Magnum narrows Piracanjuba focus after completing 10,000m drilling
Magnum Mining has completed more than 10,000 metres of drilling at its Piracanjuba North rare earths project in Brazil and is shifting its main effort to the 32.5km² Plateau Zone. A further 2,000-metre diamond drilling phase will run alongside independent resource, radiological and metallurgical studies, although delayed assay turnaround creates a risk to the company’s November timetable.
- 10,313.97m completed across 867 drilling collars
- 7,137.42m concentrated across 576 Plateau collars
- Further 2,000m of high-recovery diamond drilling planned
- GE21, GLP and CETEM appointed for independent technical work
- Laboratory turnaround times have stretched to roughly twice normal levels
Piracanjuba drilling passes 10,000 metres
Magnum Mining and Exploration Limited (ASX:MGU; OTCID:MGUFF) has completed the broad drilling phase at its Piracanjuba North rare earths project in Goiás, Brazil, with the database reaching approximately 10,313.97 metres across 867 collars as at September 15. The milestone marks a change in emphasis: from testing the scale of the project to tightening geological control over the areas being considered for a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate.
The Plateau Zone now accounts for approximately 7,137.42 metres across 576 collars. It is a single, defined domain covering about 32.5 square kilometres within Magnum’s wholly owned Azimuth rare earth element project, and is now the principal target for infill drilling and resource definition.
Plateau to receive another 2,000 metres
Magnum plans to drill a further 2,000 metres across the most prospective Plateau domains, integrating assay results already received with holes still awaiting laboratory work. The company is deploying a high-recovery, water-free diamond drilling configuration for targeted infill and geological control, particularly through key weathering horizons.
The announcement contains no new assay or desorption results. That distinction matters: the drilling count is now substantial, but the resource case still depends on how the geological, assay and desorption data combine into a coherent model.
Independent studies target resource and processing risks
Three external technical workstreams are advancing alongside the drilling. GE21 Consultoria Mineral has been engaged to prepare the independent geological model and JORC Mineral Resource Estimate, as well as a Scoping Study if the supporting data is sufficient. GLP Laboratorio is assessing naturally occurring radioactive material, or NORM, to establish a radiological baseline for metallurgical, environmental and development planning.
The Centro de Tecnologia Mineral, known as CETEM, is undertaking ore characterisation and preliminary metallurgical testwork. Those studies are intended to define the mineralogical and physical properties of the ore and provide an early view of the processing pathway. The company says the parallel work is designed to address technical risks before the project advances further.
November resource target faces laboratory delays
Magnum continues to target completion of the JORC Mineral Resource Estimate by the end of November 2026. Laboratory turnaround times have recently stretched to approximately twice the typical processing period, however, and the company says the timetable could extend by up to two weeks if delays persist.
That leaves the next phase dependent on more than metres drilled. The pending assays and desorption results, the quality of the independent geological model, the NORM baseline and the first metallurgical findings will determine whether the Plateau can support a defensible resource and a credible path into scoping-level evaluation.
Bottom Line?
The drilling milestone advances Magnum to the resource-definition stage, but the key evidence is still to come from delayed laboratory results and independent technical studies.
Questions in the middle?
- Will pending assays and desorption data support a coherent JORC resource across the Plateau?
- Can the additional diamond drilling materially improve geological continuity and sample recovery?
- What will NORM and preliminary metallurgical results imply for the project’s development pathway?
