Summit Minerals jumps 6% as LiDAR survey boosts confidence in niobium mineralisation

Summit Minerals’ (ASX:SUM) geotechs have shored up confidence in their Brazilian acreage prospective for niobium mineralisation following a fresh LiDAR survey on-site – pushing the company’s share price up 6%.

Surveys were conducted across the company’s Equador project, as well as the Juazeirinho project. At the former site, the company believes it’s stumbled across previously unknown pegmatite trends. Like lithium, niobium mineralisation can also be associated with that ore.

Key to the company’s enhanced understanding of the potential mineral systems at play on-site is that a fresh area of interest, North Equador, could well contain a continuing mineral system that extends beyond the boundary envelope of the Equador central project.

To that end, the company is set to move ahead with further LiDAR coverage at Equador North; the Summit reminded on Friday the company has previously assayed niobium in rockchips from the northwest of Equador on-site, including the following results:

• 13.3% niobium and 9% tantalum
• 18.3% niobium and 47% tantalum
• 18.9% niobium and 45% tantalum

At least two rockchips pulled from further south have returned grades of 33% niobium and 30% niobium respectively.

“I am extremely pleased with the LiDAR results as well as the new pegmatite and garimpo discoveries our team continues to uncover,” Summit MD Gower He said.

“The team continues to explore the property as we finalise our drilling permits and make progress towards an intensive campaign of trenching, bulk sampling and metallurgical testing.”

SUM last traded at 26cps.