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Ian Scrimgeour delivered the presentation at the 2014 Mining the Territory Conference. With record year on year investment in mining developments and exploration in the Northern Territory, the 8th Annual Mining the Territory Conference is perfectly placed to hear latest information on this booming region. For more information about the event, please visit: http://bit.ly/MiningtheNT2014
Citation preview
Where to next for
exploration in the Territory?
Ian Scrimgeour
Executive Director, Northern Territory
Geological Survey
Exploration in the NT in 2014
• Relatively little grassroots mineral exploration
• Most exploration focussed on proving up known resources
• Low commodity prices affecting NT projects
• 19 minerals projects in various stages of feasibility or approvals
• Strong base metals results from Teena and Jervois
• Booming onshore petroleum exploration bringing new insights to NT geology
NT Government is
investing in the most
significant exploration
initiatives undertaken in
the NT
2013 –
$113.3M
2011 –
$228.4M
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Mineral exploration expenditure since 2000
Mineral ELs on which significant on-ground
exploration was reported to DME in 2013
Green = geophysics
Red = drilling
Blue = geochemistry
Notes:
1. This reflects exploration reported by industry in
technical reports submitted in 2013. Exploration
may have taken place during 2012 or 2013, and
not all exploration undertaken in 2013 is included
2. Only includes exploration on ELs, not MLs
3. Excludes petroleum exploration
Where minerals exploration is happening
Highlights in past year
• Teena zinc discovery (2013) 10 km west of McArthur
River mine (Teck-Rox JV)
• Similar deposit to McArthur River, but deep (up to 1 km)
Hole 1: 26.4m @ 13.3% Zn+Pb, from 1060m
including 8.0m @ 21.2% Zn+Pb
Hole 2: 20.1m @ 15.0% Zn+Pb from 944m
Hole 3: 16.3m @ 14.3% Zn+Pb from 905m
Hole 4: 14.9m @ 10.4% Zn+Pb from 676m
4000m drill program commencing late August
Other zinc highlights–
• Teck exercise $10M option in Reward JV
• MMG enter $10M exploration JV with Sandfire
• Teck enter JV with Brumby Resources
• Pacifico Minerals JV with Sandfire
Start of new zinc exploration boom?
Zinc resurgence in McArthur Basin
Highlights in past year
Ongoing high-grade results at Jervois
Green Parrot:
6m @ 8.55% Cu, 15.08% Pb, 10.95% Zn, 679.7g/t
Ag, 4.87g/t Au from 48 m
including 3m @ 12.38% Cu, 22.15% Pb, 16.78% Zn,
963.3g/t Ag, 1.01g/t Au
Reward:
18m @ 0.26% Cu, 16.39% Pb, 0.95% Zn, 279.1g/t
Ag, 0.13g/t Au from 33 m
including 6m @ 0.57% Cu, 37.72% Pb, 1.92% Zn,
551.5g/t Ag, 0.22g/t Au
Bellbird:
7m @ 8.22% Cu, 53.1g/t Ag, 0.23g/t Au from 56 m
Highlights in past year
Revitalisation of Tennant Creek exploration
Emmerson Resources
• $25M exploration farm-in by Evolution Mining to
underpin aggressive exploration
• Maiden resource for Goanna –
2.92 Mt at 1.8% Cu, 0.2 g/t Au
• Chariot resource 0.17 Mt at 17.4 g/t Au
• Drilling underway at Chariot and Eldorado Deeps to
increase gold resources
Blaze International-Meteoric Resources JV
• Bluebird prospect, 30 km east of Tennant Creek
• 20m at 8.17g/t Au, 0.61% Cu, 0.22% Bi from 157m
• 25m at 1.9% Cu and 0.3g/t Au from 69m including
4m at 8.99% Cu and 1.06g/t Au from 74m
• Characteristics of typical Tennant Creek style
deposit
Highlights in past year
NT’s fertiliser potential continues to grow
Rum Jungle Resources
Ammaroo
• Resource consolidated into single project
• 1.08 Bt @ 14% P2O5 (at 10% cutoff) including
338 Mt @ 18% P2O5 (at 15% cutoff)
Karinga Lakes
• Upgraded resource: 8.4 Mt K2SO4
• Equivalent to 19 Mt of schoenite
• Resources in brines in acquifers beneath salt
lakes
Highlights in past year
Gold production is up, with strong future prospects
Crocodile Gold
• Croc Gold has reduced costs and increased
production at Cosmo Deeps
• 40 koz produced in first half of 2014
• Sale and farm out of base metal and exploration
assets to Phoenix Copper
ABM Resources – Old Pirate
• Successful trial mining in late 2013
• Further high-grade veins indentified
• Agreement with Tanami Gold to utilise Coyote plant
in WA
Independence Group
• Aggressive greenfields gold exploration in Lake
Mackay area
Highlights in past year
Mount Peake project continues to progress
TNG Ltd – Mount Peake
• 160 Mt @ 0.28% V2O5 , 5.3% TiO2, 23% Fe
• Mafic-hosted vanadium magnetite
• Close to railway and gas pipeline
• Potential production of V2O5, Fe2O3 and TiO2 through
patented hydrometallurgical technique
• July 2012 Pre-Feasibility Study and updates suggest
prositive economics over 20-year mine life (2.5 Mtpa
increasing to 5 Mtpa)
• Lower cost two-stage development being considered
• Feasibility study underway
• Three agreements signed with Korean corporations
for potential financing, construction and offtake.
