Juniors on Radar: 5 ASX Explorers to Watch today

Firebird Metals posts “excellent” manganese assays

Firebird Metals (ASX: FRB) is up 5.8% today after reporting excellent assays from the Karen manganese deposit at the company’s Oakover project. 

The company has now received all assays from a maiden 41-hole drill program at Karen, which was completed in October 2021. 

The last 10% of assay results are still pending. However, the currently confirmed assays have been described as “excellent” by the company. 

Intercepts include:

• 4m @ 15.4% manganese (Mn) from 18m

• 1m @ 15.9% Mn from surface

Drilling completed at Karen was part of the 233-hole infill and extensional drill campaign run at Oakover.

Oakover currently has an inferred mineral resource estimate of 64Mt at 10% Mn. 

The price of manganese ore (based from trading on contracts for difference) has grown 7.2% in the last year, and currently sits at USD $33.50.

Managing Director Peter Allen commented:

“We are very excited by results received from our maiden drill program at Karen, which reinforces our strong view that Karen has massive potential to expand on our current Mineral Resource Estimate at Oakover.”

“Oakover is a very exciting project, with enormous growth and development potential and importantly, provides the Company with a near-term production pathway.”

Thomson Resources announces initial metallurgical tests 

Thomson Resources (ASX: TMZ) has soared 10.77% today after reporting encouraging results from initial metallurgical tests at the Texas District silver base metal deposits. 

The tests saw an average of 77.8% and 90.7% silver recovery from mineralisation at the Twin Hills and Mt Gunyan deposits. 

Likewise, initial grind and flotation work for the Silver Spur mineralisation showed concentrations of:

• 68.7% silver (Ag)

• 92.8% zinc (Zn)

• 63.2% copper (Cu)

• 64.4% lead (Pb)

With these tests completed, the company can now calculate mineral resource estimates for the Texas deposits. 

The results mark a big improvement in silver recovery for Twin Hills, which previous operators expected to yield less than 50% silver recovery. 

“We can now see where and why they ran into problems with adopting a heap leach processing system, and how we can achieve a better outcome with a different process and with the potential for significantly higher silver recoveries from the Twin Hills and Mt Gunyan deposits,” says executive chairman David Williams.

“We are now well set, coupled with our existing knowledge of the high grade Webbs and Conrad deposits, to commence the process pathway study for the centralised processing facility to handle all of the deposits.”

Talisman commences drilling at copper-gold targets

Talisman Mining (ASX: TLM) has jumped 3.03% after starting to drill at the Kaolin Shaft gold prospect. Kaolin is part of an exploration program at the Lachlan copper-gold project, located in NSW. 

Drilling at Kaolin will test for gold and zinc. Three other drill programs have achieved regulatory approval, with planning for drill pad construction underway with local contractors.

After Kaolin is drilled, the company will move on to test prospective anomalies across the Murray’s Mine gold, Carpina North gold, and Babinda copper prospects.

CEO Shaun Vokes commented:

“Drilling of these first four priority gold and copper targets is just the beginning of what will be a full exploration program for the year, and we anticipate some exciting results. We are also looking forward to the ongoing flow of data from our geophysics programs with subsequent analysis expected to provide us with additional drill targets.” 

Resolution Drilling on-site at the Kaolin Shaft gold prospect. (Credit: Talisman Mining)

Great Northern Metals intercepts high-grade gold and antimony

Great Northern Metals (ASX: GNM) has jumped 8.33% after intersecting high grade gold-antimony at the Golden Camel deposit within the Golden Ant Project in north QLD.

All four holes drilled for the program intersected gold-silver-antimony mineralisation. Results from one hole confirms that the high-grade mineralisation Hinge Zone is open at depth. 

Intercepts included 7.0m @ 2.4 g/t gold (Au) and 0.5% antimony (Sb) from a 222m down-hole. 

According to the company, a mineral resource estimate will be finished by the end of the current quarter.

Commenting on the announcement, CEO and Managing Director Cameron McLean said:

“The high-grade gold-silver-antimony mineralisation intersected in the Hinge Zone is open at depth and demonstrates the potential for an underground mining operation at Camel Creek.”

“The presence of high-grade antimony mineralisation at Camel Creek is significant in that antimony holds Critical Mineral status with both US and Australian governments as well as potentially enhancing the economics of the project.”

Cameron Mclean, CEO and Managing Director

Solis Minerals logs copper sulphides

Solis Minerals (ASX: SLM) has climbed 17.07% today after identifying widespread copper sulphides in the first two drill holes at the Mostazal copper project in Chile. 

The copper sulphides were observed during logging of the first two holes completed from surface down to 362m (hole 1) and 444m (hole 2), as part of a 2,000m drilling program at the flagship project.

Solis’ maiden drill program is targeting near surface manto-style copper mineralisation, along with an interpreted primary copper porphyry mineralisation feeder structure at depth.

Assay sampling is currently underway. The company expects the laboratory to provide results with a four-week turnaround time. 

“We are off to a fantastic start at Mostazal,” says CEO Jason Cubitt. “These first drill holes were designed to test the near surface manto-style mineralisation encountered in the historic drilling, and our logging has confirmed the presence of widespread alteration and disseminated copper sulphide mineralisation throughout both holes.”