Antares Metals Ltd. has received AU$237,500 in government funding for its Quinns copper-gold-zinc project in the Murchison region of Western Australia.
The grant, awarded under the Western Australian government’s Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS), includes AU$200,000 to co-fund direct drilling costs and an additional AU$37,500 for a high-resolution aeromagnetic survey.
The funding serves as an endorsement of the company’s geological model at Quinns, which targets high-grade copper and zinc mineralisation.
Antares Managing Director Terry Topping described the successful application as a genuine endorsement of the project’s merit.
“The WA government’s program is competitive—being selected validates our team’s assessment that the Quinns tenure hosts real discovery potential beyond the Austin resource,” Topping said.
“This AU$237,500 in nondilutive funding directly extends our exploration reach across WA and allows us to sequence the Quinns maiden drill programme efficiently alongside our Mt Isa operations.”
The Quinns project is home to the historic Austin VMS deposit, which currently hosts a JORC 2004 resource of 1.48 million tonnes. Antares is now working to upgrade this to JORC 2012 standards while targeting step-out extensions.
Historic intersections at Austin have previously highlighted the project’s high-grade potential, including standout results such as 5 metres at 10.2 per cent copper and 6 metres at 33.3 per cent zinc.
The company is also eyeing the Defiance and 4E prospects, located northeast of Austin, which show promising aeromagnetic anomalies that have never been systematically drill-tested.
The company is currently finalising heritage surveys and drill targeting, with the EIS-funded RC drilling expected to commence in the third quarter of 2026.
The Western Australian activity will complement a 1,000-metre drilling program at the company’s Conglomerate Creek prospect in Mt Isa, Queensland, which is set to begin in the coming weeks.