Marmota yields Bonanza-grade titanium at emerging SA discovery

Sydney Morning Herald

6 days ago

Marmota Limited has unveiled a stunning set of results from its emerging Muckanippie titanium discovery in South Australia's Gawler craton, confirming the project as a major new heavy mineral sands player with bonanza-grade concentrations that dwarf industry benchmarks.
The company's 91-hole air core campaign has revealed extraordinary titanium-rich heavy mineral (HM) concentrations, with peak grades up to a staggering 63 per cent. Thick intercepts start at surface.
Marmota believes the results validate the discovery's high-grade and significantly expand its footprint to a sprawling 3.2 kilometre by 1.8km, with the potential for extensions in all directions.
The program's standout intersections include an unheard of 37m at 45 per cent HM from just 2m depth, which featured a 5m section at a massive 56 per cent HM, a 34m hit running 19 per cent HM from 4m, including 1m at 50 per cent HM, and a 30m at 20 per cent HM from surface.
The results build on the company's four discovery holes reported at the start of this year, which peaked at 28 per cent HM.
The company's latest drill program doubles the project's maximum grade to 63 per cent.
The mineralised zone is hosted within a 28km-long Mesozoic palaeochannel and currently spans the entire 3.2km width of Marmota's Muckanippie tenement. High-grade HM concentrations of more than 20 per cent were recorded at both its eastern and western extremities.
Encouragingly, samples from Marmota's adjoining tenement to the west have previously shown 100 per cent leucoxene - a high-value titanium mineral - hinting at a potential 9km-long mineralised system yet to be drill-tested.
Using low-cost air core drilling, Marmota will now look to quickly and cheaply move its discovery to a resource estimate. It seems HM grades in the company's maiden resource will likely stand head and shoulders above its industry peers.