PFE samples high-grade antimony at US project

Our US critical minerals Investment Pantera Minerals (ASX: PFE) just put out the first modern exploration results from its antimony-silver project in Arkansas, USA.

(Antimony is a critical mineral by the US government and it has key uses including in military applications, flame retardants and batteries - China dominates global supply and the US has close to zero domestic supply).

Last year, PFE acquired land that contained at least 18 historical antimony and silver mines, which produced from the late 1800s into the 1900s.

These mines only produced from near surface workings based on limited technology at the time.

Since then there has been no modern exploration, geophysics or drilling done on the project… Until now with the results of the first modern exploration program being received.

PFE announced rock chip sampling results which returned - antimony grades up to 3.92% alongside silver, gold, copper and zinc).

Here is that 3.92% antimony rock chip from today’s announcement:

(source)

This is the first modern exploration done on the Gillham project in over 100 years and on top of that, no drilling has ever been conducted across the entire project area.

So it's pretty hard to predict what sits across PFE’s projects, but the high grades in rock chips are a good start (and maybe a sign there is a lot more PFE could find on the asset with more work).

PFE acquired the project last year which covers ~5,000 acres and contains at least 18 historical antimony and silver mines that produced from the late 1800s into the 1900s, all from shallow, near-surface workings.

We covered that in an article when PFE made the acquisition here: PFE: Announces new USA land package with 18 historic antimony and silver mines…

We are Invested in PFE because we think US-based critical mineral assets will attract attention and capital as the US moves to secure domestic supply of which antimony is at the forefront of that list.

On top of the rock chip results, PFE ran a soil sampling program across the project with 1,411 samples taken and the results have defined clear drill targets.

The soil results returned peak values of 2,660ppm)parts per million) and 1,205ppm antimony, with two distinct anomalies extending ~400m and ~500m along strike.

(source)

High-grade rock chips and the soil anomalies sitting on top of each other is what you want to see, so it gives PFE confidence that there could be a mineralised system underneath that hasn't been tested by drilling.

(It’s still early days here, these are surface samples only and there is no guarantee a drill program finds anything economic underneath)

What do we want to see PFE do next?

Target Generation on US critical minerals project

We want to see PFE sample, map and run geophysics on its US asset to identify drill targets.

Milestones:

✅ Mapping and sampling (soil and rock chips assays received today) (source)

🔲 Geophysics

🔲 Drill targets confirmed

Drilling on PFE’s US critical minerals project

After PFE has identified priority drill targets, we want to see the company drill test the project.

Milestones:

🔲 Drill permitting

🔲 Drilling

🔲 Drilling results