Tungsten Mining NL has started the major reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling programs at its Watershed tungsten project in Far North Queensland.
The drilling campaign marks a significant step in the technical appraisal, optimisation, and development of the deposit following strong preliminary economic evaluation (PEE) outcomes released in June.
The project, originally acquired from Vital Metals in 2018, is being rapidly advanced to establish a commercial mining operation.
The new drilling aims to increase geological confidence in priority areas targeted for initial open-pit mining while gathering crucial engineering data.
The RC drilling component comprises 175 holes for approximately 15,000 metres over a four-month timeframe.
Drilling on a tight 20-metre by 20-metre pattern across known high-grade mineralised zones will improve definition of resource continuity, geometry, and grade distribution.
Data collected will directly support an updated Mineral Resource model, refined pit designs, and optimised mining schedules.
Concurrently, a 75-hole diamond drilling program spanning roughly 5,700 metres over three months will collect representative core samples. This information is critical to supporting process design, detailed engineering, and open-pit planning.
Tungsten Mining Chairman Gary Lyons highlighted the importance of the drilling campaign in de-risking the critical minerals asset as it advances towards a final investment decision.
“The RC drilling is concentrated within areas of known high-grade mineralisation targeted for initial mining and is designed to provide greater confidence and definition for resource modelling and mine planning,” Lyons said.
“At the same time, the diamond program will provide the metallurgical samples and geotechnical information required to refine process design, pit design and detailed engineering.”
Located roughly 130 kilometres north of Cairns, Watershed sits on granted Mining Leases with an existing Environmental Authority.
Initial assay results are expected from October, with the company committing to ongoing market updates as testing progresses.
