Red Metal Ltd has announced a significant breakthrough in metallurgical testing of rare earths ore from its Sybella project in Queensland. This advancement will reduce impurities and enhance ore grades, contributing to a more efficient extraction process. The company has successfully replaced the conventional two-stage impurity removal process with a streamlined ion exchange method, aiming to lower operational costs while increasing purity levels.
The proposed ion exchange plant, designed and operated by Core IPEX, is a notable development in the field of primary metal recovery. Ion exchange technology is widely utilized not only for uranium, nickel, and cobalt extraction but also for water purification. The advantages of this new approach include the potential for significantly higher purity mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC), reduced alkali costs, and a simplified processing flow.
The characteristics of Sybella’s soft ore provide additional benefits. The first 10 meters of the deposit allow for free-digging, while a straightforward crushing process minimizes time and costs. Furthermore, the use of low-acid solutions contributes to energy savings and lowers impurity levels post-leaching. These factors eliminate the need for an expensive hydrometallurgical plant, which typically requires extreme heating and the cracking of ore.
The Sybella deposit spans an area of 12 kilometers long and 3 kilometers wide, featuring granite that is amenable to low-temperature processing. Management suggests that this could lead to a low-capital expenditure operation. Recent intermittent bottle-roll tests on reverse-circulation drill chips from both weathered and fresh granite have shown the ore’s suitability for heap leach processing operations. These tests confirm metal recovery rates and the chemical consumption of ore within a hydrometallurgical framework.
In addition to the metallurgical tests, Red Metal is conducting trials for impurity removal and column leach tests to further improve metal recovery rates. The management team believes that completing this comprehensive metallurgical testing will enhance their understanding of processing and extraction potential before engaging in costly drilling programs. A step-out drilling initiative has recently been finalized, covering an 8-kilometer by 3-kilometer area to assess mineral continuity. This effort included the drilling of 120 holes, totaling 8,171 meters, revealing two zones of high-grade mineralization, each approximately 1 kilometer wide.
Once assay results are received, the company plans to execute infill drilling to upgrade the mineral resource and develop a mining study.
In Western Australia, Red Metal is actively drilling at two high-impact projects, Pulkarrimarra and Pardoo, both located in the Pilbara region. This aggressive exploration push is supported by a substantial injection of $2.5 million acquired through the exercise of unlisted options ahead of their latest quarterly report. Following a successful capital raise in September and October, which saw over 20 million options exercised, Red Metal is well-positioned to pursue its WA copper-gold targets.
The confidence in the company’s direction is underscored by the actions of directors Russell Barwick and Robert Rutherford, who personally exercised over 1 million options at $0.13 per share on October 29, 2023, thereby significantly increasing their shareholdings. Rutherford’s total shareholding now exceeds 14.9 million shares.
The funds from the recent financial maneuvers are being strategically allocated towards what the company hopes will be two world-class mineral exploration opportunities. At the Pulkarrimarra project in the Paterson province, drilling is currently focused on the high-priority gold target YE02, which lies along the same geological trend as Rio Tinto’s Winu discovery. The target is characterized by a large, high-resistivity feature indicative of potential gold-copper mineralization.
Simultaneously, Red Metal has commenced drilling at the Pardoo project, which is designed to test various magnetic targets within the highly promising Hemi structural corridor. The initial reverse-circulation drill program on two proof-of-concept targets has been completed, with drill chips logged and sampled for analysis.
In addition to these projects, Red Metal holds a significant asset in its 35.8 percent stake in Maronan Metals, which recently published a robust Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for its shallow Starter Zone. Maronan’s two ore bodies, each containing approximately 30 million tonnes, are located near Cloncurry in Queensland. Red Metal’s 88.5 million shares in Maronan Metals, trading at $0.31 per share in late October, represent an investment valued at around A$27.4 million, a substantial liquid asset that bolsters the company’s overall valuation.
As Red Metal advances its Sybella rare earths project toward a planned scoping study in 2026, the focus remains on capital discipline. Innovative comminution studies and ongoing ion exchange resin tests aim to establish a low-capital cost, low-operating cost heap leach processing option. Large-scale column leach test work is scheduled to begin in mid-November 2025, with results expected in the new year.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: [email protected]
