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NEWS
SA explorers look for
climate change relief
South Australia’s junior explorers are
hoping an accommodating wind
blows in from the west and revitalises
their ailing industry this year.
SA’s junior sector experienced as big
a fall as any in the country during the re-
cent mining downturn, but with the West
Australian junior sector experiencing a
more welcoming market climate in 2017,
Adelaide-based juniors are hoping con-
ditions travel east in 2018.
The State has always been highly re-
garded for is prospective geology, partic-
ularly for large copper orebodies, but the
abundance of transported cover means
exploration is often difficult and expen-
sive. And, while 2017 saw gold, copper,
lithium and cobalt explorers in WA en-
joy strong support for close-to-surface,
walk-up targets, SA explorers still found
it difficult to entice investors to their more team together during
technically challenging stories.
“SA has not yet picked up exploration-
wise as quickly as the rest of the coun-
try,” Investigator Resources Ltd manag-
ing director John Anderson told Paydirt.
“There are logical reasons; it is green-
fields country and heavily reliant on the
junior sector, which hasn’t received much
market support in recent years. But, SA
is still hot for copper prospectivity, it is
just underdone and needs some con-
fidence to come back into the sector to
fuel exploration.”
Minotaur Exploration
Ltd technical director
Tony Belperio said de-
spite the company hav-
ing a three-state profile,
SA remained “a highly
desirable destination”.
“Minotaur is looking in
three states for copper-
gold and SA is still fa-
voured for the potential
for elephants, but it is still
hard, expensive work for
explorers,” he said.
Investigator and Mino-
taur are among the few
companies to remain active in SA during
the downturn.
Investigator has balanced develop-
ment work at its Paris silver project with
earlier-stage exploration at its Nankivel
porphyry prospect and Maslins IOCG
prospect.
PAGE 12 FEBRUARY 2018 AUSTRALIA’S PAYDIRT
Anderson said the bring it to a 1 moz
company’s refusal to gold equivalent re-
“batten down the hatch- source; that will get
es” during the downturn the market interest
had attracted criticism going again.”
but he believes it has Minotaur has al-
left the company in an ways been opportun-
enviable position as the istic when it comes
mood begins to turn. to acquiring projects
“We received a lot of and Belperio believes
criticism for keeping the the downturn has left
open opportunities in
the downturn but it al- SA.
lowed us to do a lot of John Anderson “There is good
greenfields ground
thinking in that fallow
period,” Anderson said. available because a
“We used the time to prove up our targets lot of companies dropped ground when
at Nankivel and Maslins so we are now they couldn’t get support for them,” he
well-positioned for further growth.” said.
Nankivel will be the first to attract drill- Industry majors flirted with SA devel-
ing attention in 2018, with Investigator opments during the last boom and An-
planning to test the Trojan IP target early derson believes they will return in the
on. current cycle.
“We will drill Nankivel in 2018. There “The majors are looking around for
is no doubt it is a porphyry – that Trojan new greenfields projects and SA is a
target is sitting in just the right spot – it good destination,” he said. “We are quite
is just whether it has a copper core. We happy that if Nankivel works out to be
will drill down 250m in the hope of hitting good, a big company will come in. And
the top of the anomaly. If it’s a goer, we at Maslins, we have interest from majors
expect the majors to come knocking.” already.”
It is a similar situation at Maslins where Belperio is more circumspect.
Investigator is contributing to a magneto- “The interest from majors hasn’t come
telluric survey being undertaken by the yet, the market will likely move first,” he
Geological Survey of said.
SA to ensure there Neither Anderson nor Belperio expect-
is sufficient detailing ed mining to be an issue in the upcom-
around the gravity ing state election (scheduled for March)
anomaly. but both lamented the affect the election
“In the first-pass would have on the ongoing Mining Act
magnotelluric work review.
we interpreted a deep “The Mining Act review is now caught
feature plume head- up in the election cycle which is frustrat-
ing towards Maslins,” ing but most politicians recognise the
Anderson said. “It importance of mining to the State,” An-
needs more detailed derson said.
work to see if it comes Belperio hoped that a government
up under Maslins. So, from either side of politics would address
Tony Belperio without spending too the most pressing issue for explorers;
much, we will be able
land access.
to say whether it is a “Land access – farming, native title,
next generation IOCG or not.” heritage, etc – continues to bedevil the
Investigator is also planning to release industry,” he said. “In other states, the
a PFS in mid-2018 for its 42 moz Paris situation is getting better, but in SA it is
silver project. getting worse. It is a crazy situation.”
“We have started drilling around Paris – Dominic Piper
in order to build up the resource,” Ander-
son said. “Another 28 moz silver would