Tusker Minerals (ASX: TSK) (Tusker) has discovered high-grade rutile at its project in Malawi and commissioned a heavy mineral sands (HMS) laboratory in Cameroon.
In a Q1 update it released on April 30, the firm said initial reconnaissance sampling at its Mzimba project in northern Malawi across 50km returned a peak assay of 1.88% titanium oxide (TiO₂), with 47% of soil samples exceeding 1% TiO₂.
The results, said Tusker, highlight strong near-surface titanium enrichment and the potential for a significant residual rutile system.
With just 7% of the licence area tested, Tusker said it will conduct follow-up sampling, auger drilling, geophysical interpretation, and preliminary metallurgical testwork to evaluate the remaining 710 square kilometre package.
The HMS laboratory, recently commissioned in Yaoundé, Cameroon’s capital, establishes in-country mineral separation and analytical capability for Tusker.
It enables estimation of recovered rutile concentration within the heavy mineral fraction.
All soil and hand-auger drill samples generated across Tusker’s Cameroon portfolio will now be processed through the laboratory.
Tusker’s CEO Cliff Fitzhenry said the Cameroon facility is a “genuine game-changer” for the business.
It, he noted, speeds up the firm’s exploration workflow, reduces costs, and allows it to quantify recovered rutile concentration within the heavy mineral fraction.
“At the same time, our early success at Mzimba in northern Malawi has highlighted the potential for a significant new rutile district, with high-grade near-surface titanium mineralisation confirmed as predominantly rutile,” he added.
“The geological similarities to major rutile systems elsewhere in Malawi provide strong encouragement as we systematically advance this new discovery.”
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