ABx Group Limited (ASX:ABX) Rare Earth Drilling Underway in Tasmania
Melbourne, Sep 1, 2026 AEST (ABN Newswire) - ABx Group Limited (
ASX:ABX) (AUSBF:OTCMKTS) (A7B:FRA) has commenced a new rare earth exploration drilling program across its northern Tasmanian tenements, initially focused on delineating potentially mineable areas within the Deep Leads-Rubble Mound resource. The program will subsequently test the broader potential of ABx's northern Tasmanian rare earth portfolio.
Highlights:
- New rare earth exploration drilling program commenced in northern Tasmania, initially to delineate potential mine areas in Deep Leads - Rubble Mound resource
- Subsequent drilling across new tenements EL27/2022, EL28/2022 and EL25/2022 will test the broader potential of ABx's northern Tasmanian rare earth portfolio
- New proprietary rapid testing technique will be used to rapidly assess the amount of ionic rare earths, allowing drilling program to be optimised daily rather than waiting weeks for assay results.
ABx Group Limited (ABx or the Company) has commenced a new rare earth exploration drilling program across its northern Tasmanian tenements (Figures 1 & 2*).
Drilling is initially focussed on delineation of the high quality, potentially mineable parts of the main Deep Leads-Rubble Mound resource area, including the zone used to produce the Company's initial mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) samples that has received highly positive feedback by potential customers in Australia and North America.
The new exploration program is designed to build on this work by improving ABx's understanding of the in-ground mineralisation associated with the maiden MREC sample and identifying areas containing the most prospective soluble rare earth mineralisation.
The JORC-compliant resource estimate for Deep Leads - Rubble Mound and Wind Break totals 89 million tonnes2 averaging 844 ppm total rare earth oxides (TREO). The resource contains 36 ppm Dy+Tb (Dy+Tb is 4.4% of TREO), the highest of any ionic clay deposit in Australia and among the highest globally.
The resource is also highly enriched in all other heavy rare earth elements, which are subject to export restrictions by China.
Testing the Broader Rare Earth Province
Following the initial work at Deep Leads-Rubble Mound, subsequent stages of the exploration program are planned to test less explored areas across ABx's expanding northern Tasmanian tenement portfolio.
Further drilling is planned within EL27/2022 and EL28/2022 located 55 km east of Deep Leads, where only limited drilling has been undertaken to date.
The program includes the first drilling within newly acquired tenements, including EL25/2022, as ABx continues to evaluate the broader scale and continuity of rare earth mineralisation across its northern Tasmanian tenure.
Rapid Proprietary Testing to Guide Exploration
A key feature of the new program will be the implementation of a proprietary testing technique developed by ABx to rapidly assess the amount of ionic rare earths within exploration samples. Using standard leach tests, results are not known until assay results are received, which typically takes a few weeks. The ABx testing technique immediately produces a representative indication of the amount of ionic rare earths, as part of in-house leach tests conducted at ABx's research lab near Launceston Airport. This will allow ABx's exploration team to use results generated during the program to refine and optimise the drilling program on a daily basis, which will lead to a more efficient and effective exploration program.
This technology is also designed to be used for grade-control drilling during production.
Dr Mark Cooksey, Managing Director and CEO of ABx Group, commented:
"This program is an important next step in our rare earth strategy. We already have a substantial resource at Deep Leads-Rubble Mound and Wind Break, and our focus is increasingly turning to understanding where the highest-quality and most readily extractable mineralisation occurs within that broader resource.
"We will also be applying new techniques that allow us to rapidly assess the amount of ionic rare earths during the exploration program. This means our exploration team can use the information being generated to optimise the program on a daily basis and focus activity on the areas showing the greatest potential.
"Beyond Deep Leads-Rubble Mound, there remains considerable exploration potential across our broader tenement package. We have undertaken only limited drilling across several areas and will progressively test these as the program advances.
"Our objective is to better define and understand the best parts of the resource we already have, while continuing to test the potential for further discoveries across our northern Tasmanian rare earth portfolio."
*To view tables and figures, please visit:
https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/6YPTL6O1
About ABx Group Limited
ABx Group Limited (ABx) (ASX:ABX) is a uniquely positioned Australian company delivering materials for a cleaner future.
The three priority projects are:
- Heavy rare earths: Supplying light and heavy rare earths from Tasmania into Western supply chains
o Processing Options Analysis conducted in partnership with external experts
- Clean fluorine chemical production: Producing industrial chemicals from aluminium smelter by-product (ALCORE)
o Continuous pilot plant under construction in Bell Bay, Tasmania
- Near-term bauxite production: Mining bauxite resources for the aluminium, cement and fertiliser industries
o Agreements executed with Good Importing International for bauxite projects in Queensland and New South Wales, and $2.7 million initial payment has been received
o Approvals well advanced for DL130 bauxite project in northern Tasmania
ABx endorses best practices on agricultural land and strives to leave land and environment better than we find it. We only operate where welcomed.
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