Solstice Minerals Hits 52m at 0.71% Copper Outside Nanadie Resource as Deposit Grows
Key Takeaways
- All three new diamond tail holes at Nanadie intersected significant copper-gold mineralisation outside the existing 2022 MRE boundary, extending the system in the central, southern, and northern zones simultaneously.
- The standout intercept from NANRCD033 returned 52m @ 0.71% Cu, 0.13g/t Au from 406m, including a high-grade hit of 6m @ 1.79% Cu and 0.37g/t Au — grades that sit well above the current resource average of 0.4% Cu.
- DHEM surveying in NANRCD033 identified a 140m x 140m high-conductance plate below the hole, scheduled for immediate testing via an 850m EIS co-funded hole worth up to $200,000 from the WA Government.
- The southern zone hole NANRCD009 revealed mineralisation distributed across a 300m wide corridor at depth, with the widest intercept of 43.8m @ 0.55% Cu from 514.2m confirming the system is growing thicker as it deepens.
- Solstice holds $45 million cash and no debt, with three rigs on site, 40+ holes pending assay, and the multi-rig programme expected to run through 2026 — providing a sustained pipeline of potential news flow.
Broad copper-gold zones push Nanadie well beyond current resource boundary
Three new diamond tail holes at Solstice Minerals’ Nanadie Copper-Gold Project have returned significant assays extending mineralisation outside the existing 2022 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) boundary in multiple directions simultaneously, spanning the central, southern, and northern parts of the deposit.
The standout result comes from NANRCD033 in the central zone: 48m @ 0.59% Cu, 0.16g/t Au from 334.8m and 52m @ 0.71% Cu, 0.13g/t Au from 406m, including a high-grade hit of 6m @ 1.79% Cu and 0.37g/t Au from 408m. Critically, all three holes intersected significant copper-gold mineralisation well outside the current MRE boundary, and the company has not drilled a blank hole into a system that now extends over at least 1.3km strike and remains open.
The Nanadie copper-gold expansion reported in earlier drill campaigns established the deposit’s multi-directional growth pattern, with results from those programmes setting the geological baseline against which the new intercepts reported here represent a clear step-change in scale.
Solstice holds $45 million cash and no debt, providing the financial runway to sustain its multi-rig programme as it continues testing the system’s full potential.
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Three holes, three directions — Nanadie keeps growing
NANRCD033 — central zone delivers high-grade hit and new DHEM target
Assays from NANRCD033, in the central part of the Nanadie deposit, confirm that grades increase toward the eastern boundary of the host gabbro — consistent with the company’s previously reported geological interpretation. The two significant intercepts (48m @ 0.59% Cu, 0.16g/t Au from 334.8m and 52m @ 0.71% Cu, 0.13g/t Au from 406m) sit well beyond the current MRE boundary at this location.
Subsequent downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) surveying in this hole identified a 140m x 140m high-conductance plate located below the hole, immediately adjacent to a local cross-fault — a structurally favourable position for the accumulation of remobilised copper sulphides. This conductor is scheduled for immediate drill testing via an 850m Reverse Circulation (RC)/diamond hole, co-funded through the West Australian Government’s Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS). Solstice was awarded up to $200,000 (the maximum award) under Round 33 of EIS funding, comprising 50% of direct drilling costs plus an additional allowance of up to $50,000 for fuel supply.
NANRCD009 — southern zone widens at depth
Results from NANRCD009, in the southern part of the Nanadie system, demonstrate that the deposit is widening and showing increasing grade and thickness potential at depth. Key intercepts include 28.3m @ 0.74% Cu, 0.21g/t Au from 334.8m and 43.8m @ 0.55% Cu, 0.19g/t Au from 514.2m. Mineralisation on this section is distributed across a 300m wide corridor, and the tail also intersected highly altered mineralised gabbro well to the east of the expected gabbro contact.
NANRCD020 — northern extension confirms gabbro-hosted mineralisation
NANRCD020, located within the northern extensions of the Nanadie deposit, confirmed that copper-gold mineralisation is preferentially distributed along the eastern side of the host gabbro in this location — consistent with the broader deposit model. Significant intercepts include 10.2m @ 0.41% Cu, 0.19g/t Au from 288m and 23m @ 0.41% Cu, 0.05g/t Au from 359m.
