Hyperion Gold Deposit
Overview
The Hyperion Gold Deposit is part of the Tanami North project which is one of the key developmental projects for Prodigy Gold.
The Hyperion Deposit is located on EL9250, 25km to the south of the Tregony Deposit and 20km to the northeast of the multi-million-ounce Groundrush Deposit, which is part of the Central Tanami Project Joint Venture (CTPJV) between Tanami Gold (ASX:TAM) and Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST).
Hyperion hosts a total Mineral Resource (including Indicated and Inferred categories) of 9.66Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 435Koz¹ using a lower cut-off grade of 0.5g/t Au for Oxide and Transitional material and 0.6g/t Au for Fresh material.
This updated estimate represented a 12% increase in tonnes, 5% decrease in grade and 7% increase in ounces when compared to the previously released Hyperion Mineral Resource
Prodigy Gold has applied for a new Mineral Lease over the Hyperion Deposit. MLA34047 covers an area of 19.88km² and encompasses the entirety of the Hyperion Mineral Resource.
Prodigy Gold has been actively looking to develop the Hyperion Deposit with work completed including detailed metallurgical studies, resource development drilling and petrological studies of the lithological units that host mineralisation.
¹ASX: 2 April 2025
Hyperion Exploration History
The area was initially explored by Zapopan, which held the ground from 1989 to 1995. During this period, they drilled 287 Rotary Air Blast (“RAB”) and 14 Reverse Circulation (“RC”) holes and conducted extensive regional surface sampling. In 2001, EL9250 was granted to Otter Gold and was later acquired by Newmont through a corporate takeover. Newmont managed exploration activities on the title until selling the project to Prodigy Gold in 2009. During their tenure, Newmont carried out multiple drilling campaigns, as summarised in the table below, and conducted additional surface geochemistry and geophysical surveys.
Since 2010, Prodigy Gold has actively explored the project, focusing on RC and diamond drilling (“DD”) around key targets, including the Hyperion deposit and the Brokenwood prospect to the south. Prodigy Gold has conducted the majority of sRC, RC, RCD and DD drilling used in the resource estimation, completing over 25,000 metres of the total of 35,600 metres since 2010 — accounting for approximately 70% of the total drilling metres used in the latest estimation process.
Hyperion Mineral Resources
The Hyperion Mineral Resource update incorporates results from the 2023 and 2024 Hyperion drilling campaigns. The estimation was completed considering only open pit mining methods.
The Hyperion Mineral Resource was reported constrained to a depth from surface of 180m and reported above a 0.5g/t Au for Oxide and Transitional material and 0.6g/t Au cut-off grade for Fresh material. Whilst a previous model was constrained using an optimised pit shell, which was up to 200m in depth, the current Mineral Resource has been determined to a total depth of 180m below surface. The mineralisation continues past this level and is being used to assist the planning of future deeper drilling.
The Hyperion Mineral Resource update totals 9.66Mt at 1.4g/t Au for a total of 435koz of gold¹ and has been reported in the Indicated and Inferred categories. Recent studies on the metallurgical recoveries for the deposit have also been reviewed, highlighting that this deposit would be suitable for processing through a conventional carbon-in-leach (“CIL”) processing facility with estimated recoveries of over 95% in oxide and transitional material and between 72% and 95% for fresh material .
¹ASX: 2 April 2025
Geology and Mineralisation
The basement rocks of the region are primarily Mesoproterozoic Tanami Group basalts and metasedimentary rocks belonging to the Granites-Tanami Orogen, which have undergone at least three deformation phases: the Tanami Orogeny and Stafford Event, both associated with gold mineralisation, and the Paleozoic Alice Springs Orogeny.
Locally, in the Hyperion area, the stratigraphy can be broadly divided into the highly magnetic and prospective north-trending Mount Charles Formation, which has been thrust against or over the younger Killi Killi Formation of the Tanami Group.
The north-trending Suplejack Fault, running the length of the belt, marks this contact between these two formations.
The Mount Charles sequence at Hyperion comprises massive basalt to pillow basalt, interflow sediments, and intermediate to doleritic sills or dykes, all of which are comparable to the mine stratigraphy observed in the CTPJV area, hosting deposits like Jims, Hurricane-Repulse and Carbine. Locally, granite intrusions are present within the sequence.
Mineralisation is characterised by a visible shear texture, quartz veining, and pyrite. The shear is denoted by an increase of quartz veining and the intrusion of one or two parallel felsic dykes.
Hyperion Mineral Resources
The Hyperion Deposit has significant potential for future growth with results released in 2024 highlighting the underground potential for the deposit. Hole HYRC24004 with results of 10m @ 15.9g/t Au at a depth of 180m below surface shows the mineralisation is not depth constrained.
There are several other prospects on EL9250 that will require additional exploration works to determine the potential to support the Hyperion Deposit in the future. Some of the prospects include;
Brokenwood – Rocks chips taken in 2023 - up to 6.04g/t Au¹ and drill results of 6m @ 8.1g/t Au² in hole HYRC23010
Pandora – 2 holes drilled in 2024, following historical results of 9m @ 6.3g/t Au in hole PARC100003³
Stoney Ridge – Rock chips taken in 2023 up to 15.27g/t Au¹
Mark’s Rise – located on EL32055 with limited exploration work completed to date, regional geophysics shows prospect located near anti-form structure
¹ASX: 13 September 2023 ²ASX:12 October 2023 ³ASX: 27 July 2016