Annual report on EL 24549 Allamber 1 Pine Creek for the period 23 September 2016 to 22 September 2017

Abstract

Exploration Licence 24549 (18 blocks) is about 30 km NE of Pine Creek, Northern Territory. Granted on 23 September 2005 with an expiry date of 22 September 2017, Element 92 Pty Limited ('E92', a wholly owned subsidiary of ASX-listed Thundelarra Limited) acquired the licence in 2012. The project area is located within the central part of the Pine Creek Orogen (PCO). Rocks of Masson Formation, Mundogie Sandstone, Mount Bonnie Formation; along with members of Cullen Batholith (Allamber Springs, Frances Creek, McCarthy's and Minglo granites) are exposed. During the Top End Orogeny the sequence was tightly folded and pervasively altered with metamorphic grade averaging greenschist facies to phyllite. The project area lies on the Mary River Station, a cattle station that had been operating for over 10 years exclusively as a wildlife safari hunting business, offering wild pigs and deer targets for paying hunters, as well as high-value 'trophy' prey including banteng, buffalo, oryx and addax acquired on the closure of the Tipperary Station zoo in 2004. The pastoralist, Mr Gleeson, discouraged or disallowed exploration access during his main 'hunting season', which overlapped with the optimal exploration season before the annual onset of the wet. He considered exploration such as drilling programmes as disruptive to hunting activities. Following the introduction in late 2105 of mandatory Land Access Agreements between pastoralists and exploration companies, agreement was reached and documented under which Mr Gleeson, albeit reluctantly, allowed exploration access at the end of the hunting / exploration field season, essentially close to the onset of the wet season. Mr Gleeson died in late August 2016 having already approved E92's planned Allamber project exploration for 2016. His widow put the station up for sale, effectively placing any 2017 exploration plans on hold until new owners were found and new access arrangements could be agreed and documented. The station was eventually sold in May 2017, but our efforts to date to contact the new owners to discuss access have not met with any response. Consequently E92 has not been able to undertake any exploration during the period under review. Recommendations for next year include following up graphite targets at the contact between the Masson Formation and Frances Creek Leucogranite and the uranium anomaly at Cliff South, once new Land Access Agreements have been negotiated.