Mount Bevan Project – Western Australia
(Hawthorn Resources 28% - Hancock Prospecting Magnetite Holdings 30% - Legacy Iron Ore Limited 42% )
Hancock Prospecting and their iron ore mining group Atlas Mining have officially farmed into the Mt Bevan JV project!
A Joint Venture covering the Mt Bevan Project Area is in place with Hancock Magnetite Holdings Pty Ltd and Legacy Iron Ore Limited.
Hancock has acquired an initial 30% equity interest in the Mt Bevan JV by a cash payment of $8million: $3.2 million for Hawthorn, $4.8 million to Legacy, and a further $1 million into the Joint Venture’s bank account.
Hancock will sole fund the next two years of a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS). The key objectives of the Mt Bevan PFS were agreed upon during the first Joint Venture committee meeting on Thursday 14th April 2022.
For full details of this major development for Hawthorn, please refer to ASX announcement of November 15th, 2021, and May 3rd, 2022.
The tenement covers the northern portions of the Mt Ida Greenstone belt and is situated in close proximity to a number of historic and current gold mines in the Copperfield – Timoni and Bottle Creek area.
Geology mapping and sampling, following a tenement wide aeromagnetic survey, confirmed the presence of three substantial BIF horizons within the tenement extending in a north-northwest direction for a strike distance of more than 25 km.
Early drilling by Hawthorn showed the Western BIF deposit to have the best and thickest magnetite development coupled with a favorable flat [40 degrees] eastern dip. Subsequent drilling, both Reverse Circulation and Diamond Drilling as part of a farm-in by Legacy Iron Ore [LCY_ASX] led to the establishment of a major open pit magnetite deposit.
Three substantial BIF horizons have been identified within the tenement that extend in a north-northwest orientation throughout the entire length of the tenement; a strike distance of more than 25 kilometres. The westernmost of these horizons hosts the substantial Mt Bevan Indicated Magnetite Resource of 322Mt @ 34.7% Fe within a larger Inferred Magnetite Resource of 1,117 Mt @ 34.9% Fe. The mass recovery of the Indicated Resource is at 44% at a Fe grade of 68% Fe.
Following the discovery of lithium-tantalum pegmatites in the Mt Ida area (by Red Dirt Metals), the JV is conducting exploration of the Eastern and Northern areas of the Mt Bevan lease, where pegmatite dykes are known to occur. Attention is being directed at the extensive pegmatite development in the northern lease area, associated with the Mt Alexander granite intrusion.
Granite and pegmatite have been intersected in the St George mafic dyke complex, diamond drilling of the Ni Cu Cathedrals zone. This area adjoins the Mt Bevan lease. It is covered by sheet wash and drilling will be required to test this area. Scattered surface rubble of pegmatite and vein quartz points to shallow buried pegmatite. This area will be investigated in the June quarter by Legacy-Hawthorn under the exiting JV, giving title to any discoveries that the current JV may find.
Other Minerals, such as lithium and nickel–copper are covered under a separate agreement. Hancock will allow exploration of other minerals, such as lithium and nickel-copper to proceed under this separate agreement. Noting that iron ore mining and development always have priority.
At this stage, the majority of our Ni Cu and Li targets are quite far away from the existing magnetite resource. Details of this exploration are provided in the December quarterly reports of both Legacy and Hawthorn (links).