Dreadnought Resources (ASX:DRE) announces initial REE resource for C3 at Mangaroon, WA

In less than a year since its discovery, Dreadnought Resources (DRE) has inked an independent JORC rare earth resource for one of its five primary carbonatite targets at Mangaroon, located in Western Australia’s Gascoyne Region.

Named C1 to C5, today’s resource is exclusively focused on the C3 target. Dreadnought’s geotech team interprets that there are 10.84 million tonnes of ore at C3, graded at one per cent total rare earth oxide (TREO).

The inclusion of the C3 resource elevates the total Mangaroon resource to 30.90 million tonnes of ore at 1.02 per cent TREO, totalling 314,000 tonnes of total rare earths. The classification for the C3 resource is ‘initial.’

“Since drilling commenced in June 2022, Dreadnought has delivered its third resource for the Mangaroon project,” DRE Managing Director Dean Tuck said.

“[This brings] total resources to over 30Mt with further updates underway and significant exploration upside with drilling still ongoing.

“The delivery of the first resource over the C1-5 carbonatite complex also marks the first polymetallic critical metal resource.”

The rare earths basket at C3 includes critical minerals such as neodymium and praseodymium, niobium, titanium, the high-value rare earth scandium, and phosphate.

These five carbonatite targets are located within the Yin Ironstone Complex which is itself a larger target within Mangaroon.

Furthermore, the company anticipates substantial growth in the resource with future drilling, as the current resource area at C3 covers an area approximately 600 metres by 550 metres.

At Diggers & Dealers 2023, Dreadnought’s Tuck outlined the company’s vision as a discovery entity, rather than a developer.

However, it’s worth noting that the C1-5 targets now span over nine kilometres by one kilometre in aggregate following fieldwork.

Notably, the resource is expected to host approximately 23,000 tonnes of niobium and 108,000 tonnes of TREO.

The projected resource upgrades for the C1-5 targets do not encompass the already-planned resource upgrade set for December 2023, which will focus on the Yin Ironstone Complex, where recent discoveries were made at the Y2 and Yin North targets.

DRE shares last traded at 4.2 cents.