The Company’s Paterson Project is located in the Paterson Province of Western Australia, host to several large copper and copper-gold deposits and recent discoveries. The project tenements are interpreted to contain host formations and structures common to the major mineral deposits in the area. The Company is primarily targeting copper and copper-gold deposits in the Paterson region.
Carawine’s Paterson Project tenements.
Cable (E45/5510)
The Cable tenement is located about 60km north of the Nifty copper deposit and is contiguous with the West Paterson JV Baton tenement. Several new copper, gold, lead, and zinc prospects have been identified along the “Warroo Trend” from historic mapping, surface sampling and shallow AC (vacuum) drilling, as follows.
The Warroo Trend sits along a syncline in Archaean-aged Hardy Formation rocks, located to the west of the Vines Fault. The trend was discovered by previous explorers in the 1980s from mapping of a rock sequence comprising interlayered chloritic phyllites, wackes, sedimentary carbonates, carbonate-altered intermediate to mafic volcanics, and felsic and mafic intrusives over a strike length of more than 10km. The trend is named after the historic “Warroo Prospect”, which sits at the southern end of the trend, just outside the Cable tenement.
The rocks along the Warroo Trend are strongly folded, metamorphosed to upper greenschist/lower amphibolite facies, with extensive laminar cherty quartz veins exposed. This geology is strongly suggestive of a potential submarine bimodal volcanic sequence prospective for polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulphide (“VMS”) deposits. The cherty quartz veins are weakly gossanous, malachite stained, and strongly anomalous in copper, gold, zinc and lead.
Cable tenement exploration target areas, historic and Carawine drill hole collars and preliminary TargetEM relative conductivity image (ch30).
Extensive rock chip sampling of the volcanics, veining and gossans along the Warroo Trend within the Cable tenement returned the following value ranges (refer ASX announcement 18 October 2022):
The peak historic Cu (5.4%), Pb (0.25%), Zn (0.99%), Ag (19.5ppm) and As (3,040ppm) rock chip values define the Warroo North Prospect, with the highest Zn value of 0.99% associated with gossanous cherty quartz veins with malachite and smithsonite staining. Warroo North also returned the highest recorded gold geochemical value from historic work in the area, with 0.65ppm gold returned from a single bulk loam concentrate sample taken within a 2km x 1.25km area mapped as “prospector loaming” (a large area of historic gold prospecting activity). No drilling has occurred at Warroo North.
The Warroo NE Prospect comprises a ~1km x 500m Cu (5ppm to 1,900ppm) and Zn (5ppm to 1,000ppm) anomaly in two lines of 300m x 100m spaced soil samples, and quartz vein subcrop, and an associated 1km x 500m Cu (200ppm to 528ppm) anomaly in shallow vacuum AC drill samples (refer ASX announcement 18 October 2022). This area has also not been drill-tested beyond the vacuum AC program (as described below).
Previous explorers completed a 500m x 500m spaced tractor-mounted shallow vacuum AC drilling program designed to sample bedrock just below the base of transported material along the Warroo Trend, with sample depths ranging from 3m to 12m. Results from the program define a 10km x 2km, >100ppm Cu and closely associated >100ppm Zn anomalous trend within the Cable tenement, containing several higher grade zones of up to 1,500ppm Cu, and up to 1,630ppm Zn (refer ASX announcement 18 October 2022).
The extent and tenor of the copper-gold-lead-zinc-silver anomalism, associated with gossanous cherty quartz veining within a bimodal volcano-sedimentary rock package represents an excellent target area for future exploration at Cable. Defined prospects at Warroo North and Warroo NE, and the larger Warroo geochemical Trend, provide a focus for this exploration which is likely to include a combination of airborne or ground geophysical surveys and wide-spaced, deeper drilling, aimed at defining specific targets for additional direct drill-testing.
There is also high potential for complex folding, block faulting and accommodation zones within the Broadhurst Formation in the Cable tenement, east of the Vines Fault. These structural elements are considered favourable for the formation of Nifty-style mineralisation, with this potential largely untested to date.
Carawine has completed a helicopter-borne electromagnetic survey over the Cable tenement utilising Expert Geophysics Limited’s “TargetEM” system, and a 312-hole drilling program along the Warroo Trend (refer ASX announcements 1 & 24 July, 2024).
Magnus (E45/5520)
At the Magnus tenement, located within 600m of the Nifty Operations waste dumps and extending about 20km to the north, a new conceptual copper target named “Europe” has been identified.
