Western Mines Group has again unveiled a long stretch of nickel mineralisation, hitting a 230.2 metre interval grading 0.3 per cent nickel from only 90m depth at the company’s Mulga Tank project, on the Minigwal Greenstone Belt in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields.

A shallow diamond drillhole, part of the company’s phase-four infill drilling program, has highlighted a continuous zone of nickel sulphide mineralisation. The interval also featured elevated sulphur alongside highly anomalous copper and platinum group elements, with several higher-grade nickel sections embedded within the thick mineralised package. The company’s goal from drilling the diamond hole is to infill the current resource and extend the mineralisation towards the south.

Assays from the diamond hole returned 230.2m at 0.3 per cent nickel, 131 parts per million (ppm) cobalt, 104ppm copper and 19 parts per billion (ppb) platinum-palladium. The hole included a higher-grade section of 6m going at 1.02 per cent nickel, 366ppm cobalt, 303ppm copper and 33ppb platinum-palladium from 259m.

A further higher-grade 8-metre slice assayed at 0.81 per cent nickel, 269ppm cobalt, 340ppm copper and 26ppb platinum-palladium from 298m, featuring 1m at 1.44 per cent nickel, 498ppm cobalt, 0.17 per cent copper and 0.11 grams per tonne (g/t) platinum-palladium from 300m.

An additional 1-metre hit from 304m depth delivered 1.83 per cent nickel, 539ppm cobalt, 371ppm copper and 55ppb platinum-palladium.

After accessing diesel supplies, Western Mines recently launched into its phase-five drill program, completing a diamond tail from a previously drilled reverse-circulation (RC) hole and wrapping up three RC infill holes.

The diamond tail pushed deeper beneath an RC hole first drilled in 2023 as part of the company’s maiden phase-one campaign, chasing the continuation of enriched nickel zones at depth. Early pXRF readings are already revealing stacked sulphide-rich horizons wrapped around two comparatively barren zones within the lower 800 metres of the giant intrusive complex.

The pXFR results for the lower zone show a broad depleted nickel zone, indicating this section of the Complex may be downstream of a nickel sulphide accumulating event within the layer or horizon.

The diamond tail extension was drilled from 444m to a depth of 895m, with numerous intervals of disseminated sulphides observed, estimated in total at about 200m. Subsequent pXRF readings support the likelihood of disseminated magmatic nickel sulphide mineralisation.

Notably, several intersections of high-tenor nickel sulphide globules and semi-massive sulphide segregations were observed towards the base of the hole. The company says the results so far demonstrate that all the conditions and processes required to form basal massive sulphide accumulations within the Mulga Tank Complex are present.

The company has planned five RC holes in the southwest corner of the Complex as part of the phase-five program hoping to target the near surface expression and up-dip continuation of these enriched zones for what could be 0.40 per cent-plus starter pit material.

Marriott said the two enriched horizons at the bases of magma pulses or flows have been seen in several holes in the southern area of the main body of the Complex and can be traced over hundreds of metres.

The company has also knocked over its next batch of 10 mud rotary pre-collars and will now swing in an RC rig this week to drill deeper down the holes.

Western Mines is using a two-pronged drilling strategy, with RC rigs infilling and defining shallow disseminated nickel sulphide mineralisation outlined in its recent resource, while diamond drilling targets deeper basal massive sulphides.

It is currently sitting on a massive resource of 1.968 billion tonnes grading 0.27 per cent for more than 5.3 million tonnes of contained nickel.

Western Mines plans to drill 25 holes within the main body of the complex as part of its phase-five program, with a key focus on targeting higher-grade tonnes.

With a monster nickel resource already in the bag, success in uncovering thicker zones of higher-grade mineralisation could quickly turn heads across the market - particularly if nickel prices continue rebounding from recent lows.

The versatile battery and stainless-steel metal has already climbed 21 per cent over the past year to about US$18,880 (A$29,000) per tonne, potentially improving the economics of large-scale sulphide projects such as Mulga Tank.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@wanews.com.au