Critica Limited (ASX:CRI) is set to begin a drilling campaign at its Brothers Clay-Hosted Rare Earth Project in Western Australia, focusing on the Aurora and Juno satellite prospects. This follows the receipt of drilling approvals and promising initial results from five satellite discoveries near the flagship Jupiter deposit, which showed grades of up to 34% magnet rare earth oxides (MREO). The Aurora and Juno prospects exhibit elevated levels of key heavy rare earths, including dysprosium, terbium, and yttrium.
The drilling program, partly funded by the Western Australian Government’s Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS), aims to expand the rare earth endowment beyond the Jupiter deposit. Critica’s Managing Director, Philippa Leggat, emphasizes the potential to enhance total grade, MREO content, and heavy rare earth contribution. Jupiter is described as Australia’s largest and highest grade clay-hosted rare earth resource, with an inferred resource of 1.8 billion tonnes @ 1,651ppm, including a high-grade component of 520 million tonnes @ 2,169ppm. The company is also advancing beneficiation testwork towards producing a mixed rare earth carbonate.
