Petratherm has identified high-value titanium at its heavy mineral sand (HMS) discovery within the Muckanippie project area, south-west of Coober Pedy in South Australia.
The Australian, US, Indian, Japanese and South Korean governments, along with the European Union, have designated titanium as a critical mineral for essential modern technologies, economies and national security.
The global titanium market size was estimated at $3.6 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 6.2% from 2024 to 2030.
Titanium value-add
Previously unidentified at Muckanippie, the discovery of titanium has added further value to the promising HMS find.
High-grade titanium was identified through reconnaissance mapping and surface sampling, along with assaying of historic drill core stored at the SA government’s core library.
That work found the titanium mineralisation spans many square kilometres at two prospect sites, Rosewood and Claypan, while recent outcrop samples recorded exceptional grades ranging between 10% and 50% titanium dioxide.
Shallow mineralisation
Notably, the mineralisation is shallow and occurs from or within 10m of the surface and is present as heavy mineral bands forming sheet-like HMS mineralisation.
“The Muckanippie Suite is a rare and highly-fertile layered intrusion and this titanium discovery, including high-grade, high-value titanium ores as HMS, has the potential to be transformational for the company,” Petratherm chief executive officer Peter Reid said.
“The mineralisation has been traced over a large-scale area and has significant potential as large tonnage direct shipment ore.”
“The Adelaide to Darwin railway, located just 30km east of Muckanippie, offers low-cost access to ports and global markets.”
Drilling planned
The company is ramping up its exploration of the discovery, with drilling planned to commence in October.
“This will expand on these significant and exciting findings to define initial grades and the extent of the mineralisation,” Mr Reid said.
An exploration target for the Rosewood prospect is defined over the initial planned drill area and represents approximately 10% of the total interpreted prospective HMS area.
