The demand for iron ore, particularly from China over the last 5-10 years has led to an increased search for such deposits outside of the Pilbara region in Western Australia. Grosvenor Gold Pty Ltd have signed a Farm-In Agreement with PepinNini Minerals Limited over seven tenements (E51/1033, E52/1613, E52/1670, E52/1672, E52/1723, E52/1910 and E52/1964) covering approximately 700sqkm in the Robinson Range area of Western Australia.
In accordance with a Farm-in and JV agreement PepinNini has earned a 50% interest in the Robinson Range Iron Ore Project through the expenditure of $500,000 over a two year to 2nd January, 2010. The tenements cover part of the Robinson Range, an area considered to hold potential for the discovery of iron-ore deposits. It is located in the Mid West Region which is rapidly emerging as Western Australia's second major iron ore province behind the Pilbara. Midwest Corporation Limited, Murchison Metals Limited and Mt Gibson Iron Limited have all recently started mining iron ore in the region. More recently Sandfire Resources have discovered a major new VMS style copper deposit in the area.
The Robinson Range Iron Ore project is located in the southern part of the Peak Hill Mineral Field, within the Lower Proterozoic Bryah-Padbury Basin, about 850km north of Perth, WA.
The Joint Venture tenements hold a significant portion of the area within the Glengarry Basin deemed prospective for Iron Ore. The potential Iron Ore deposits have grades of up to 65% Fe with low phosphorous content. The prospects have never been drilled, and no exploration for iron ore has been conducted over this ground since 1974.
GEOLOGY
The project lies within the central part of the Bryah-Padbury Basin, which forms part of the Proterozoic Capricorn Orogenic belt between the Yilgarn and Pilbara Archaean Cratons. The Robinson Range is a prominent regional physiographic feature within the upper part of the Padbury Group sequence in the Palaeoproterozoic Basin.
The Palaeoproterozoic Robinson Range Formation of the Padbury Group contains units of banded iron formation (BIF) with accompanying supergene enrichment of hematite and goethite. These constitute a potential iron ore resource with grades greater than 60% iron. Enrichment occurs above two BIF units, approximately 100m thick and separated by a hematitic shale. Iron grades of the primary BIF vary between 20-50%, as determined from sampling of one of some 200 small pods of potentially ore grade material.Â
Sofoulis (1970) mapped eight zones, Zones A-E in the Robinson Range. Zone E is located within E52/1964. The geology consists of Robinson Range Formation BIFs which are wholly enclosed within ferruginous shale and siltstone. The Robinson Range Formation is in contact with sandstone and shale of the Millidie Creek Formation and basalt and ultramafic rocks of the Narracoota Formation.
PREVIOUS EXPLORATION
The Robinson Range area has been periodically held under exploration tenure since the 1970s, although minimal exploration has been specifically carried for Iron Ore.
Sofoulis (1970) described the geology and resource potential of iron-ore deposits of the Robinson Range.The assessment identified about 200 small patches of iron ore, with grades up to 65% Fe, overlying banded iron formations of the Robinson Range Formation. The deposit styles comprise hematite, hematite-goethite, and goethite types, and their formation was attributed to supergene enrichment of iron, derived from the Proterozoic banded iron formations.
Sofoulis estimated a combined resource for the whole of the Robinson Range area of 36Mt of ore with an average grade of 50% iron, based on an assumed depth of 50 feet. The tonnage estimate is increased to 60Mt, based on a depth of 200 feet. Eight main areas of significant mineralisation (>3Mt of ore) were defined, two of which (Areas E and G) are wholly included within the JV tenements.
Based on an assumed depth of 200feet, area E comprises 6 Mt of ore with a weighted average grade of 59.79% Fe‚ and Area G comprises 3 Mt with an average grade of 58.5% Fe.
Area D, comprising 6 Mt with an average grade of 60.4% Fe, falls partly within the JV tenure. No drilling has been undertaken on the targets defined by Sofoulis, and the grade and continuity of mineralisation at depth remains untested.
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