Apollo Minerals lines up first Couflens drilling at Véronique-Upper

Véronique-Upper emerges as Apollo’s first drilling target

Apollo Minerals Limited (ASX:AON) is moving its French tungsten project towards a practical test of the geology, with the Véronique and newly defined Véronique-Upper zones selected as the immediate focus for Phase 1 underground drilling.

The target area shows interpreted continuity over more than 400 metres along strike and 600 metres down dip. Apollo’s review of historical records identified intersections in the Véronique-Upper Zone of up to 4.3 metres at 1.3% WO3, alongside multiple sections of historical core logged as mineralised but never sampled. The company says drilling would initially expand known mineralisation, twin selected historical holes and test the broader deposit’s width.

The work builds on the company’s Véronique-Upper historical intercepts, which had already identified the zone as a potential extension of the historically mined Véronique area. Apollo says the Salau mine produced about 930,000 tonnes at an average grade of 1.5% WO3 before closing in 1986, but the current work remains exploration rather than a mining restart.

BRGM survey adds a new layer to Couflens targeting

A 180-line-kilometre helicopter survey over roughly 19 square kilometres has now been completed in collaboration with the French Geological Survey, BRGM, and BRGM Explore. The survey used magnetic and radiometric techniques on 100-metre-spaced lines across priority areas that include the Salau trend.

Results are expected to be received and processed in the coming months. Apollo says the data should assist exploration targeting, geological modelling and structural interpretation, but the filing does not yet provide the survey results themselves. The work forms part of France’s national mineral resources inventory, an initiative aimed at improving knowledge of domestic mineral supplies and supporting access to critical raw materials.

The survey follows the company’s 180-line-kilometre BRGM survey, which had been reported as completed while its data remained under review. That makes the next update consequential for the project’s near-term targeting, particularly if the airborne information helps refine the planned underground program.

Permit reinstated as access and environmental work continues

Apollo also confirmed that it withdrew its compensation claim during the quarter after France’s Conseil d’État annulled the earlier cancellation of the Couflens exploration permit. The ministerial decree granting the permit was reinstated, and the appendix records the permit as granted and held wholly by Apollo’s French subsidiary.

That regulatory position does not remove the operational work still required. The company is finalising environmental, safety and access reports, with mine access and refurbishment of the underground workings dependent on those reports being completed and approved. Apollo is also discussing potential contracting partners and reviewing historical processing knowledge alongside new metallurgical work.

At 30 September, Apollo held $6.4 million in cash and cash equivalents, plus listed investments valued at about $0.4 million. Exploration spending during the quarter totalled $405,000, including $304,000 at Couflens, while the reinstated permit carries a minimum financial commitment of €25 million under the five-year work plan described in the filing. No mining or production took place during the period.

Gabon zinc target remains conceptual

Apollo’s Kroussou project in Gabon remains a secondary exploration pillar, with an initial Exploration Target of 140 million to 300 million tonnes grading 2.0% to 3.4% zinc plus lead. The company stresses that the estimate is conceptual, is based on only six of 23 identified target prospects and is not a JORC Mineral Resource.

The contrast between the two projects is important. Couflens is moving towards access approvals, underground drilling and interpretation of new geophysical data, while Kroussou still requires further drilling and exploration before its conceptual target can be tested or converted into a Mineral Resource.