McLaren titanium grades surge higher at WA project

McLaren Minerals has tabled the best batch of high-grade heavy mineral (HM) assays to date from its flagship McLaren titanium project in the Eucla basin, Western Australia, with the latest drilling returning a length-weighted average of 5.44 per cent HM over an average thickness of 16.2m, all from surface.

The impressive results come from a set of 74 holes covering 1199m of sampling and represent a solid step-up from the 4.96 per cent HM average unveiled in the previous crop of results. The drilling is part of a major program designed to increase confidence in the project’s existing 529-million-tonne resource.

The standout intercept was a hefty 21-metre section from surface grading 7.61 per cent HM. Other notable results included 18m at an even stronger 8.06 per cent HM from surface and another 18-metre hit from surface going 7.55 per cent HM.

The company says the latest assay results continue to demonstrate a strong and consistent grade profile across the deposit. Without applying any HM cut-off, 66 of the 74 holes, or 89 per cent, averaged at least four per cent HM.

Delving deeper into the numbers, 62 per cent of the holes averaged at least five per cent HM, and 24 holes, representing 32 per cent of the suite, came in at or above an impressive six per cent HM.

The results also confirmed substantial mineralised thickness from surface, with 54 holes, or 73 per cent, returning at least 15m of completely sampled mineralisation. A further 11 holes hit at least 21m of mineralisation from surface.

Higher-grade zones also appear to be a feature within the broader mineralised profile, with nearly a third of the holes hitting grades of at least 10 per cent HM over one metre. The peak one-metre result was a stellar 16.43 per cent HM from a shallow depth of 8m.

McLaren Minerals managing director Simon Finnis said: “This is the strongest set of results yet from the 2026 drilling program. All from surface and across 1,199m of sampling, to return a length-weighted average of 5.44% HM over an average thickness of 16.2m is quite remarkable. The grade profile appears to be strengthening as we move south through the deposit, and what we’re seeing is consistently mineable grade and widths from surface across the entire dataset. Every batch seems to outdo the last.”

The news lands at a time when the broader mineral sands sector in Western Australia continues to be active, with major players such as Sheffield Resources recently restarting operations at its Thunderbird project, highlighting the industry’s ongoing viability.