Impact Minerals Continues Lake Hope HPA Pilot Work as Silica Hill Discovery Grows

Impact Minerals (ASX: IPT) advanced its 80%-owned Lake Hope High Purity Alumina Project toward a definitive feasibility study during the June quarter after completing key processing optimisation work and starting its pilot plant program at Edith Cowan University.

Joint venture partner Kuniko (ASX: KNI) intersected mineralisation in all six holes of its first drilling program at the Commonwealth–Silica Hill gold–silver project and made a new discovery about 100m beyond the known Silica Hill deposit.

Impact also progressed a scoping study for the Salmon Gums potash and hydrochloric acid project, where drilling has been completed at sufficient density to support a maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) later in 2026.

The company ended June with A$2.08 million cash after spending A$742,000 on exploration and evaluation and A$540,000 on corporate and administration activities.

Lake Hope Pilot Work

Impact’s preferred Stage 1 processing route uses membrane technology to recycle virtually all water used to wash ore and residue, while process refinements increased the purity of the potash by-product from 94% to 98%.

Edith Cowan University has begun optimising the Stage 2 hydrochloric acid leaching process and studying membrane-based acid recovery, which is a key component of the project’s processing economics.

CPC Engineering advanced pilot plant design and equipment procurement ahead of construction, while vendor reviews shortlisted calciner technologies and identified two established acid regeneration options for further technical and economic assessment.

The pre-feasibility study outlined annual production of 10,000 tonnes of high purity alumina over a 33-year mine life, with a post-tax net present value at a 10% discount rate of A$1.165 billion, a 47.5% internal rate of return and pre-production capital of A$259m.

Salmon Gums Study Advancing

The Kumarl prospect has an Exploration Target of 3.8 million tonnes to 4.3 million tonnes of sulphate clay containing 1.4 million tonnes to 1.7 million tonnes of sulphate of potash.

Assays from completed drilling are being interpreted as Impact works toward the maiden MRE and a September-quarter scoping study based on nominal annual production of 50,000 tonnes of sulphate of potash.

Process modelling, equipment selection, and initial vendor work have focused on proven technologies.

The company has scheduled financial modelling to begin in August and expects further metallurgical results during the September quarter.

Silica Hill Discovery Work

Kuniko completed six holes for 1,239m across Commonwealth Main, Commonwealth South, and Silica Hill, extending known mineralisation and identifying a new zone that remains open in every direction.

The discovery hole returned 84m at 0.6 grams per tonne gold and 123g/t silver from 226m, including 0.5m at 27g/t gold and 20,603g/t silver, while drilling at Commonwealth Main and Commonwealth South also produced high-grade gold, silver, and zinc intersections.

The two deposits have existing inferred resources containing 88,800 ounces of gold and 3.3 million ounces of silver, plus zinc and lead, within about 250m of surface and remain open at depth and along strike.

Phase 2 drilling is now testing extensions at all three prospect areas through an initial six-hole, 1,340m program, with assay results expected in September and the MRE upgrade targeted for December.