PEC to drill-test Raptor REE
Perpetual plans deeper drilling across Raptor prospects to support maiden JORC resource estimate
Program will follow-up on auger drilling that returned high-grades of magnet REE-rich mineralisation
Company will also advance detailed metallurgical testwork and mineralogical characterisation
Special Report: Perpetual Resources is finalising plans for the next phase of drilling targeting depth extensions at the Portão Verde, Pina Colada and Pinheirinho prospects of its Raptor rare earths project in Brazil.
This program will be designed to fully assess broader project-scale potential to support a maiden JORC resource estimate.
Perpetual Resources (ASX:PEC) intends for the follow-up aircore holes to be drilled to depths of 30-40m to follow previous shallow auger holes demonstrating that mineralisation is open at depth.
This program will assess mineralisation at depth and test its full extent across the project to understand the volume potential.
Notable previous assays from the earlier drilling, which was limited by handheld auger capacity, include:
5m grading 5591ppm total rare earth oxides (35% neodymium and praseodymium) ending in 5533ppm TREO; and
12m at 4601ppm TREO (23% NdPr) ending in 2914ppm TREO.
Metallurgical testing by ANSTO has also recovered up to 94% for key magnet REEs.
Highlights from metallurgical testwork following maiden drilling. Pic: Perpetual Resources
Raptor project
The Raptor project sits within the world-class Caldeira Alkaline Complex in Minas Gerais, a region that is rapidly emerging as a globally significant hub for ionic adsorption clay-hosted REEs.
It is close to Meteoric Resources' (ASX:MEI) Caldeira project, which has a resource of 1.5Bt at 2359ppm TREO and Viridis Mining and Minerals' (ASX: VMM) Colossus project.
Both projects have recently attracted substantial government grant funding and institutional equity support – underscoring growing national and global interest in the district's critical minerals potential.
PEC's upcoming drill program will investigate new high-priority targets across the broader project area.
The company will also advance detailed metallurgical test work and mineralogical characterisation to support future development studies and underpin Raptor's positioning as a potential long-term supplier of critical rare earths.
This article was developed in collaboration with Perpetual Resources, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
Originally published as Perpetual Resources gears up for REE resource drilling at Raptor
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