Doradilla Breakthrough Raises Questions on Sky Metals’ Next Growth Steps

Metallurgical Breakthrough at Doradilla

Sky Metals Limited (ASX – SKY) has announced a significant advancement in its Doradilla Tin Deposit, located about 45 kilometres southeast of Bourke in northwestern New South Wales. The company has successfully developed a new metallurgical processing approach that recovers approximately 78% of tin from mineralised samples, producing a saleable cassiterite concentrate. This breakthrough addresses previous challenges in economically extracting tin from the deposit and marks a pivotal moment for the project’s viability.

Defining a Maiden Exploration Target

Following this processing success, Sky Metals has compiled historical and recent drilling data to establish a maiden Exploration Target for Doradilla. The target covers a 2.5-kilometre strike length within the broader 7.5-kilometre mineralised zone, estimating 10 to 15 million tonnes of ore grading between 0.32% and 0.42% tin. This equates to a potential 32,000 to 63,000 tonnes of contained tin. Notably, there is potential to triple this strike length by extending exploration 2.5 kilometres northeast and southwest, supported by both recent and historical drilling results.

Strategic Growth and Complementarity

Sky Metals’ Managing Director Oliver Davies highlighted the strategic importance of Doradilla as a complementary asset to the company’s flagship Tallebung Tin Project, also in New South Wales. While Tallebung remains the primary focus with ongoing resource expansion drilling, Doradilla’s new processing route and defined Exploration Target enhance Sky Metals’ growth pipeline. The potential to develop a second tin production hub in northwestern NSW could strengthen the company’s position amid rising global tin demand, driven by its critical role in semiconductors, electronics, and renewable energy technologies.

Technical Insights and Next Steps

The metallurgical testwork involved a combination of gravity separation, magnetic separation, and flotation techniques, overcoming previous issues with iron contamination that hindered tin recovery. Initial tests focused on oxide zone mineralisation, with further work underway to optimise recovery rates and assess the potential for extracting rare earth elements as by-products. Sky Metals plans additional infill and step-out drilling to confirm mineralisation continuity and geometry, alongside further metallurgical studies to refine processing methods. These efforts aim to advance Doradilla towards a formal Mineral Resource estimate under the JORC Code.

Historical Context and Geological Setting

Doradilla’s mineralisation occurs within a calc-silicate skarn horizon associated with Devonian stratigraphy and the Midway Granite batholith, considered the mineralising source. The project area has a rich exploration history dating back to the 1970s, with multiple companies contributing drilling and assay data. Sky Metals has integrated over 94 drill collars and 5,150 assay records into its database, enabling robust geological modelling and resource targeting.