Burley Minerals Commences Maiden Drilling at Cane Bore After Heritage Clearance

Heritage Clearance Unlocks Drilling at Cane Bore

Burley Minerals Ltd (ASX:BUR) has mobilised a reverse circulation drill rig to its Cane Bore Iron Ore Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara, following receipt of final heritage survey reports. The clearance covers approved drilling lines over most of the North Target and the entirety of the Step-Out Target, together spanning more than 290 hectares and over 5 kilometres of strike length.

The heritage survey, completed in early June 2026, was conducted in collaboration with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura Corporation and the Robe River Kuruma Aboriginal Corporation, clearing the way for Burley’s maiden drilling campaign at Cane Bore’s Channel Iron Deposit (CID) mesa-forms. Approximately 200 hectares of the combined targets have been cleared to date, with the western section of the North Target to be surveyed later.

Maiden Drilling Program Targets Large CID Mineralisation

The drilling programme, expected to last about one week, aims to delineate the depth and extent of CID mineralisation beneath the surface. Burley plans to drill around 120 reverse circulation holes across the North and Step-Out Targets, which form a contiguous ridge rising more than 20 metres above the surrounding terrain. Previous surface rock-chip sampling at Cane Bore returned iron grades as high as 56% Fe, underscoring the project’s potential.

Samples collected during the programme will be sent to a Perth laboratory, with assay results anticipated by late September 2026. This data will be critical to defining a resource estimate for the project’s expansive CID areas, which are strategically located less than 100 kilometres from the Port of Ashburton near Onslow, accessible via sealed roads. The proximity to infrastructure is expected to provide capital and operating cost advantages.

Project Context and Next Steps

Cane Bore sits within the Pilbara Province, a globally renowned iron ore region. Burley holds 100% ownership of the project under exploration license E08/3424, granted in September 2024. The project area includes multiple CID targets, with prior drilling at the South Target confirming mineralisation presence. The North and Step-Out Targets lie about 3.5 kilometres northeast of the South Target, expanding the footprint of Burley’s exploration efforts.

The company’s Managing Director and CEO, Stewart McCallion, highlighted the significance of the heritage clearance and the potential scale of the CID mineralisation. He noted that the contiguous ridge covers nearly three million square metres and could define a large tonnage of iron ore. The results from this maiden drilling campaign will be closely watched as they represent a critical milestone in advancing the Cane Bore project towards resource definition.