Machinga
HREE & Nb
Project Overview
Granted EL, Area: 42.9km2, ELA 157.5km2
The Machinga Project is contained within a large alkaline complex of the Chilwa Alkaline Province that intrudes Proterozoic basement gneisses, granulites and amphibolites. This complex comprises nepheline-syenites of the Mongolwe, Chaone and Chinduzi Ring complexes, the Malosa syenite pluton and minor alkaline granites. The project area is dominated by the Malosa syenite pluton, but also contains discrete and smaller-scale intrusions and pegmatites.
The project area was initially applied for an exploration licence to cover uranium channel radiometric anomalies that were located by a country-wide airborne survey carried out in the 1980s. The Machinga radiometric anomaly is continuous along a strike of approximately 7 km, indicating that potential to discover further eudialyte-hosted REE mineralisation may be significant. The eudialyte is associated with the granitic-syenitic pegmatites, which are the target along the margins of the plutons, as well as in the central zone of Machinga.
High-grade heavy rare earth oxides (HREOs) and Niobium potential near surface
2010 trenching program (Machinga North) included:
- MATR001: 7m @ 1.26% TREO
- MATR002: 33m @ 0.71 TREO, Inc.: 11m @ 1.00% TREO with 0.46% Nb2O5
- MATR003: inc.: 15m @ 0.45% with 0.75% Nb2O5 including 5m @ 0.54% TREO and 1.34% Nb2O5
2010 drill program (Machinga North) included:
- MARC005: 11m @ 1.0% TREO with 330ppm Dy2O3 (from 12m), Inc.: 4m @ 1.4% TREO with 492ppm Dy2O3 (from 19m)
- MARC015: 5m @ 1.5% TREO with 596ppm Dy2O3 (from 26m), Inc.: 1m @ 2.5% TREO with 971ppm Dy2O3 (from 27m)
- Very high ratio of HREO:TREO, peak 39%, average 33%
- Very high ratio of Dy2O3:TREO, peak 3.9%, average 3.3%
- Particularly enriched in the high value Dysprosium (Dy) and Terbium (Tb)
- Majority of zones open along strike and down dip
- 7km radiometric anomaly registering a 2.7 by 0.3km on the main target zone (Machinga North)
- Machinga North is just one of six targets within the overall concession
- Conveniently located along the major Lilongwe –Zomba highway