Meteoric Resources (ASX: MEI) has reported a substantial upgrade to the mineral resource estimate at its 100%-owned Caldeira project in Brazil. The company announced that Measured Resources have increased by 246%, reaching 128 million tonnes at 2,815 ppm total rare earth oxides. This expansion follows an intensive infill drilling campaign across the project’s southern licences, specifically targeting the Capão do Mel, Soberbo, and Figueira deposits to refine the geological model ahead of upcoming development milestones.

The updated global resource estimate for the project now sits at 1.6 billion tonnes. The recent infill work, which utilised a 50m x 50m drill spacing, has been instrumental in reclassifying significant portions of the resource. Historically, the project previously defined only 11Mt of Measured Resources, meaning the current estimate identifies 128Mt, representing a 1,063% increase. Additionally, the broader Measured and Indicated category has expanded from a prior total of 386Mt to 423Mt.

This reclassification is a critical component of the company's efforts to de-risk the project. By converting Indicated resources to the higher-confidence Measured category, the team aims to provide more reliable inputs for mine scheduling, recovery projections, and final grade control strategies. These technical improvements are designed to lower operational risks and provide a more robust foundation for the project’s definitive feasibility study.

"The upgrade of Indicated Resources to Measured Resources as we finalise the Project's DFS is an important step to increase geological and metallurgical confidence in the Caldeira Project. This reduces future risk and uncertainty which supports upcoming investment and financing decisions." — Stuart Gale, Managing Director

The company confirmed that infill drilling is continuing at the Barra do Pacu deposit. This ongoing work is expected to further enhance data density, ultimately feeding into future resource estimations as the project advances toward its development goals.

Read the full announcement: Caldeira Project Measured Resources Grow 246% to 128Mt