Australian Rare Earths Limited has commenced a 2,000-metre aircore drilling program at the Overland Project in South Australia to test the scale and strike continuity of its niobium-rare earth carbonatite discovery.

The campaign targets priority areas within the northern six kilometres of a ten-kilometre magnetic corridor. Five drill traverses will test multiple targets interpreted as potential carbonatite intrusive centres, aiming to establish whether mineralisation is continuous along strike.

The drilling follows earlier identification of mineralisation in hole OV167, which intersected 19 metres of anomalous mineralisation from 86 metres to the end of the hole. Because the intersection remains open at depth, its true scale and thickness are not yet defined.

Work will also follow up near historic drill hole R64, which recorded a significant gamma response approximately three kilometres south of the discovery area. The coincidence of magnetic and radiometric responses along the trend supports the interpretation that the carbonatite system extends well beyond the initial site.

“Our initial discovery hole, combined with the subsequently identified 10 kilometer magnetic corridor and encouraging historic drilling results, highlights the scale potential of the system. This program is designed to test multiple targets along strike and improve our understanding of the geometry, continuity, and fertility of the carbonatite mineralisation.”

— Travis Beinke, Managing Director and CEO, Australian Rare Earths Limited

Assay results and downhole gamma data will be progressively reported to shareholders as they are received and interpreted.

Read the full announcement: Drilling commences on niobium-REE carbonatite discovery