Exploration Update - Barrambie Gold Assays

Highlights

-    Gold assay results have been received from Neometals’ inaugural RC drilling program at the Ironclad prospect and proximal Mystery North target, located at its 100% owned Barrambie Gold Project.[1]

-    Assays and logging generally support the gold mineralisation represented in the historic drilling data compiled by Neometals in relation to the Ironclad prospect at the Barrambie Gold Project,[2] extended mineralisation down-plunge and have provided important insights regarding the geological setting.

-    Significant intercepts returned for the current programme include:

-            Technical studies are underway to assist mining, metallurgy and environmental planning as well 3D modelling to assist planning for Neometals’ first diamond core drilling programme.

March 20th 2025, Neometals Ltd (ASX: NMT) (“” or “the Company”), is pleased to provide an exploration update on the Company’s 100% owned Barrambie Gold Project (“the Barrambie Project”), in Western Australia. This inaugural gold exploration drilling programme focused predominantly on the Ironclad prospect, located at the historic Sugarstone mining centre, in the north of the Barrambie Project. A total of nine holes for 918m were completed at Ironclad and two holes for 126m were completed at Mystery North, located approximately 3km further north (see Figures 1 to 3 and Appendices 1, 2 and 3).

Completed drill holes were designed as either close-spaced infill, twin or extension holes with the aim of verifying the location, tenor, geometry and broader trends of gold mineralisation described in historic data, as well as collecting geological information to improve the understanding of structure and stratigraphy, particularly host lithologies and alteration styles.

Next steps will include oriented diamond core drilling, targeting the high-grade structures hosted within the broader mineralised zone, and continued RC drilling for the purpose of verification, infill and extension, with the aim of reporting an inaugural gold Mineral Resource estimate at the Ironclad prospect during 2025.

Neometals Managing Director, Chris Reed, says:

“A geological framework is emerging at Ironclad placing the small, shallow laterite zones and isolated quartz veins observed in historic data, into a deposit-scale context which is showing potential for continuity greater than 300m along-strike and 125m, vertically. We aim to advance Ironclad through Mineral Resource estimation and mine planning.”

About Barrambie

The Barrambie Project hosts one of the world’s highest-grade titanium deposits and is also highly prospective for gold mineralisation. Minimal gold exploration has occurred since the 1990s within Neometals’ 505 square kilometre tenure, which contains approximately 40km strike of the Barrambie Greenstone Belt. The potential for high-tenor gold mineralisation is demonstrated by several historic mining sites, with an average production grade of 27.8g/t, and, based on historic drill data, a gold Exploration Target has been estimated at between 8Mt at 1.3g/t Au and 10.5Mt at 2.3g/t Au, for 335k and 775k ounces[4].

The Competent Person advises that insufficient exploration has been undertaken to support estimation of a Mineral Resource and that there is no certainty that future exploration will result in the estimation of a Mineral Resource.

Neometals considers the Barrambie Project to have potential to host multiple gold occurrences and has resumed gold exploration for first time in over 20 years, with a view to advance and grow existing and new targets.

Ironclad is an advanced target and the subject of a 1988 Notice of Intent lodged by a previous explorer, Samson Exploration NL, which contemplated multiple mines feeding a central processing facility at Barrambie.[5]

Discussion

Ironclad mineralisation and geology were interpreted from a historic drill dataset compiled by Neometals[6]. The dataset includes several campaigns of angled holes drilled at various orientations, targeting the broader northwest trending host structure, internal northwest dipping stockwork zones, as well as several vertical holes.

This interpretation described moderately northwest plunging mineralisation associated with a northwest trending, steep southwest dipping curvi-planar contact/shear, and the completed drilling was designed to complement the predominant orientation of historic drilling, being orthogonal to this broader northwest trending structure. The internal, shorter-range, northwest-dipping, higher-grade stockwork zones were not specifically targeted in this initial programme.

Geological logging shows a regolith profile consisting of a thin hardpan layer above a mottled clay zone, transitioning through saprolite and saprock into fresh bedrock. The base of complete oxidation is approximately 20m downhole, with the top of fresh rock approximately 90m to 100m downhole. Drill assays often reflect a broad dispersion within the clay and saprolite zones.

