Litchfield Minerals launches new geophysics to refine NT copper-zinc find
- James Pearson
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
Hot off the back of a successful drilling program and a new induced polarisation (IP) survey at the company’s Oonagalabi copper-zinc project in the Northern Territory, Litchfield Minerals (ASX: LMS) has shifted gears again, this time unleashing a fixed loop electromagnetic (FLEM) survey to zero in on its exciting VT1 conductor.
The move marks the beginning of a new round of geophysics designed to crack open the true strike, width and depth of the prospect, sharpening the company’s aim ahead of what is shaping up to be a serious drilling offensive in early 2026.
The VT1 target first lit up in August when a helicopter-borne VTEM survey picked up a potential cluster of late-time anomalies, hinting at a strong mineralised source deep underground.
It wasn’t until October, though, that VT1 really hit its straps, when a single drillhole set the market on fire. That hit delivered a massive 104-metre copper-sulphide intercept from surface, with high-grade bursts topping two per cent copper equivalent, sending the company’s share price rocketing 300 per cent to 74.5 cents a share.
The standout interval came from Hole 10, which, when tested with a handheld X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) device, threw up a solid copper equivalent grade of 1.37 per cent across its entire strike, comprising of 0.92 per cent copper, 1.59 per cent zinc and 0.08 per cent lead.
Subsequent assay results confirmed a combined copper-zinc intersect over four mineralised zones totalling 91m grading 0.9 per cent copper, 1.3 per cent zinc, 0.1 per cent lead, 7 grams per tonne (g/t) silver and 0.1g/t gold from 8m depth.
Adding weight to the discovery, earlier rock chip testing on a gossanous outcrop had already returned 0.6 per cent copper, 0.6 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, 14g/t silver and 7 parts per million (ppm) tellurium – an unusual but exciting geochemical cocktail that hints at a metal bearing orebody.
Tellurium often turns up in gold-rich systems, although when it appears together with copper and silver sitting above a strong conductor, it’s a big red flag for something much bigger such as an iron-oxide copper-gold system or a skarn possibly lurking at depth.
A second hole drilled at VT1 then hauled up 46 metres of light disseminated copper-iron sulphides from 69m depth, including sniffs of pyrrhotite, pyrite and chalcopyrite.
Although that hole missed the main conductive body, a follow-up down-hole electromagnetic (DHEM) survey raised more than a few eyebrows after it identified no less than six tightly folded plates, stretching more than 400 metres, hinting at a much larger and highly fertile system.
The company says the broader picture at Oonagalabi is now starting to come together, thanks to its new 3D magnetic inversion mapping. What appears to be emerging is a potentially large intrusion-related sulphide system sitting at depth and plunging to the north, with disseminated mineralisation nearer surface likely formed by fluids flowing upwards from a hidden intrusive structure below.
Litchfield’s VT1 target lies about 5.4kms southwest of, and on the same mineralised trend as the VT2 conductor – one of the company’s other priority targets.
Both targets lie on the opposite limb of a north-south fold structure interpreted from a collection of outcrops, which appear to emanate from the main Oonagalabi cluster on the western limb.
Once the VT1 work is wrapped up, the focus will shift to VT2 for another round of ground surveying, designed to investigate its deeper reaches following earlier VTEM and EM studies.
In mid-October, hole 11 was drilled into VT2 and hit an impressive 168-metre section of patchy sulphides, including two intervals from 199 to 204 metres and from 246 to 256 metres carrying semi-massive to massive sulphides. Assay results are now pending.
If the weather holds before the wet season, the Bomb-Diggity cluster sitting in the nose of the fold is next in line for surveying. That target area is dripping with IP chargeability, magnetic highs, gravity responses and multiple VTEM conductors, giving company geologists plenty of hotspots to chase down.
On the drilling front, contractor Bullion Drilling has just finished a five-hole program, each averaging 300m in depth. The main focus has been to collect structural data across the Oonagalabi Main Zone, test magnetic features through the central corridor and at Bomb-Diggity, alongside redrilling the VT2 conductor from a better angle.
Since the last drill campaign, we have completed IP surveys, drilled a further 5 holes, and commenced a ground EM program across multiple high-priority targets, to further refine drilling targets. We look forward to continuing this momentum into year-end, ensuring we have strong datasets to enter 2026 with confidence, ready for further drilling early next year.
Litchfield Minerals Managing Director Matthew Pustahya
With fresh geophysics on the go, multiple sulphide hits under its belt and assays still to come, Litchfield is shaping up as one of the Northern Territory’s more aggressive copper hunters.
The company now has a pipeline of targets, a swelling body of technical data and a geological story that appears to be getting bigger by the week.
If the next round of EM and drilling delivers what the early clues suggest, 2026 could be the year Oonagalabi steps out of the shadows and onto the main stage.
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