Bryah (ASX:BYH) unfurl a manganese mountain
Bryah Resources has unveiled an expanded 3.07 million tonnes at 20.2 per cent manganese JORC resource and hit critical mass for a production study over its Bryah Basin joint venture in Western Australia.
The company has now successfully raised the indicated resource by 91 per cent and the inferred by 32 per cent for a US-listed critical mineral, estimated from five combined prospects.
Bryah Chief Executive Ashley Jones said its joint venture with OM Manganese had allowed it to complete substantial extensional and infill drilling and deliver a 67 per cent overall upgrade.
“Importantly, we have now achieved a ‘critical mass’ (3 Mt) that allows the JV to progress mining studies and planning to the production stage. The Horseshoe deposits are located within an active mining lease, with recent mining license applications now covering the remainder of deposits included in this Mineral Resource,” Mr Jones said.
Mr Jones added that historical production at the Horseshoe pits had provided further confidence in achieving a successful mining operation.
“The 15% manganese cut-off grade used in this MRE is superior to many of our peers with potentially greater yields to make a saleable manganese product. We look forward to drill-testing more gradient array induced polarisation and geologically mapped exploration targets and will conduct further resource extension drilling throughout the remainder of 2023,” he said.
“We believe we have just started to unlock the true manganese production potential of the Bryah Basin and look forward to some fruitful years ahead.”
Forward plan
The Mining License applications are lodged and expected to be added to the granted mining lease over Horseshoe Manganese, and environmental approvals are moving forward as Bryah continue to drill and work on metallurgy to extend its resource and define beneficiation yields.
Outside of iron, manganese is the most crucial ingredient in steelmaking, and one of the battery metals dominated by Chinese production as the geopolitical battles for critical minerals continue to heat up.
Prospect location and geology map showing the Horseshoe Formation
BRYAH RES FPO [BYH]