Power Minerals Ltd (ASX:PNN) Continued Delivery of Consistent High-Grade Niobium and REE Results at Santa Anna Project
Highlights:
▪ Latest assays in Power’s ongoing auger drilling program at the Santa Anna Project in Brazil have returned multiple high-grade results over a total sampled interval of 356.75m:
15m at 6,818 ppm TREO surface to End of Hole (EOH); including 2m at 11,686 ppm (or 1.17%) TREO from 3m in drillhole MN-TM032
16.5m at 4,848 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including 4m at 9,175 ppm TREO from 3m, including 1m at 16,008 ppm (or
1.60%) TREO from 6m in drillhole MN-TM-042
15.5m at 6,754 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including 12m at 7,346 ppm TREO from 2m in drillhole MN-TM-033
8.5m at 5,683 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including 3m at 8,326 ppm TREO from 5m in drillhole MN-TM-027
18m at 3,954 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including 2m at 12,375ppm (or 1.24%) TRO from 4m in drillhole MN-TM-049.
11m at 4,124 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including 2m at 3,422 ppm Nb2O5 from 5m in drillhole MN-TM-045
15m at 2,852 ppm Nb2O5 from surface to EOH, including 8m at 3,662 ppm Nb2O5 from 6m in drillhole MN-TM-033
▪ Results are from holes 26 to 51 from the 1,000m auger drilling program targeting known REE-rich phases in the top 15m of the carbonatite complex
▪ Niobium-rich phases will be tested in an upcoming 10,000m drill campaign to extend the Nb and REE mineralised footprint at depth, and east and south-east of initial drilling, in untested areas of the Santa Anna Alkaline Complex
▪ The recently completed drone aerial magnetic–digital elevation model (DEM) survey over the entire complex will be used to prioritise drilling high-grade niobium mineralisation targets
▪ Consistent high-grade results returned to date help confirm the scale of the shallow ‘weathered zone’ and validate and enhance the near-surface resource potential
▪ Power’s drilling aims to deliver the first Mineral Resource Estimate for the Santa Anna Alkaline Complex in Q1 2026
▪ Power holds the entire Santa Anna alkaline carbonatite complex in Brazil’s Goiás State, which was discovered in 2021; project represents an advanced, high-grade critical minerals exploration opportunity.
Overview:
Power Minerals Limited has reported further high-grade results from its ongoing shallow auger drilling program targeting Nb-REE in the targeted top 15 metres of a highly weathered and clay-rich layer at the Santa Anna Project, Brazil (Santa Anna or the Project). This vertical auger drilling is at a nominal spacing of 80 metres.
Highlight total rare earth oxide (TREO) current results include:
- 15.5m at 6,754 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
12m at 7,346 ppm TREO from 2m in MN-TM-033 - 15m at 6,818 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
2m at 11,686 ppm (or 1.17%) TREO from 3m in MN-TM-032 - 15m at 4,449 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including;
10m at 4,787 ppm TREO from 4m in drillhole MN-TM-031 - 8.5m at 5,683 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
3m at 8,326 ppm TREO from 5m in drillhole MN-TM-027 - 18m at 3,954ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
2m at 12,375ppm (or 1.24%) TREO from 4m in MN-TM-049 - 15m at 4,184 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
6m at 6,353 ppm TREO from 1m in drillhole MN-TM-038 - 14.5m at 4,006 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
3m at 7,196 ppm TREO from surface in drillhole MN-TM-039 - 4m at 5,272 ppm TREO from surface in drillhole MN-TM-040
- 4m at 4,883 ppm TREO from surface in drillhole MN-TM-041
- 16.5m at 4,848 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
4m at 9,175 ppm TREO from 3m, and 1m at 16,008 ppm (or 1.60%) TREO from 6m in drillhole MN-TM-042 - 5m at 5,256 ppm TREO from surface in drillhole MN-TM-026
- 11m at 4,124 ppm TREO from surface to EOH in drillhole MN-TM-045
- 12m at 3,501 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
4m at 5,095 ppm TREO from 1m in drillhole MN-TM-046 - 15.75m at 3,728 ppm TREO from surface to EOH, including:
1m at 13,996 ppm (or 1.40%) TREO from 12m in drillhole MN-TM-043
Highlight niobium (Nb2O5) current results include:
- 1m at 5,327 ppm Nb2O5 from 13m in drillhole MN-TM-032
- 15m at 2,852 ppm Nb2O5 from surface to EOH, including:
8m at 3,662 ppm Nb2O5 from 6m in MN-TM-033 - 2.5m at 3,519 ppm Nb2O5 from 14m to EOH in drillhole MN-TM-042
- 2m at 3,422 ppm Nb2O5 from 5m in drillhole MN-TM-045
This phase of the carbonatite alkaline complex is REE-enriched. It is noteworthy that many of the significant intersections are still open at the end of hole (EOH). Power’s current auger drilling program continues to deliver consistent high-grade niobium and REE results.