The Europe target is located in the core and on the flanks of a large northwest-trending fold structure interpreted from ground and airborne electromagnetic surveys and drill data and has the potential for the formation of copper sulphides analogous to the style and setting of mineralisation at the Nifty deposit. The target was developed by previous explorers as an extension to their Citadel prospect, with seven drill holes located within the Magnus tenement proposed to test the target. Despite multiple programs proposed from 2007, the target remains untested and is therefore considered ready to drill.
Europe target on VTEM conductivity image.
Baton Tenements
The Baton tenements (E45/4841 & E45/4955) are located about 100km north of the Nifty copper deposit, with historic workers identifying copper, lead and zinc mineralisation hosted by dolomitic breccia in a sequence of dolomite, carbonaceous siltstone and carbonaceous shale of the Broadhurst Formation (host to the Nifty deposit). From October 2019 until their withdrawal in May 2024, Rio Tinto Exploration Pty Ltd ("RTX") explored the Baton tenements under the West Paterson farm-in and joint venture agreement (“WPJVA”). The tenements are now 100% held and managed by Carawine, with RTX forfeiting its rights to earn any joint venture interest.
Prior to entering the West Paterson JV, the Company completed detailed ground gravity surveys over the Wheeler, Javelin and Discus prospects on the Baton tenements. The gravity survey following a detailed airborne magnetic survey completed in June 2019 and was successful in identifying several gravity high anomalies coincident with magnetic high anomalies, as follows (refer ASX announcement 27 August 2019):
Gravity and magnetic anomalies at Javelin, Wheeler and Discus.
Coincident magnetic-gravity anomalies are considered to increase the potential of a target to host certain types and styles of mineralisation, compared to targets based on magnetic anomalies alone. An example of this is Greatland’s Havieron gold and copper prospect, where magnetic and gravity anomalies associated with the mineralisation were used to target the discovery drill holes. Magnetic high anomalies are also spatially associated with Rio Tinto’s Winu and Ngapakarra discoveries.
In December 2019 RTX completed an airborne gravity gradiometer (AGG) survey over the Baton tenements to further resolve prospective stratigraphy and structure, and add to the understanding of mineralising systems in the project area, as an input to review and targeting of exploration programs. Then in 2021, RTX completed a helicopter-borne electromagnetic survey utilising NRG’s Xcite™ system, highlighting six conductive anomalies outside of typically conductive Broadhurst Formation stratigraphy. Two of these anomalies (BEM001 and BEM006) are associated with gravity highs (refer ASX announcement 27 October 2021).
In 2023 RTX completed a limited RC drilling program on the Baton tenements, targeting base-metal sulphide mineralisation, especially copper, at the Herb, BEM004, Buzzer, BEM001 and Wheeler (CWX-W1) targets (refer ASX announcements 8 July & 27 August 2019; 27 October 2021, 28 July 2022 and 29 January 2024). The drill holes encountered metasediments, dolomites and black shales, with the depth of weathering varied and locally exceeding 130m. No significant (ore grade and width) assay results were returned from this program, however anomalous copper values above 0.1% (from 80m to 86m in drill hole CWBA0001, average 0.12% Cu) at Herb, and a gold value above 0.10ppm (from 146m to 148m in drill hole CWBA0005) at the Buzzer target indicate potential targets for follow-up work (refer ASX announcement 29 January 2024).
The Company is now assessing the exploration data acquired and generated by RTX, and will be integrated this with Carawine’s knowledge of the region to re-prioritise existing, and generate new, targets across the tenements.
Red Dog
The Red Dog tenement (E45/4881) is located approximately 16km northeast of the Nifty copper mine in moderately deformed, low grade metasedimentary rocks along the NW margin of the Yeneena Basin. The tenement is considered prospective for stratiform Cu-Co deposits, e.g. Nifty and Maroochydore, sediment-hosted Pb-Zn deposits, e.g. Warrabarty within the upper Broadhurst and Isdell Formations, and intrusion-related gold and copper mineralisation, e.g. Havieron, Telfer.
Red Dog was also subject to the WPJVA, and is now 100% held and managed by Carawine.
In addition to targets generated from the work of previous explorers, Carawine completed a detailed VTEM™ Max helicopter-borne electromagnetic ("VTEM") survey with the aim of delineating discrete conductive anomalies associated with sulphide mineralisation (e.g. Rio Tinto’s Winu discovery) or resistive zones associated with alteration (e.g. silica-dolomite alteration associated with the Nifty copper deposit).