Mineralisation characteristics within fresh bedrock and saprock are very subtle, characterised by vein quartz of various abundance, patchy epidote and carbonate alteration and weak to trace disseminated fine to medium grained cubic pyrite (variably ferruginous). Host lithology is predominately gabbro, in proximity to (and rarely within) the sheared gabbro-sediment contact.

Quartz veining is common in all the drillholes, and locally very significant with predominately quartz-chips occurring at metre-interval scale. The quartz itself varies from clean white “bucky”, to stained chips with ferruginous coatings or fractures. No sulphide was observed within quartz fragments. Intervals of foliation (weak to strong) and occasionally shearing occur within the gabbro and at the gabbro-sediment contact.

Table 1 Summary of 2025 Ironclad RC drilling

Aspects highlighted by this drilling include:

-          a predominantly gabbro host to mineralisation in a zone which potentially converges with the sheared contact;

-          a steeper dip to the gabbro-sediment contact, including potential for subvertical (steep east and west dip) sections and fault-offsets; and,

-          the continuity of northwest dipping internal high-grade stockwork zones being shorter-range/more discontinuous than previously contemplated.

The predominant 060° drilling orientation used at Ironclad is appropriate for defining the location and volume of the altered/mineralised host structure, but this programme has helped to reinforce that it is sub-optimal for providing accurate grade information of the discontinuous stockwork veins/zones.

This has likely impacted the tenor of grades returned from this programme (e.g. 25ICRC007), as well as all previous holes drilled to 060°, an important point to consider when evaluating data of this orientation.

Ironclad remains an attractive near-term small-scale mining opportunity exploiting stockworks concentrated within broad, near-surface zones, where the (average) grade of mineralisation is likely to be dependent on the concentration of stockwork zones, and of veining within the zones. Opportunities for additional concentrations of stockwork zones remains under explored in fresh rock, where extensive, albeit subtle alteration occurs in a steep zone proximal to and potentially intersecting with the sheared gabbro-sediment contact over a strike of approximately 300m and 125m down dip.

To help determine the optimal orientation for future drilling activities at Ironclad, planned next steps include oriented diamond drilling specifically targeting key structural features, including the northwest dipping, high-grade stockwork zones. Verification of historic data is also ongoing, minimising transcription errors in the compile dataset.

Figure 1 Barrambie Project tenure, simplified geology and historic production centres. Note: 2025 drilling programme was completed at the Ironclad prospect at the Sugarstone Centre.

Figure 2 Ironclad prospect plan showing geology drilling (historic and 2025)

Figure 3 Ironclad prospect schematic cross-section showing geology drilling (historic and 2025)

NEXT STEPS

Work has commenced on multiple technical disciplines including 3D modelling of the geology and mineralisation and updating various studies to inform mining, metallurgy and environmental planning. Planned diamond drilling will focus on providing structural information of high-grade structures to assist assessment of optimal drill orientation and provide samples of mineralisation for metallurgical testing. This next stage drilling programme is subject to NMT board approval.

In parallel, a heritage survey is being planned for the Barrambie Ranges Centre to facilitate RC drill testing down plunge and along strike from the historic Golden Treasure and Barrambie North gold mines.

Authorised on behalf of Neometals by Christopher Reed, Managing Director.

ENDS

For further information, visit www.neometals.com.au or contact:

Christopher Reed

Managing Director/CEO 

Neometals Ltd

T +61 8 9322 1182

E [email protected]

Lucas Robinson

Managing Director

Corporate Storytime

T +61 408 228 889

E: [email protected]

COMPLIANCE STATEMENT

The Competent Person cautions that certain Exploration Results contained within this release have been extracted from historical DEMIRS WAMEX[7] annual reports by previous historical operators. Further exploration and evaluation may affect confidence in these results under JORC 2012 standards. Nothing has come to the attention of Neometals or its Competent Person that cause them to question the accuracy or reliability of the previously reported drill results and work.

The Company has undertaken desktop evaluation of the work completed. However, it has not comprehensively validated the results and therefore is not to be regarded as reporting, adopting or endorsing these results.

