How Power Minerals Plans to Unlock Gamma’s Rare Earth and Uranium Potential
Power Minerals Limited updates its acquisition of the Gamma Heavy Rare Earths Project in California, clarifying historical data limitations and securing $4.1 million to fund exploration activities.
- Amended disclosure on historical non-JORC uranium and rare earth data
- Gamma Project located near Mountain Pass, US’s sole REE mine
- $4.1 million placement secured from sophisticated investors
- Exploration plans include systematic sampling, geophysical surveys, and drilling
- Acquisition subject to due diligence, shareholder and regulatory approvals
Clarifying Historical Data
Power Minerals Limited (ASX – PNN) has issued an amended announcement regarding its October 2025 update on acquiring the Gamma Heavy Rare Earths Project in California. The company clarified that all historical drillhole and assay results referenced are non-JORC (2012) compliant and were not conducted by Power Minerals. This includes radiometric uranium data and rock chip sampling results, which, while indicative of high-grade mineralisation, lack modern verification and quality assurance protocols.
The amendment also retracts certain portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) data due to inadequate documentation, and corrects minor overestimations in total and heavy rare earth oxide values from historical samples. Investors are cautioned not to rely on these historical figures as definitive resource estimates.
Strategic Location and Resource Potential
The Gamma Project is strategically positioned in San Bernardino County, California, within the same rare earth element (REE) precinct as the Mountain Pass Mine, the only operating REE mine in the United States. Unlike Mountain Pass, which predominantly produces light REEs, Gamma shows promising heavy rare earth element (HREE) potential, with historical rock chip samples reporting up to 2.02% total rare earth oxides (TREO) and significant uranium grades.
Historical exploration dating back to the 1950s and 1960s focused on uranium and gold, with limited recent sampling for rare earths. The presence of mineralised carbonatite and porphyritic dykes, alongside high-grade uranium intersections from a 1968 diamond drillhole, underscores the project's potential as a critical minerals asset.
Funding and Acquisition Progress
Power Minerals has successfully secured firm commitments for a $4.1 million placement at $0.10 per share, attracting sophisticated investors including Tribeca Investment Partners and the S3 Consortium. The funds will support acquisition completion, systematic surface sampling, geophysical surveys, aerial drone magnetics, and further staking of mining claims.
The acquisition agreement involves a cash payment of US$625,000 and the issue of up to 37.5 million shares, subject to shareholder approval. Additional milestone-based share issuances are planned contingent on exploration success. Completion remains conditional on due diligence, regulatory approvals, and shareholder endorsement.
Looking Ahead
Power Minerals’ exploration team is already on site, initiating mapping and early-stage sampling. The company aims to rapidly advance the project with modern exploration techniques, including drilling, to validate historical results and define mineralisation. The Gamma Project complements Power’s existing critical minerals portfolio, notably its Santa Anna carbonatite project in Brazil, and aligns with broader US government efforts to secure domestic critical mineral supply chains.
Bottom Line?
As Power Minerals moves to validate Gamma’s historical promise, the next exploration results will be pivotal in shaping its US critical minerals ambitions.
Questions in the middle?
- How will Power Minerals validate and upgrade the historical non-JORC data to JORC standards?
- What are the timelines and milestones for drilling and resource definition at Gamma?
- How might the Gamma Project’s heavy rare earths complement Mountain Pass’s light rare earth production?
