LSR kicks off exploration programs at US heavy rare earths project

Our exploration Investment Lodestar Minerals (ASX: LSR) just kicked off a field program on its US Heavy Rare Earth Project in Arizona.

LSR's project has a ~5km structural trend with rock chips taken across it returning grades up to 3.73% total rare earth oxides (TREO).

But more importantly, the heavy rare earth concentrations were up to 64%.

Heavy rare earths like dysprosium, terbium and lutetium, these three high-value heavy rare earths the US needs most and are required for the best defence, robotics and AI systems)

The big news from LSR's project came a few weeks ago when LSR announced that the mineralogy of its heavy rare earth project is one that's well understood and one that the west can extract with conventional processing.

(unlike most rare earth projects, which are more so chemistry experiments)

(source)

Knowing that the geology is well understood is basically like a green light to keep exploring (especially with rare earth projects) - now we wait to see where the LSR team think the company should drill along that 5km structural trend.

The ultimate success case here would be IF LSR drill along that trend and discover a continuous orebody.

We know the outcropping rare earths have been mapped across ~225m of the 5km trend what we don't know is whether or not it's part of a big, continuous system:

(source)

What we want to see next from LSR

🔄 Copper drilling in Chile (Three Saints and Los Loros)

LSR is currently drilling a second hole on its Three Saints project.

This next hole is targeting the main zone for that project - so IF it comes in it could be fairly material for LSR.

(source)

At the same time, we are also looking forward to seeing assay results from this program following the visuals in the first drill hole, which we covered here.

Here is a recent video from here of an LSR technical advisor on site with the drill rig in the background.

🔄 US rare earths project - follow up exploration

As mentioned earlier, we are looking forward to seeing results from LSR's current field program.

Here are the milestones we are tracking:

• 🔲 Geophysics/follow up exploration (Field activities expected to begin April)
• 🔲 Follow up drill program

We also noticed in today's announcement that LSR is looking at other projects in the US - so it will be interesting to see what comes from this:

(source)

🔄 RC drilling at Ned's Creek Gold Project (10,000m)

LSR has executed the drilling contract with Westdrill for ~10,000m of RC at Ned's Creek.

Drilling was supposed to start in "late March" so we could see this announcement any day now. (source)

The results from this will feed into a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate targeted for completion in CY2026.

Here are the milestone we are tracking:

• 🔲 Drilling commenced
• 🔲 First assay results received
• 🔲 All results received and MRE underway