX:EPM) continued to make “impressive strides” in advancing its Ivigtût and Grønnedal rare earth projects in Greenland during the June quarter.
Its progress during the quarter follows the company declaring a maiden inferred mineral resource estimate for part of the Grønnedal in February.
Eclipse’s maiden inferred mineral resource estimate for part of Grønnedal, comprises 1.18 million tonnes grading 6,859 ppm TREO containing 8,074 tonnes TREO using a 2,000 ppm TREO cut-off, and supports the significant upside case for initial development and investment.
Historical data accessed
Significantly, during the June quarter, Eclipse gained access to 1940s-era archived historical diamond drill core that had been stored in a government facility in Greenland — a strategic move aimed at unlocking further potential in both the Grønnedal and Ivigtût areas.
The evaluation of this data demonstrated widespread high-grade rare earth elements content, bolstering the potential to extend the project’s mineral resource estimates.
Having access to this historical drill core from Greenlandic authorities, enabled Eclipse to secure an export permit to transport selected core samples to a European laboratory for assessment.
The company is now preparing for further exploration to expand the 1.18 million tonnes rare earth resource.
Drilling planned
A diamond drilling program is now planned for Grønnedal to test the ferro-carbonatite exploration target together with detailed geological mapping and petrological studies aimed at better understanding controls on rare earth element (REE) mineralisation.
The grade range for the exploration target comprises a notable proportion of magnet REEs, which has the potential to be competitive with other REE projects.
The mineral resource at Grønnedal extends from surface to a depth of only 9.5 metres, representing 80,000 tonnes per vertical metre (TVM).
The resource, which remains open in all directions, represents a small fraction of a large carbonatite intrusive that has been drill-tested.