Summit Minerals Limited (ASX: SUM) has reported exceptional new assay results from its ongoing exploration at the Equador Niobium and Rare Earth Elements (Nb-REE) Project in Brazil’s Borborema Pegmatitic Province (BPP).
The latest findings continue to demonstrate the project’s high prospectivity.
Key highlights from the recent assays include:
- 53.07% Nb2O5, 18.32% Ta2O5, and 1956 ppm PREO (SUMSS007)
- 42.08% Nb2O5, 26.07% Ta2O5, and 2780 ppm PREO (SUMSS021)
- 40.88% Nb2O5, 25.27% Ta2O5, and 6367 ppm PREO (SUMSS023)
The company has also discovered new pegmatite outcrops on the eastern side of the ridge, extending the strike length to approximately three kilometres with some outcrops up to 20 metres wide.
These pegmatites are easily accessible due to their proximity to infrastructure.
Managing Director Gower He expressed enthusiasm about the project’s progress, stating: “Our Equador Project continues to deliver beyond our initial expectations.
“With the consistent high-grade assay results project-wide, the company will be heavily focused on this project to fast-track its development.”
Chief Geologist Stuart Peterson, who recently visited the site, noted the abundance of pegmatite outcrops across the Equador Project, all showing promising signs of niobium and tantalum mineralisation.
The Equador Project’s strategic location offers significant advantages, including direct access to energy and water, and a sealed road connecting to a major highway just 20 kilometres away.
Summit Minerals is planning extensive magnetic and LIDAR surveys to further map and verify the project’s potential.
The company expects additional rock chip assays from newly sampled locations in the coming weeks.
The Borborema Pegmatitic Province, where the Equador Project is situated, is renowned as one of the world’s most important sources of tantalum, rare earth elements, and beryllium.
The pegmatites in this region are hosted within heavily altered and enriched mica schist, intruded by mineralised pegmatite fluids, forming high-grade zones of niobium and tantalum.
As exploration continues, Summit Minerals remains committed to the systematic development of its projects to delineate JORC-compliant resources.
The company will provide further updates as new exploration results become available.
