Viridis Mining & Minerals (ASX: VMM) has unveiled a significant maiden resource of 201 million tonnes at a whopping 2590 parts per million total rare earth oxides (TREO) at its ionic-adsorption-clay (IAC) Colossus project in Brazil.
As part of its resource reveal via the ASX this morning, the company also says magnet rare earth oxides (MREO) came in at 668ppm – an impressive 26 per cent of the TREO.
Colossus sits within the Poços De Caldas Alkaline Complex in the State of Minas Gerais in south-east Brazil. The company says the “shining light” among its deposits at Colossus was its Cupim South resource, producing 28 million tonnes at a world-class grade for an IAC project of 3061ppm.
Management rates Colossus as the world’s premier IAC project, with its high-grade TREO and MREO, an important dysprosium and terbium content of 32ppm, exceptional bulk-sample magnet metallurgical recoveries and the potential to expand the resource – especially at Cupim South.
The resource was calculated using a 1000ppm cut-off with the coveted indicated category consisting of 62 million tonnes going 2590ppm and the majority of the drilling showing the deposit remains open at depth. The company says by using a 3000ppm TREO cut-off, the mineral resource equates to 50 million tonnes at 3917ppm TREO, with magnetic oxides going 1144ppm highlighting the quality of the Colossus project.
In a sign of the potential to expand its resource, Viridis noted its numbers released this morning came from a mere seven per cent of the project area, with Cupim South’s figures coming from a 1.69-square-kilometre plot that comprises just 15 per cent of its ground.
Further resource upgrades are expected to include results from the company’s Centro Sul, Tamoyo and Fazenda Cocal deposits, with the Northern concessions ground poised to add to the indicated resources.
The key highlight and what differentiates our Ionic-Adsorption Clay project from our peers is the high levels of Magnet Rare Earth content. The grades themselves are incredible, but more importantly, we have some of the highest contents of the four critical and valuable Rare Earths – Nd, Pr, Dy, Tb and the catalyst for Colossus having one of the highest IAC basket values in the world.
Viridis Mining & Minerals CEO Rafael Moreno
Management says the favourable location of the project, with access to brownfield infrastructure and a local mining workforce, in addition to dual memorandum of understanding (MOU) agreements with local and State Governments, should allow fast-tracking through the permitting process and into production with minimal bureaucratic roadblocks.
The company is expecting results back soon from further infill drilling at its Northern concessions area and expansion drilling conducted outside the known resource at Cupim South. It says there are extensive untested tenements near Cupim South.
Viridis believes recent exceptional drilling results will substantially grow the project’s resource. Results recorded outside its maiden resource area include 12m at 8221ppm TREO from 6m, 8m going 5510ppm from surface and 15m at 6153ppm from surface including 8m at 9765ppm.
Management says a positive aspect to its maiden resource estimation was its decision to exclude various aspects where it could not ascertain reasonable prospects for economic extraction. Oxide and leached clays were not considered due to low recoveries from the ore, transitional material was excluded due to insufficient metallurgical work on that horizon and all blocks of ore returning less than 300ppm of MREO were disregarded.
Viridis appears to have a world-beater of a project on its hands and if it can continue to upgrade its resource, it is likely to have potential offtakers or partners sitting up and taking notice in the near future.
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