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Key points
- Investors are piling into Aston today in response to a positive update at its Boomerang Target
- According to the company, the grades of mineralisation are "comparable to that of BHP's Mt Keith Mining Operation
- Drill permits for the entire strike length of the Boomerang target have been submitted and are expected to be approved shortly
- The Aston Minerals share price is up 215% in the past year.
The Aston Minerals Ltd (ASX: ASO) share price is charging higher in afternoon trade on Wednesday. At the time of writing, shares in the exploration company are surging 15% at 12 cents apiece.
Investors are piling into Aston today in response to a positive update at its Boomerang Target at the Edleston Project in Canada. Let's take a look.
What did Aston Minerals announce?
Aston advised it has intersected 163.5m at 0.52% Ni and 0.016% Co from 186.5m within its Boomerang Nickel-Copper (Ni-Co) Target with the hole "ending in mineralisation".
According to the company, the grades of mineralisation are "comparable to that of BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)'s Mt Keith Mining Operation".
The target is located at the Edleston Project in Canada. Aston says the project is situated within a Tier 1 mining jurisdiction with "access to green, low-cost hydroelectric power within the Project area".
Aston also confirmed that a total of 13 drill holes for 5,959m of drilling have been completed across three sections of the Boomerang Target to date and that all of the three sections have nickel sulphide present.
A resource drilling definition program is underway across the "Bardwell portion" of the Boomerang Target, aiming to "systematically expand along approximately 1km of strike" and to the depth of mineralisation.
Meanwhile, drill permits for the entire strike length of the Boomerang target have been submitted and are expected to be approved shortly, per the release.
The company's aim from here is to define a substantial resource base plus conduct metallurgical and engineering studies this year to "quantify the economic potential of the project".
Management commentary
Speaking on the announcement, Aston executive chairman, Tolga Kumova said:
Aston is uniquely positioned to capitalise on the burgeoning demand for nickel which has recently reached the highest price since 2011, while nickel inventories are at historically low levels. Currently, the stainless steel industry accounts for approximately two thirds of the utilisation, while demand from electric vehicle batteries are expected to double their current market share to approximately 20% by 2025.
Meanwhile, managing director Dale Ginn added:
The substantial intersection at Bardwell Prospect has exceeded our expectations in relation to both the grade and extent of mineralisation. To have such broad zones of mineralisation at comparable grades to that of Mt Keith so early on in our nickel exploration program provides us with a huge degree of confidence in the potential of the system.
The Aston Minerals share price is up 215% in the past year and has climbed more than 14% already this year to date.