The table below summarises the key intercepts from all three holes reported in this announcement.
| Hole ID | Location | Key Intercept (from depth) | Cu % | Au (g/t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NANRCD033 | Central zone | 48m from 334.8m | 0.59% | 0.16 |
| NANRCD033 | Central zone | 52m from 406m | 0.71% | 0.13 |
| NANRCD033 | Central zone (incl.) | 6m from 408m | 1.79% | 0.37 |
| NANRCD009 | Southern zone | 28.3m from 334.8m | 0.74% | 0.21 |
| NANRCD009 | Southern zone | 43.8m from 514.2m | 0.55% | 0.19 |
| NANRCD020 | Northern extension | 10.2m from 288m | 0.41% | 0.19 |
| NANRCD020 | Northern extension | 23m from 359m | 0.41% | 0.05 |
What downhole EM surveying means for copper discovery
Downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) surveying is a geophysical technique used to detect electrically conductive bodies from within a drillhole. A large transmitter loop is laid out on the surface around the hole and energised with electrical current, generating an electromagnetic field that penetrates the surrounding rock. Conductive materials, such as accumulations of copper sulphide minerals, respond by generating their own measurable signal. A receiver tool lowered inside the drillhole captures these responses, allowing geologists to model the size, depth, and orientation of conductive bodies that may sit beside or below the drilled interval — targets that a drill bit has not yet reached.
In copper sulphide exploration, DHEM is particularly valuable because dense sulphide zones produce strong, distinctive conductance responses. At Nanadie, the company has stated there are no known unmineralised “false-positive” EM conductors in the broader system. Every conductor identified is therefore considered to have geological credibility as a genuine sulphide accumulation target.
The IP survey at Nanadie was an earlier geophysical programme designed to map the lateral extent of sulphide mineralisation across the broader tenement package, providing the structural context that now informs where DHEM targets and follow-up drill holes are being prioritised.
The 140m x 140m plate identified in NANRCD033 sits immediately adjacent to a local cross-fault — a structurally favourable setting where remobilised copper sulphides can concentrate. The recent DHEM programme was managed by Newexco Exploration and used a GEM DigiAtlantis system with 80A current and a 400m x 400m transmission loop, with station spacing of 10m and 5m infill over peaks and cross-overs.
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40 holes pending, three rigs turning — the news flow is just beginning
What the Nanadie MRE looks like today
The existing Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) at Nanadie stands at 40.4 million tonnes at 0.4% Cu and 0.1g/t Au, containing 162,000 tonnes of copper and 130,000 ounces of gold. The deposit sits on a granted Mining Lease approximately 100km northwest of Sandstone, Western Australia, beneath flat terrain with a shallow weathering profile of less than 40m — a mining-friendly configuration in a well-established jurisdiction.
All results reported in this announcement are from positions outside the current MRE boundary. They are adding volume to the system, not simply confirming what is already counted.
What’s coming next
The forward exploration programme is substantial:
- Assays pending from 16 completed diamond holes and more than 20 RC holes, expected to provide steady news flow over the coming months
- Three drill rigs currently operating on site, with the multi-rig RC and diamond programme expected to continue through the rest of 2026
- The DHEM-identified conductor in NANRCD033 is scheduled for immediate testing with an 850m EIS co-funded follow-up hole
- Additional RC drill sites are being prepared in the southern zone to test the widened mineralised corridor identified in NANRCD009
- The nearby Stark Prospect and northern strike extensions represent greenfield discovery potential beneath shallow transported cover
Nick Castleden, CEO and Managing Director
“NANRCD033 is a particularly important hole. Not only has it returned two broad mineralised zones, including 52m at 0.71% copper and 0.13g/t gold, confirming our interpretations and visual logging, but subsequent DHEM has identified a large, highly conductive DHEM plate below the hole in a favourable structural position.”
Financial position
Solstice currently holds $45 million cash and no debt, providing a well-funded platform to sustain multi-rig drilling, IP and downhole EM geophysics, and continued exploration at Stark and along the northern strike extensions.
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