The VTEM survey completed prior to the WPJVA was successful in identifying twelve conductive and four resistive anomalies in new areas and at previously identified prospects. After entering the WPJVA, RTX’s review of the Red Dog tenement confirmed multiple high priority potential targets at prospects defined by Carawine, and the potential for new targets to be identified. Magnetic and VTEM anomalies located proximal to interpreted intrusives and/or within favourable structural locations in the Earl, Duke, Bravo and Leatherneck areas were confirmed as warranting further screening and testing. New targets defined by RTX included Clouser and Marquess, discrete, resistive AEM anomalies within Broadhurst Formation shale, interpreted as potential analogues to the Nifty copper deposit (located within the Flying Tiger and Leatherneck prospect areas respectively); and WB (Earl) within a broad, resistive AEM anomaly on the edge of a large interpreted felsic intrusion within the Malu and Puntapunta Formations (host to the Telfer gold-copper deposit) (refer ASX announcements 19 February and 29 July 2019 and 6 October 2021).
Red Dog conductivity image and targets (note: diagram pre-dates RTX withdrawal from the WPJVA).
RTX completed an initial phase of RC drilling over the Ghost and Zulu prospects in 2021, with trace levels of base metal (copper, zinc, lead) sulphides encountered (ASX announcement 27 April 2022). One hole was attempted at the Marquess (Adams) target as part of RTX's 2023 drilling campaign, however the drill hole was abandoned at 78m in cover units due to difficult ground conditions.
As with Baton, the Company is now assessing the exploration data acquired and generated by RTX at Red Dog, and will integrate this with its knowledge of the region to re-prioritise existing, and generate new, targets across the tenement.
Coolbro JV (Fortescue earning to 51%)
The “Coolbro JV” is a farm-in and joint venture agreement with FMG Resources Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (“Fortescue”), whereby Fortescue has the right to earn up to a 75% interest in the Lamil Hills, Trotman South and Eider tenements by spending $6.1 million in the seven years to November 2026. Fortescue has satisfied the conditions required to earn a 51% beneficial interest in the Coolbro JV tenements (“Stage 1 Earn-In”), and has elected to earn an additional 24% interest in the tenements by sole-funding $4.5 million (in addition to the $1.6 million incurred to satisfy the Stage 1 Earn-In) of exploration expenditure on the Coolbro JV tenements by the end of 2026, during which Carawine will be free carried. Fortescue is managing and operating exploration activities whilst it is farming-in.
Trotman South is located 27km south of the Telfer gold mine and has many of the structural elements normally associated with gold deposits in the Telfer region, i.e. domes/anticlines and WNW to NW-striking faults. Interpreted demagnetised zones in otherwise strongly magnetic layers in gabbro-monzonite sills, could represent discrete alteration halos to gold mineralisation, with anomalous bedrock intersections in Rotary Air Blast (“RAB”) drilling occurring adjacent to one such zone. Base metal (Zn, Co) anomalism in historic drilling also occurs within the tenement, associated with a variety of dolomitic sediments and intrusive bodies, indicating the potential for both sediment-hosted and intrusion related (skarn) styles of gold and base metal mineralisation.
Eider is located 35km southwest of Newcrest’s Telfer gold operations and 35km southeast of Metals X’s Nifty copper operations near the edge of the Waukarlycarly Embayment, with geology most similar to that hosting the Nifty and Maroochydore copper-cobalt deposits.
Lamil Hills, approximately 25km northwest of the Telfer gold mine, is considered prospective for intrusion-related, Telfer-style gold and copper mineralisation with similar host stratigraphy and the presence of domal structures on the tenement, and identified gold-copper mineralisation on adjacent tenure. Anomalous gold lag samples in outcrop on Carawine’s tenement have been reported by previous explorers.
Fortescue has completed interpretations of surface and drilling data to assist with target generation, heritage and other access planning activities, and geological and logistical reconnaissance trips to the JV tenure. In 2021 Fortescue completed an airborne electromagnetic survey over the Coolbro JV tenements, using the VTEM™ Max (Versatile Time Domain Electromagnetic, "VTEM") helicopter-borne electromagnetic system, and in 2022 completed a 4-hole drilling program on the Eider tenement (refer ASX announcement 28 April 2023). Current targets identified for drill testing include the VTEM02 & VTEM03 conductor targets defined within Trotman South (refer ASX announcements 29 January & 24 July 2024).
This page was last updated on 24 July 2024.
Please note: these pages include information that relates to Exploration Results prepared and first disclosed under the JORC Code (2012). The information was extracted from the Company’s previous ASX Announcements which can be viewed in the Investor Information & News section of this website by clicking here.