Ngukurr-Limmen area: Imperial Oil and Gas
• Seismic and cored wells planned
Batten Fault Zone: Armour Energy
• Continuing exploration in Borroloola area
including seismic and drilling
Beetaloo Sub-basin: Origin Energy, Sasol and
Falcon Oil and gas
• New phase of exploration to commence, focussed
on drilling
Beetaloo Sub-basin (west) : Pangaea Resources
• First two cored wells complete
• Total of 3-4 wells planned in 2014
Beetaloo Sub-basin (east) : Santos
• Very deep well planned west of Cape Crawford
McArthur Basin Gas and Oil Activity in 2014
Onshore oil and gas
The greater McArthur Basin – undercover extent
Represents over 20% of the Territory’s geology
Roper
Group +
equivalents
McArthur
Group +
equivalents
A 4 year (2014-18) $23.8M investment in growing the exploration sector
4 year extension of existing CORE initiative ($3.95M pa)
4 year program to assess shale gas and oil resources ($2.0M pa)
• New focus on understanding the Territory’s onshore petroleum potential
• Major new geoscience programs to lower risk for minerals and petroleum
exploration
• Programs to attract investment into NT resources projects
• Co-funding of industry greenfields drilling and geophysics
Creating Opportunities for Resource Exploration (CORE)
Under CORE, NTGS will take an
integrated approach to maximise
resources and skill sets to target two
zones in the NT
Northern NT - McArthur Zone
• Arnhem Province and McArthur Basin
and equivalents
Southern NT – Central Australia
• Arunta Region and Amadeus Basin
Regional approach
Southern McArthur
Gravity Survey
Southern Wiso
Gravity Survey
2013 gravity acquisition
West Amadeus Gravity Survey
• Completed August 2014
• Data available late 2014
Recent gravity acquisition
Dunmarra
(magnetic-radiometric)
Northern
McArthur
(gravity)
Southern
McArthur
(gravity)
Major programs underway in McArthur Basin
• Coverage with
fundamental geophysical
datasets
• Targeted geological
fieldwork
• Systematic analysis of
drillcore
• Interpretation of seismic
and 3D model of entire
greater McArthur Basin
• Stratigraphic characterisation and
correlation in McArthur Basin – then
Birrindudu Basin and Tomkinson Province
• Standardise analysis of field type section
and drill core – hyperspectral
McArthur Basin and correlatives
• Assessment of hydrocarbon
and metallogenic potential of
carbonaceous shale units
through standard suite
analysis
• Leading to shale gas and oil
resource assessment
• Project with CODES to
understand the potential for
the McArthur Basin to host
large scale sediment hosted
copper mineral systems
GSQ Framework Troup et al 2013
McArthur Basin and correlatives
• Geological mapping and framework
studies into the Arnhem Province
• Improve understanding of correlation
with prospective Pine Creek Orogen
• Improve the understanding of the
basement to the McArthur Basin
• 1:100k 1st ed maps and explan notes
• Undertake prospectivity analysis
Arnhem Province
• Framework studies into the
east Arunta Region with
focus on Jinka and Jervois
1:100k
Arunta Region
• Cu based mineral systems studies in the Arunta Region
• Commence with characterisation and paragenesis of the Jervois Cu-Ag-Au-
Pb-Zn deposit in east Arunta Region
• Extend to Cu±Au prospects across the Arunta Region (eg Limbla IOCG
belt, Perenti prospect, Home of Bullion, Mount Hardy)
. 1
2
3
Amadeus Basin
Large basin with proven petroleum
systems and excellent potential for base
metal deposits
• West Amadeus gravity survey –
complete basin coverage at 4km or
better
• Neoproterozoic stratigraphic
characterisation and correlation
• Extend to 1:100k mapping of central
basin
• COBRA project with CSIRO
• Scoping study of copper and base
metal systems
eg. GEMIS – geoscience.nt.gov.au/gemis
• Basic search
• Link to Advanced
Search page
• Access specific collections
• Browse index
terms for
specific results
• Register for email
notifications
• Review Download Cart and
Request Cart on all pages
Ongoing upgrades of accessibility to data
Other support for industry under CORE
Geophysics and Drilling Collaborations
• Funds 50% up to $100,000 of direct drilling or
geophysical acquisition costs for selected
greenfields projects
• Round 7, 2014/15: 13 projects funded to a value of
~$850,000
Investment Attraction
• Assisting NT companies attract investment into
projects from key markets
TNG Ltd sign
agreement with
Hyundai Steel,
July 2014
The Geology and Mineral Resources of
the Northern Territory
• first ever comprehensive overview of the
geology and resources of the NT
• definitive reference for mineral and
petroleum explorers
• 1100 pages, with more than 800 photos,
maps and figures
• 42 chapters describing each geological
province and basin descriptions of all
named geological units in the Territory,
and all major mineral deposits and
petroleum fields
Order hardcopy from the NTGS website
Digital version available online
Masood Ahmad
Summary
• The downturn in the resources sector is impacting on greenfields exploration
• There are early signs of a recovery in exploration
• Base metals is re-emerging as an important commodity for exploration
• Onshore oil and gas exploration and development is booming and yielding new
insights into NT geology
• NT Geological Survey has major programs underway to stimulate exploration in
the region through the CORE initiative