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Radar goes off for St George

etails of the hole (still to be assayed) Investors appear to now be turning to
Dwere announced to the market the the next generation of nickel develop-
following day with 7.5m of nickel-copper ments. The problem is, after years of
sulphide mineralisation, including 2.6m poor fundamentals, there are few options
of massive sulphides, identified starting available.
40m below surface. Appreciation quickly “We are unique in the nickel space,”
followed and by September 9, just 10 Prineas told Paydirt after the company
days after the core was recovered, St received a speeding ticket from the ASX
George shares had hit 24.5c, their high- over its price rise. “There are a few nickel
est levels since December 2017. explorers around but none of them are
If timing played its part on making the near the point we are where we could
trip worthwhile, the wider ramifications very quickly move into resource defini-
for the Mt Alexander project (a 75/25 JV tion and then development.”
with Western Areas Ltd) and St George The recent price spike may have been
are also benefitting from timing. fuelled by the Radar announcement but
St George has been a diligent nickel St George has been an overnight suc-
explorer for nearly a decade but its ef- cess years in the making.
forts have often been thwarted by a The company took on Mt Alexander
depressed nickel market or inadequate from BHP Ltd in late 2015. BHP had
funding for juniors. When the nickel price identified the Cathedrals nickel-copper The maiden drill hole at Radar intersected
was up, St George was struggling for sulphide prospect but had spent little 7.5m of nickel-copper mineralisation,
funds, when the company eventually had time testing the rest of the interpreted including 2.6m of massive sulphides
cash market interest in nickel was on the 16km-long belt.
wane. St George’s initial work was designed incentive to rush into resource definition
This time, however, commodity and to confirm the Cathedrals mineralisation. and development,” Prineas admitted.
equity markets could be in concert for Massive sulphides were intercepted 30m Instead, the company continued with
the foreseeable future. from surface with a best hit of 7.5m @ its patient approach, undertaking down-
Nickel is enjoying its best run in years 3.9% nickel and 1.7% copper including hole EM around the three identified pros-
thanks to the momentum building in the 3.15m @ 6.4% nickel and 2.4% copper. pects and fixed loop EM on an area to
EV space and supply concerns stem- That early success was followed by step- the east of the known mineralised zone.
ming from Indonesia. Established miners out drilling to the east at the untested, “Our initial exploration focused on the
such as Independence Group Ltd and outcropping prospects at Investigators outcropping areas in that central 5km of
Western Areas enjoyed strong support and Stricklands. the belt because either side of that had
in August and early September as inves- Prineas said the company had been sand cover,” Prineas said. “We under-
tors piled in on the back of a 50% nickel very deliberate in its approach to Mt Al- took powerful SAMSON fixed loop EM
price spike since the beginning of July. exander. and found a couple of weak anomalies
“BHP had only drilled 200m of the Ca- but decided the SAMSON wasn’t enough
thedrals prospect so there has been a lot with the cover so went back with moving
for us to do,” Prineas said. “We had to loop EM which allows you to see more
test Stricklands and Investigators early under the cover.”
as they were outcropping. It has been a Radar lit up in the moving loop EM and
methodical and meticulous programme St George quickly decided to test the
as it is a highly unusual system; striking prospect with a diamond hole. The re-
east-west whereas the ultramafics in WA sult, as witnessed by Paydirt on August
all strike north-south. So, it has not been 28, was 7.5m of massive, blebby and ma-
easy to drill out quickly and we have had trix sulphides from 44m below surface.
to work out the geological genesis of the Handheld XRF readings returned values
mineralisation.” of up to 6% nickel and 1.9% copper in the
Further success was generated from massive sulphides.
drilling at Stricklands (17.45m @ 3% While highly encouraging in its own
nickel and 1.3% copper, including 5.3m right, the Radar discovery points to the
@ 4.4% nickel and 1.5% copper) and wider potential of the eastern end of the
Investigators (8.49m @ 5.8% nickel and Cathedrals belt.
2.6% copper, including 6.39m @ 6.5% “The hole at Radar has returned 7.5m
nickel and 2.8% copper) but with nickel of nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation,
languishing, market interest failed to ma- including 2.6m of massive sulphides.
terialise. At 40m below surface, that is definitely
“We could have gone faster if we had economic,” Prineas said. “But, it has also
more money and the incentive was there established another 1km strike length
St George managing director John but the nickel price has not been great on the belt. So, not only is it a new pros-
Prineas proudly displays core from the over the last few years so there was no pect which will mean more tonnes in a
exceptional first diamond hole at Radar

aUSTRaLIa’S PaYDIRT OCTOBeR 2019 Page 13