West Cobar Metals is fast-tracking its scandium exploration at the Salazar Project in Western Australia, targeting higher-grade zones with aircore drilling planned for late 2026 alongside advancing metallurgical testwork.
- Targeted aircore drilling of high-grade scandium zones planned for Q4 2026
- Metallurgical testwork shows promising atmospheric leach scandium recoveries
- Salazar hosts 15Mt inferred scandium resource at 153ppm Sc2O3
- US$400 million US government loan highlights scandium's strategic value
- Integrated flowsheet development underway for scandium and rare earth recovery
Targeted Drilling to Unlock High-Grade Scandium Zones
West Cobar Metals (ASX:WC1) is accelerating its scandium exploration at the Salazar Critical Minerals Project in Western Australia, with approvals underway for targeted aircore drilling aimed at higher-grade scandium zones within the Newmont deposit. The company plans to commence drilling in the fourth quarter of 2026, focusing on areas where previous intersections revealed scandium grades significantly above the resource average. Notable historic drill results include 13 metres at 318ppm Sc2O3 and narrower zones exceeding 600ppm, suggesting potential for discrete, economically attractive mineralisation.
Metallurgical Advances Support Low-Cost Processing
Complementing the drilling plans, West Cobar is progressing metallurgical testwork and flowsheet development targeting scandium recovery alongside rare earth byproducts. Recent bioleaching tests have achieved up to 39% scandium extraction under atmospheric conditions, while earlier acid leach work demonstrated recoveries as high as 81%. These results are encouraging given that many global scandium projects rely on more expensive high-pressure and high-temperature processing. The shallow saprolite-hosted mineralisation at Salazar could offer processing and capital cost advantages if atmospheric leaching proves scalable.
Strategic Importance of Scandium Highlighted by US Government Funding
The timing of West Cobar’s accelerated scandium push coincides with a recent US$400 million conditional loan commitment by the US Department of War’s Office of Strategic Capital to Sunrise Energy Metals (ASX:SRL) for its NSW scandium project. This underscores scandium’s growing strategic significance for defence, aerospace, advanced aluminium alloys, and emerging technologies such as solid oxide fuel cells and semiconductors. West Cobar is actively engaging on potential US funding and offtake pathways, signalling ambition to participate in securing Western scandium supply chains amid tightening Chinese export controls.
Salazar’s Multi-Critical Minerals Resource Base
The Salazar Project hosts a substantial inferred scandium resource of 15 million tonnes at 153ppm Sc2O3 within its saprolite clay zone, alongside a large rare earth element (REE) resource of 230 million tonnes at 1,178ppm total rare earth oxides (TREO). The deposit also contains significant titanium dioxide, gallium, and alumina, providing diversified exposure to multiple critical minerals markets. The mineralisation’s association with a weathered magnetic amphibolite horizon influences the distribution of heavy rare earths like dysprosium and terbium, which are valuable in high-tech applications.
Next Steps and Newsflow Expectations
West Cobar is pushing ahead with approvals for the aircore drilling program and advancing further metallurgical testwork, including heap-leach trials and evaluation of mixed rare earth carbonate production. The company anticipates a strong pipeline of news over coming months as it refines the scandium resource and explores processing options. These efforts aim to underpin future development studies such as scoping and pre-feasibility stages, setting the foundation for a potential scandium project that leverages Salazar’s low-strip, shallow open-pit mining potential and low-cost processing characteristics.
Bottom Line?
West Cobar’s focused drilling and metallurgical programs at Salazar position it to capitalize on rising scandium demand, but outcomes hinge on confirming resource continuity and scalable, cost-effective processing.
Questions in the middle?
- Will targeted drilling confirm the continuity and extent of higher-grade scandium zones?
- Can atmospheric leaching methods deliver scalable, low-cost scandium recovery at commercial scale?
- How might West Cobar leverage US strategic funding trends to advance project financing and offtake?