Empire Metals Limited has announced the results of an airborne gravity survey conducted at the Pitfield Project in Western Australia. The survey identified a large, very dense core within the magnetics anomaly, which is correlated to the mineralised sedimentary beds. The highest density areas identified by the survey are outside the areas tested in Empire's maiden drilling programme, indicating significant potential for higher-grade mineralisation and/or new economic minerals within the high-density core. A 1,500m diamond core drill programme is expected to commence in September, followed by a more extensive Reverse Circulation drilling programme focusing on the new targets identified from the airborne gravity data. The company's priority is to confirm the scale of the titanium-enriched mineral system and provide more information about key parameters such as mineralogy, grades, tonnage potential, and geological controls on the higher-grade mineralisation.
Shaun Bunn, Managing Director of Empire Metals, stated that the results of the airborne gravity survey have successfully mapped anomalous variations in the subsurface rock density at Pitfield. He highlighted the potential to discover even higher-grade mineralisation and/or zones of new economic minerals within the high-density core, which has yet to be drill tested. Bunn also mentioned plans to expand the next RC drilling campaign to cover as much of these high-density targets as possible.
The Pitfield Project, in which Empire holds a 70% interest, consists of four granted Exploration Licences covering 1,042km2. The project is located near Three Springs, Western Australia. Regional gravity and magnetics surveys conducted by the Geological Survey of Western Australia identified strong gravity and magnetics anomalies within the Yandanooka Basin. The recent airborne magnetics and electromagnetics surveys conducted by Empire confirmed a massive alteration footprint within the host sedimentary rocks, coinciding with the historical gravity anomaly and new magnetic and electromagnetic anomalies.
The airborne gravity survey was conducted by XCalibur Multiphysics Group and covered the entire magnetics anomaly. The results highlighted a high-density, central core associated with the iron-titanium alteration system at Pitfield. The core covers an area of approximately 30km in length and up to 6km wide. The gravity data matches the airborne magnetics data flown by Empire in June 2022, with the more magnetic rocks located within the same central core.
Overall, the results of the airborne gravity survey at the Pitfield Project have provided valuable insights into the potential for extensive higher-grade titanium mineralisation. The upcoming diamond core drill programme and RC drilling programme will further explore the high-density targets identified by the survey, with the aim of confirming the scale of the mineral system and gathering more information about its parameters.