Sixth Annual Technical Report GR274/18 incorporating EL 26524, EL 28342, EL 28343, EL 28870, EL 28892, EL 29040, EL 29041, EL 29631, EL 29632, EL 29633, EL 29634, EL 29635, EL 29659, EL 30387 and EL 30384 for the period 9 February 2017 to 8 February 2018

Abstract

Australian Ilmenite Resources Pty Ltd (AIR) is an independent ilmenite developer focused on the ilmenite and titanomagnetite-bearing regolith derived from the weathering of dolerite sills in the Roper Gulf Shire. Its primary asset is the Roper Heavy Minerals Project (the 'Project') that straddles the Roper Highway about 120km east of Mataranka, and 475km south-east of Darwin, in the Northern Territory (NT), Australia. There are three reporting groups within the AIR's tenements portfolio: GR274, 275 and 276. GR274 lies in the central and northern parts of the Project area and is accessed by road from Darwin via the Stuart, Central Arnhem and Roper Highways a trip of 550km. This is the fifth GR274 Annual Group Technical Report that covers the activities for EL 26524, EL 28342, EL 28343, EL 28870, EL 28892, EL 29040, EL 29041, EL 29631, EL 29632, EL 29633, EL 29634, EL 29635, EL 29659, EL 30384 and EL 30387. for the period 9 February 2017 to 8 February 2018. EL 30384 and EL 30387 are additions to the Group as they went from Application to Granted during the previous reporting period. The Project lies in Mesoproterozoic sediments of the Roper Group in the central-western Bauhinia Shelf of the McArthur Basin that has been previously explored for heavy minerals, iron ore, base metals, uranium and diamonds. Sediments of the Maiwok Subgroup in the Project area have been extensively intruded by flat lying late Proterozoic sills of Derim Derim Dolerite containing minor amounts of primary accessory ilmenite, titanomagnetite and magnetite. During prolonged weathering these heavy minerals have been released from the dolerite sills as they became exposed. They are now concentrated at or near the surface within pisolitic, clay-rich ferruginous regolith and black soils in potentially economic concentrations. AIR has undertaken little exploration throughout the GR274 tenements compared with its predecessor ERD, and instead has focused expenditure on mining infrastructure, process plant and trial mining located within the 2 MLs surrounded by EL 28291. In early 2014 AIR received additional funding to undertake further exploration throughout its tenements and in May 2014 AIR reaffirmed with DME its intention to rationalise its land holdings by prioritizing areas for further exploration and relinquishing others. By late July 2014 AIR had undertaken a desktop analysis and commenced planning for reconnaissance field work on tenements of GR274. On 28th July 2014 Janna Robertson and Scott Kershaw of KordaMentha were appointed as Receivers and Managers of AIR ('the Receivers'). This placed the Regional Exploration and Resource Assessment Program and expenditure on hold although the Receivers continued to manage AIR on a business as usual basis and continue to liaise with the DME. Exploration was subsequently confined to office studies for GR274 that have been continued during the current reporting period and are summarized in this report. AIR was purchased by MacMines in April 2016 and the company has concentrated its resources on refurbishing and recommissioning the heavy mineral wet plant on MLs 27422 and 29042 and prioritised reconnaissance mapping and regolith sampling on the surrounding EL 28291 of GR275 in advance of more comprehensive resource definition work to develop additional economic ilmenite resources. Additional 5m resolution satellite imagery was purchased during the 2017-2018 reporting period. It covers parts or all of ELs 29040, 29041, 28892, 28342, 28343, 26524 and 29659 of Group 274 and proves useful with geological interpretation and determining the extents of prospective dolerite regolith and alluvium. There was no on-ground exploration by AIR of GR274 tenements this reporting period. AIR has now expanded its exploration programs to include all commodities and although the conclusions and recommendations for exploration as proposed previously are essentially unchanged they have been updated to include this.