Viking Mines Limited (ASX: VKA) has provided a comprehensive update on its fast-to-market strategy for the Linka Tungsten Project in Nevada, USA. Viking Mines Limited is an Australian mineral exploration company primarily focused on tungsten projects in Nevada, USA, aiming to re-establish domestic supply of this critical mineral. The company is advancing the project through five parallel workstreams: resource evaluation, metallurgy, processing, permitting, and growth potential, with Managing Director & CEO Julian Woodcock noting that “every workstream at Linka is advancing towards our strategic goal.”
In resource evaluation, 45 reverse circulation (RC) holes have been completed to date, with initial assays for five holes supporting the geological model and confirming scheelite mineralisation. Notable intercepts include 14 metres at 0.56% WO3, 18 metres at 0.42% WO3, and 13 metres at 0.46% WO3, validating grades previously mined in the 1950s. Further drilling is ongoing, and additional assay results are pending. Metallurgical testwork has yielded promising results, demonstrating a 56.9% WO3 scheelite concentrate at 76.0% recovery, and conventional gravity concentrates exceeding 50% WO3 from all four samples tested. Additionally, TOMRA XRT ore sorting successfully upgraded feed material by up to 4.1 times, reaching grades of 1.83–1.91% WO3.
Regarding processing, multiple pathways are under assessment. A conceptual study evaluated a modular facility with a nominal design capacity of approximately 300,000 tonnes per annum, indicating a potential 15-month lead time, subject to further studies and approvals. The company is also identifying toll-treatment options for a 907-tonne bulk sample, considering regional processing capacity such as the planned restart of the Springer tungsten mine in Nevada. Permitting efforts are progressing towards a late 2027 mining permit application target, with a bulk sample already approved and baseline environmental and cultural data collection well advanced.
Beyond the Linka Main pit, Viking Mines is defining additional feed sources, including surface stockpiles averaging 0.40–0.50% WO3. The project’s mineralised trend extends over an interpreted 7-kilometre strike-length, with historical Conquest and Hillside mines yet to be drill-tested. Regional projects like Long and Terrell have also returned high-grade samples of up to 2.7% WO3. The company’s efforts align with the US government’s push for domestic tungsten supply, driven by its designation as a critical mineral and the REEShore Act.