The reported highlight intercepts are weighted average values calculated over the entire interval length and do not include any internal dilution.
The Nb and REE mineralisation is indicated to commence at the surface as the cover is considered residual and contains minimal transported material. This highlights the significant and substantial potential of the targeted near-surface weathered zone at Santa Anna, confirming and enhancing the Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) potential in this segment of the Project.
Power’s auger drilling program is following up on its maiden 29-hole, 2,272m RC drilling program at the Santa Anna Project1 . It is designed to extend the Project’s mineralised footprint to the east and south-east of initial drilling, targeting shallow niobium and REE in unexplored areas of the Santa Anna Alkaline Complex.
Background to Auger Drilling Program
Power’s second-phase auger drilling program is systematically targeting shallow niobium and REE mineralisation in the top 15 metres of highly weathered above the underlying carbonatite. This program utilises smaller auger drill rigs operated by only four personnel, enabling access to priority target areas that may have significant vegetation cover. The auger program generally reaches a maximum depth of 15 metres, and samples are collected in one-metre continuous intervals.
To date, results have been reported for 51 auger drillholes (MN-TM-001 to MN-TM-051) completed by Power1. The auger program is testing a large area outward from the known mineralised drillholes via an 80-metre grid-based drill plan to systematically map the phases and mineralisation across the large areas of the complex, most of which have not been previously drilled.
The auger drilling results in combination with the new geophysical data will be used to direct the planned deeper drilling. It is also envisaged that the drilling will return regularly spaced sampling data, which will assist in further developing the Project’s mineralisation model, and provide data for the delineation of an Exploration Target and MRE (subject to results).
Power completed its acquisition of the Santa Anna Project earlier this month (ASX Announcement dated 1 December 2025), which provided it with 100% ownership of the entire large Santa Anna Alkaline Complex, spanning ~2.5km from west to east.
10,000m drill program set to commence
Power plans to commence a 10,000m RC drilling campaign this month to follow up its maiden 29-hole, 2,272m RC drilling program at the Santa Anna Project, and subsequent auger drilling. It has been designed to extend the Project’s mineralised footprint to the east and southeast of the maiden drilling, which has intersected multiple wide zones of niobium mineralisation and multiple zones of high-grade niobium mineralisation. It will also seek to provide a clearer understanding of the Project’s resource potential to potentially deliver a MRE.
Drilling to date has revealed an exceptional REE-rich clay layer near-surface, and also confirmed that the REE mineralisation continues into the deeper portions of the complex. Power recently completed a drone-supported aerial magnetic-DEM survey over the Santa Anna Project to provide details on the lateral and depth potential of the mineralised system. Carbonatite phases frequently show higher concentrations of magnetite, which can result in them displaying elevated magnetic anomalies (see ASX announcement dated 10 December 2025).
Power’s third phase of drilling at the Project will target deeper REE and niobium mineralisation in previously untested areas of the Santa Anna Alkaline Complex using the new geophysical data. An initial 2,000 metres of RC drilling for approximately 40 holes is planned to commence this campaign. It will systematically extend the drilling to test the deeper portions of the carbonatite complex, building on the extensive data set existing over the complex. Most early drilling by project vendors, EDEM, targeted phosphate mineralisation, and large areas have no sampling data at depth.
The next stage of research will include detailed mineralogical studies to understand the minerals that host the Nb and REEs. This will feed into future metallurgical studies to optimise plant design and potential recoveries.
Company Notes: “The consistent, high-grade results from our ongoing auger drilling at Santa Anna validate and enhance our exploration model, and also builds confidence in the significant Resource potential of the shallow, weathered zone.
We are ready to commence our next phase of drilling at Santa Anna, which includes a significant reverse circulation campaign of up to 10,000 metres. This initiative is designed to rapidly deepen our knowledge of the project’s geology outside the parameters of our current drilling. The initial phase of 2,000 metres of RC drilling is set to commence shortly, with assay results and additional drilling scheduled to follow systematically over the next few months.”
Power Minerals Managing Director Mena Habib
Full ASX Announcement: https://hotcopper.com.au/threads/ann-further-high-grade-niobium-and-ree-results-at-santa-anna.8980816/