To comply with ASX Listing Rule 5.7 and the associated FAQ 36 (Announcements of material acquisitions – former owners’ Exploration Results) details of historic exploration programmes by companies prior to Neometals for the relevant historic drill intercepts are reported in Neometals ASX announcements: (i) 23 September 2024, titled “Barrambie Gold Exploration Target”; and (ii) 5 February 2025, titled “Maiden Gold Drilling Programme Commences at Barrambie Project” as summarised in JORC Table 1, Section 2 and reference the source WAMEX report A-number. These WAMEX reports can be accessed online at https://geoview.dmp.wa.gov.au/GeoView, using the unique A-number for each report. Each WAMEX report includes a technical explanation of the work completed and results achieved. 

COMPETENT PERSONS STATEMENT

The information in this report that relates to Exploration Results and Exploration Targets is based on information compiled by Mr Jeremy Peters. Mr Peters is a Director of Burnt Shirt Pty Ltd, a geological and mining engineering consultancy, and has sufficient experience relevant to the reporting of Exploration Results and Exploration Targets in Western Australian Archaean orogenic gold mineralisation to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the December 2012 Edition of the “Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results”. Data compiled from historic WAMEX reports by the Neometals Exploration Team has been reviewed by Mr Peters, who has consented to the inclusion of the matters in this report based on this information in the form and context in which it appears.

About Neometals Ltd

The Company is commercialising a portfolio of sustainable processing solutions that recover critical materials from high-value waste streams. Plant supply and/or technology licensing business models are preferred given lower risk and capital required.

-          Neometals’ core focus is its patented, Lithium-ion Battery (“LiB”) Recycling technology (50% NMT), being commercialised (via Primobius GmbH) with 150-year-old German plant builder, SMS group GmbH. Primobius is supplying Mercedes-Benz a 2,500tpa recycling plant for Mercedes-Benz, which is currently being commissioned. This industrial validation will precede the offer of commercial ~20,000tpa integrated recycling plants to its business development pipeline.

-          Lithium Chemicals (70% NMT) – Patented ELi™ electrolysis process, co-owned 30% by Mineral Resources Ltd, aiming to produce battery quality lithium hydroxide from brine and/or hard-rock feedstocks at lowest quartile operating costs. Successfully completed Pilot scale test work and planning industrial validation with funding partners through continuous demonstration plant trials, targeting a technology licensing business model; and

Vanadium Recovery (100% NMT) – Patent pending hydrometallurgical process, aiming to produce high-purity vanadium pentoxide from steelmaking by-product (Slag) at lowest-quartile operating cost and carbon footprint. Planning to exploit under a technology licensing business model. Project financing process for first commercial plant in progress (86.1% NMT).

The Company’s remaining upstream mineral asset has two separate styles of mineralisation and mineral resources:

-          Barrambie Titanium and Vanadium (100% NMT) – The world’s second highest grade hard-rock titanium deposit is currently in a divestment process; and,

-          Barrambie Gold (100% NMT) – Historic high-grade gold producer early 1900s, very limited modern exploration. Maiden gold exploration target highlighted potential for camp-scale brownfields gold discoveries. Active exploration program planned for 2025. Barrambie is proximal to a number of camp-scale gold projects with existing processing infrastructure.

[1] For full details refer to Neometals ASX announcements dated 5 February 2025 titled “Maiden Gold Drilling Programme Commences at Barrambie Project”

[2] For full details refer to Neometals ASX announcements dated 23 September 2024 titled “Barrambie Gold Exploration Target” and 5 February 2025 titled “Barrambie - Maiden Gold Drilling Commences”.

[3] These results are presented in detail and context in the discussion, images and tables within and attached to this announcement.

[4] For full details refer to Neometals ASX announcements dated 23 September 2024 titled “Barrambie Gold Exploration Target”

[5] For further information see WAMEX report A30688. These WAMEX reports can be accessed online at https://geoview.dmp.wa.gov.au/GeoView, using the unique A-number for each report. Each WAMEX report includes a technical explanation of the work completed and results achieved.

[6] For further information see Neometals ASX announcements of 23 September 2024 titled “Barrambie Gold Exploration Target” and 5 February 2025 titled “Barrambie - Maiden Gold Drilling Commences”.

[7] Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, Western Australia. WAMEX is the Western Australian Mineral Exploration Report database.