Asian Battery Metals (ASX:AZ9) validates copper recoveries at Oval discovery

Asian Battery Metals (ASX:AZ9) has strengthened the development credentials of its Oval copper, nickel and platinum group elements discovery in Mongolia, with metallurgical test work showing excellent payable copper recoveries and the potential for a clean, marketable concentrate.

The interim results come from the company’s flagship Yambat Project in southwestern Mongolia, a district-scale play that has already delivered multiple high-grade sulphide intercepts across several prospects and continues to build momentum as drilling and exploration expand.

Highlights

• Copper recoveries of 89 to 95 percent achieved in variability tests

• A simple two-product flotation flowsheet validated

• Ongoing optimisation of nickel and by-product recoveries

• Confirmation of Oval’s potential as a significant copper, nickel and PGE discovery in Asia

The test work, conducted at ALS Metallurgy in Perth, produced separate copper and nickel concentrates through differential flotation and delivered consistently high copper recoveries even from lower grade feed material.

The copper concentrate demonstrated strong marketability, reflecting favourable liberation of chalcopyrite, the primary copper mineral, and the results reinforce the potential for Oval to be developed using a conventional and technically low-risk processing pathway.

From a strategic perspective, this confirmation not only provides reassurance that the project’s metallurgy aligns with industry standards but also positions Oval as a discovery that can progress along a clear development path with increasing confidence.

While copper dominates the early focus, the company is already seeing improvements in nickel concentrate quality and expects further refinements as mineralogical studies are completed, highlighting the broader value potential of the polymetallic system.

Gan-Ochir Zunduisuren, Managing Director, said:

“These early results are highly encouraging, confirming that copper from Oval can be recovered at very high levels using a simple flotation process. This gives us confidence that Oval can generate a clean, marketable copper concentrate. Nickel and by-product recovery optimisation is already showing improvements, and we look forward to further refinements as the test work progresses.”

Alongside metallurgical work, Asian Battery Metals is continuing step-out and scout drilling at Oval, complemented by geophysical surveys and the integration of new ground positions at Bayan Sair and Maikhan Uul, which are positioning the company to build a district-scale discovery model across one of Asia’s most prospective copper and nickel belts.

Phase 3 drilling has already intersected broad zones of disseminated and massive sulphides, with pending assay results due in the coming weeks that are expected to further define the scale of the Oval system.

The company’s broader Mongolian portfolio includes copper-gold, graphite and lithium projects, reinforcing a diversified exposure to critical minerals demanded by the global energy transition.

Oval remains the flagship, and the metallurgical confirmation announced this week marks a key milestone in reducing technical risk and unlocking the project’s development potential.

The immediate focus will be on completing mineralogical studies and further optimising nickel and by-product recoveries, while results from the ongoing drilling and downhole electromagnetic surveys will guide target refinement and resource expansion.

With copper recoveries now firmly validated, the next quarter is expected to provide clarity on scalability, regional consolidation opportunities and the advancing of discussions around potential development pathways.

For investors, Oval is emerging as a project that combines strong grades with confirmed processability, a combination that is rare in early stage discoveries and critical in the long march from exploration success to commercial production.

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