MineLife Resource Report’s Post

Coverage stock Rimfire Pacific Mining Limited (ASX: RIM) has just commenced a 4,000 metre aircore drilling program at the Murga Scandium Prospect, 70km northwest of Parkes within the highly prospective Lachlan Orogen of central NSW. Scandium is now included in both Australia’s 2023 Critical Minerals List and the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) 2022 List of 50 mineral commodities critical to the economy and national security of both countries. More broadly, the recent purchase by Rio Tinto of the Owendale Scandium Project (which lies 10km north of Murga and Melrose) for up to $US14 million, highlights growing market interest in Australian scandium projects. The acquisition aligns with Rio Tinto’s strategic goal to grow in materials essential for the low-carbon transition. As the demand for cleaner, lighter, and more durable materials continues to rise, Rio expects the use of scandium to continue to grow along with this demand. The Owendale acquisition also follows the establishment of a dedicated Rio Tinto scandium business unit called Element 21 North. At Murga, scandium occurs within a strongly weathered horizon overlying magnetic ultramafic (pyroxenite) intrusive rocks of the Ordovician-age Murga Intrusive Complex, which are interpreted to be part of a large scale arcuate shaped mafic – ultramafic intrusive complex that has a surface area of ~20 sq km. There is little or no nickel and / or cobalt anomalism associated with the scandium, which is curious given that other scandium occurrences within the area (i.e., RIM’s Melrose prospect and Sunrise Energy Metals’ adjacent Sunrise nickel cobalt scandium deposit) are all associated with elevated levels of nickel and cobalt. Regionally, Murga is just one of several critical minerals prospects (i.e. Melrose, Currajong, Forrest View, and Kars) that lie within a +50km long belt of volcaniclastics, sediments and mafic - ultramafic intrusive units that form a geologically significant large-scale structure called the “Fifield Ultramafic Zone.” #scandium #commodities #resources #exploration #equities

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