Tungsten Mining has reported broad, deeper-than-modelled tungsten zones from the first 16 holes of its Mt Mulgine expansion program, including a 292-metre intersection at 0.11% WO3. The results strengthen the case for resource growth, but remain exploration results rather than a revised Mineral Resource estimate.
- 292 metres at 0.11% WO3 in hole MMC599
- Mineralisation up to 45 metres thicker than predicted
- Existing Mulgine Trench resource stands at 247Mt
- Exploration Target of 165Mt to 200Mt remains conceptual
- Broad molybdenum and higher-grade gold zones also identified
Mt Mulgine drilling breaks beyond the geological model
Tungsten Mining NL (ASX:TGN, OTCQB:TGNMF) has found more rock carrying tungsten than expected at its Mt Mulgine project in Western Australia, with early drilling extending mineralisation materially deeper than the existing geological model predicted.
The first 16 holes from a 140-hole, 40,000-metre resource expansion program returned intersections of up to 292 metres at 0.11% WO3. Other headline results included 290 metres at 0.10% WO3, 264 metres at 0.11% WO3 and 257 metres at 0.11% WO3. The company said several holes ended in mineralisation, leaving open the possibility that the full thickness has not yet been tested.
At the northeastern end of Mulgine Trench, holes MMC599, MMC600 and MMC604 intersected an additional 30 to 45 metres of tungsten mineralisation beyond prediction, with true thicknesses reaching up to 290 metres. Drilling in the centre also extended the modelled widths by 20 to 40 metres, while the southwest returned lower-grade but still broader-than-expected zones.
Resource growth remains the central prize
The results matter because they test ground beyond the existing 247-million-tonne Mulgine Trench Mineral Resource Estimate, reported at 0.11% WO3. Tungsten Mining is also drilling a conceptual Exploration Target of 165Mt to 200Mt at 0.10% to 0.12% WO3, but the company has stressed that this target is not a Mineral Resource and may not convert into one.
Assays have so far been released for only 16 holes, while 50 holes covering 14,140 metres had been completed by the time of the announcement. Results from the remaining completed holes are pending. The eventual test will be whether the thicker intersections repeat across enough of the deposit to support a materially larger and suitably classified resource after geological modelling.
The drilling also returned a multi-commodity signal. The Lower Tungsten-Molybdenum Domain produced 66 metres at 681 parts per million molybdenum, while gold results included 6 metres at 5.49 grams per tonne and 10 metres at 3.67 grams per tonne. Those intersections may be relevant to future project studies, but the announcement does not provide an updated economic assessment or establish the contribution of by-products.
Watershed remains ahead of the longer-term project
Chairman Gary Lyons said Mt Mulgine remains the company’s major longer-term tungsten development opportunity, while Watershed is the immediate priority as Tungsten Mining advances towards a Final Investment Decision and seeks a capital-efficient funding structure. That sequencing comes after the company outlined a Watershed debt pathway that could fund up to 70% of that project, although the proposals remained non-binding.
For Mt Mulgine, the next milestones are less dramatic but more consequential: pending assays, completion of the resource expansion drilling, an updated geological model and any revised Mineral Resource estimate. Until those steps are complete, the 292-metre intersections are compelling evidence of geological potential, not yet proof of a larger mine.
Bottom Line?
The drilling has improved the geological case for Mt Mulgine, but the investment case still depends on whether broader mineralisation can be converted into a formal resource and then supported by feasibility work.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the pending assays confirm that the thicker tungsten zones continue across the wider Exploration Target?
- How much of the molybdenum and gold mineralisation can be incorporated into future project economics?
- Can Tungsten Mining advance Watershed to FID while funding and studying Mt Mulgine as its longer-term development option?