Boadicea buoyed as partner IGO tastes more success in Fraser Range nickel exploration

Proactive Investors has published an article following the encouraging success of IGO’s first drill hole in the hunt for nickel across Boadicea’s Fraser Range tenements and If it leads to a JORC discovery, Boadicea could be eligible for a $50 million payday.

Boadicea Resources Ltd’s (ASX:BOA) exploration partner IGO Ltd (ASX:IGO) (OTCMKTS:IPGDF) (FRA:IDZ) has provided an update on its exploration activities over Boadicea’s Fraser Range nickel assets.

The Proactive Investors article says, so far, the major mining company has completed an 809-metre diamond drill hole at Boadicea’s Symons Hill exploration licence as part of a broader campaign to explore the Orion nickel prospect.

Promisingly, good tenor pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite-pentlandite sulphide indications were observed in the Orion chonolith at Symons Hill, in line with IGO’s interpretation that the mineralised system becomes more prospective towards the northeast.

IGO has also completed 89 aircore drill holes at Symons Hill, with results from this program now pending. The miner is also 63% of the way through and moving loop electromagnetic (MLEM) exploration campaign, covering the Symons Hill licence.

Once heritage agreements and surveys are finalised, IGO will conduct more MLEM surveying and aircore drilling across other BOA-owned licences.

Point to “potential exploration success”

Boadicea Resources managing director Jon Reynolds said the latest update boosts confidence in Symons Hill’s nickel prospectivity.

“A nickel discovery on our licence would provide IGO with a close source of production feed to IGO’s adjacent Nova Operation.

“The preliminary results from drilling indicate many qualities necessary for sulphide accumulation within the Orion intrusion and potential exploration success.

“IGO has indicated BOA’s other Fraser Range tenements are also highly prospective for nickel with a work program targeting a number of anomalous features.”

Exploring Boadicea’s nickel assets

In September last year, IGO subsidiary IGO Newsearch Pty Ltd executed a conditional sale agreement with the Boadicea team.

Over a five-year term, IGO can exclusively access and explore nine of the 11 Boadicea-owned Fraser Range tenements.

 

If IGO declares a JORC resource within the five-year exclusivity period, Boadicea will sell and transfer the Fraser Range assets for $50 million.

Boadicea can also snap up a 0.75% net smelter royalty on all revenues generated by the Fraser Range tenements.

As a result, signs of a nickel discovery across any one of the nine exploration licences IGO is exploring could lead to a $50 million payday for Boadicea.

The ASX-lister, named after Celtic warrior Queen Boadicea, is also exploring for nickel, copper and gold across Western Australia’s famed Paterson Province and Queensland’s Charters Towers and Drummond Basin.

 

A key diamond drill

Although it’s invested in exploration across all nine Fraser Range licences, IGO seems particularly interested in work at the Symons Hill tenement, home to the Orion prospect.

Within this area, a newly drilled diamond hole targeted an interpreted extension of the Orion chonolith intrusion from IGO’s Nova Mining lease onto the Symons Hill licence.

Within its own mining lease, IGO has delineated the Orion Intrusion over 1.5 kilometres of strike.

Promisingly, exploration to date across the chronolith suggests it becomes more dynamic — and, therefore, more prospective for nickel-copper mineralised systems — towards the northeast and onto the Symons Hill licence.

 

The chronolith is interpreted as an open structure, extending into Boadicea’s Symons Hill licence.

 

Definitive assays for the latest diamond drill at Symons Hill are expected in the current quarter.

Ultimately, however, further interpretation is needed to evaluate the Orion prospect’s nickel potential. IGO will undertake additional work once geochemical assays come back and the outstanding MLEM survey runs its course.

IGO also intends to drill more holes to test the continuation of the Orion chonolith within Symons Hill.

Other exploration

In addition to the diamond hole, IGO has completed 287 MLEM stations over the Symons Hill licence.

So far, no anomalies of interest have been uncovered, although northeast-trending stratigraphic conductors have been defined at the tenement.

IGO has also drilled 89 aircore holes, covering 3,449 metres, at the exploration licence, with the wait for assays now on.

Initial results, however, point to a significant intersecting grading at more than 500 parts per million in one of the program’s aircore holes.

Future work

Looking ahead, IGO needs to secure a range of heritage agreements to progress its work program over the Fraser Ranges.

The major miner will also complete data review and set up 212 more MLEM stations across the Symons Hill licence and the Mahi West prospect, which lies within the South Plumridge licence.

Additional aircore drilling programs are also planned across seven of Boadicea’s northern Fraser Range tenements.

With IGO’s extensive work program currently underway, it may not be long before investors receive further updates on nickel exploration in the Fraser Ranges.