Chilwa Minerals Limited (ASX: CHW) announced on 22 April 2026 that it has mobilised a second diamond drill rig to its Nakombe target within the Mpyupyu area, effectively doubling its drilling capacity and accelerating critical minerals exploration efforts. Chilwa Minerals Limited (ASX: CHW) is a Southern Malawi-focused critical minerals explorer, advancing multiple programmes within its Lake Chilwa licence, including niobium-REE-tantalum-gallium, carbonatite-hosted REE, Heavy Mineral Sands, and ionic clay REE projects. The company is uniquely positioned with various critical mineral exposures in a single contiguous licence area. Both diamond rigs are now actively operating at the Nakombe target, which was identified as the southern of two Thorium anomalies during the company’s 2024 airborne geophysics program.
Rig 2, previously engaged in targets within the Phalombe region, has been redeployed to Mpyupyu specifically to investigate mineralisation and structures within the Mpyupyu Alkaline-Syenite Complex. To date, approximately 1,050 metres of drilling has been completed across six drill holes at the target, not including metres drilled at the northern Mpyupyu anomaly. Assay results for initial holes MPYDD001, 002, and 006 have been released, with results for MPYDD003, 004, 005, and 007 anticipated in the coming weeks. This exploration area is strategically located within one to two kilometres of JORC-defined Heavy Mineral Sands (HMS) resources at the Mpyupyu Dune and Mpyupyu Flat deposits.
Chilwa’s Managing Director, Cadell Buss, commented that the Mpyupyu Rare Earth Element (REE), Niobium, Tantalum, and Gallium discovery continues to reveal new dimensions of the Lake Chilwa licence’s potential, justifying the decision to operate both rigs over the target. Mr Buss further noted that the mineralisation at Mpyupyu is not solely a niobium story, with tantalum and gallium also present as potential co-products alongside rare earths. The proximity of this target to the company’s existing HMS resources further reinforces the exceptional multi-commodity potential of the licence area. A revised Mineral Resource estimate for the Mpyupyu HMS deposits is slated for late May 2026, following the completion of final assays, XRF, and QEMSCAN results. To read the full announcement, click here.
