SGQ hits its thickest intercept from rare earth-niobium project in Brazil

Our rare earths and niobium Investment St George Mining (ASX: SGQ) has just released more thick and high grade results from its rare earths project in Brazil.

SGQ’s project has the following resources:

• 40.6Mt of Rare Earths at grades of 4.13% TREO (total rare earths oxide)
• 41.2Mt of Niobium at grades of 0.63%

Which makes it currently the largest and highest-grade carbonatite-hosted rare earth deposit in South America…

… and the second highest grade REE deposit globally in the Western world.

SGQ is drilling the project right now with 3 diamond drilling rigs, 24/7… (source)

Today, SGQ hit one of its best intercepts from this round of drilling.

SGQ hit 139.45m @ 4.05% TREO and 0.55% Niobium from surface…

And had another nine holes reported with one intercept returning 80.15m @ 5.11% TREO and 0.76% niobium from surface.

The two key takeaways for us from the drilling results so far have been:

1. Both the rare earth and niobium grades keep coming back higher than the average grades reported in the current resource (so the resource grade could increase when the resource estimate for the project is updated).
2. SGQ has already shown the resource could extend ~230m to the west and ~1km to the east (source) (source) - (so the resource could get a lot bigger too)

(source)

And here are those intercepts outside of the current resource footprint:

(source)

(source)

We are hoping to see SGQ take its project resource up to a size/grade where it becomes too hard to ignore relative to the assets owned by the majors MP and Lynas…

Here is how SGQ’s asset compares to the assets held by MP and Lynas right now:

(Source)

We think the institutional appeal of SGQ’s asset comes from the potential size and grade the resource could have by the time its current drilling program is completed.

What’s next for SGQ?

Drilling results 🔄

Drilling is still ongoing on site (24/7) - here is a picture from a recent announcement showing the night shift crew drill the asset:

(Source)

In the short term the main thing we want to see are drill results.

Ideally we see big extensions at depth and to the north/east/west of SGQ’s current JORC resource estimate, which initial results like those today have shown.

(Source)

Beyond the drilling 🔄

Over the next 12-18 months, a lot of the catalysts for SGQ could come at hard-to-forecast times:

• Updates on downstream processing strategy - We want to see SGQ define its downstream rare earths strategy. We are especially looking forward to an update in relation to the US.
• Start working on development studies - SGQ has already commenced environmental, geotechnical and development studies with a view of getting to economic studies in Q4-2025.
• Pilot plant trials - SGQ has signed an agreement with CEFET to jointly collaborate on a new Pilot Plant trial that will build on the prior 9 month trial from 2012-13 which successfully produced rare earth product at over 99% purity and recoveries of 86% TREO.

SGQ is also participating in the “MAGBRAS Initiative” - a program that has major automakers like Stellantis working toward building Brazil’s first permanent magnet-making facility.

• Metwork and sample production - SGQ should have results from this in the pipeline with the creation of the St George Technical Centre. The main catalyst we are looking forward to is the re-starting of SGQ’s pilot plant with development of this underway with the agreement signed with CEFET to host and jointly collaborate. This will allow for product samples to be produced for potential strategics/offtake partners.
• Permitting - SGQ is targeting completion for permitting by Q4-2026.

(Source)