Constellation Resources: New He and Natural H2 Player in Australia
- Jul 19, 2024
- 4 min read
In its latest quarterly update, Constellation Resources Limited, a metals and mining exploration company with properties in Western Australia, said that it is also looking into helium and natural hydrogen possibilities on its land. Constellation is currently the preferred applicant for six Special Prospecting Authorities with an Acreage Option applications covering 13.8mm acres at the Orpheus Project in Western Australia. These first mover applications capture two basin scale opportunities that are considered highly prospective for natural hydrogen and helium. Not much is known about the Orpheus project in terms of helium or natural hydrogen yet but the company’s future exploration work programmes including the testing of prospective targets with air-core drilling, subject to the finalising of terms for agreements for exploration.
Press Release:
Constellation Resources Limited (“Constellation” or “Company”) presents its Quarterly Report for the period ended 30 June 2024. The Company’s focus is on its projects in Western Australia and evaluating new opportunities in the resources sector.
EXPLORATION FOR NATURALLY OCCURRING HYDROGEN LEGISLATED IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
During the quarter, the Western Australian parliament passed the Petroleum Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, which establishes the framework for both the exploration for, and subsequent inclusion into existing gas pipelines, of naturally occurring hydrogen in Western Australia.
Constellation was previously advised that it had been conditionally accepted as the preferred applicant for six Special Prospecting Authorities with an Acreage Option (“SPA-AO”) applications over the Edmund-Collier and Yerrida Basin areas (Figure 1), a cumulative area of 56,192km2. Constellation considers that it has selected two of the most prospective large-scale basin opportunities for hydrogen, helium and associated gases that will give it a first mover advantage in the search for natural hydrogen in Western Australia. The proximity of both the Edmund Collier and Yerrida Basin projects to the Dampier to Perth and Goldfields gas pipelines offers a potential solution to market should a discovery occur.
Global hydrogen demand is expected to grow fivefold by 2050. Current hydrogen consumption is mainly sourced from grey hydrogen (produced by natural gas) and the search for and uses of a zero-carbon source of hydrogen is gathering momentum worldwide. Natural hydrogen is a colourless, odourless, tasteless and non-toxic energy source, with only a water vapour by-product, making it a zero-carbon fuel, with no water requirements needed for production.
Natural hydrogen is sourced underground and offers the potential for significantly lower cost of production and carbon emissions compared to other hydrogen production (including subsidies). The world’s only known natural hydrogen producing field is Bourakebougou in Mali, Africa which has been generating carbon free electricity utilising natural hydrogen since 2012. The Company considers both its Edmund Collier and Yerrida Basin Projects to have the potential to be a larger scale analogue of Bourakebougou. The Yerrida Basin applications prospectivity is further supported by reported gas outbursts from underground mining operations that bookend the project area.
During the quarter, the Company commenced engagement meetings with relevant stakeholders (native title groups, pastoral stations, other tenement holders etc) regarding its proposed activities on the SPA-AOs.
Engagement with relevant stakeholders is one of the preliminary steps in a multi stage program to seek grant of the SPA-AOs and the search for hydrogen, helium and associated gases. Upon grant of and receiving approval to commence on-ground work programs, the initial planned activity includes a large scale regional soil gas sampling program utilising hand held gas detectors that are able to detect a range of gases as a proxy for helium, as this gas is only able to be measured by laboratory analysis.
Sample site locations are located along the side of gazetted roads and tracks to minimise disturbance and simplify access issues. For further information on the Company’s SPA-AOs applications over the Edmund-Collier and Yerrida Basin areas, please refer to its ASX announcements dated 6 March 2024 and 27 May 2024.
ORPHEUS PROJECT – TRANSLINE TENEMENTS
The Company previously carried out follow up programs to progress the positive results returned from ultrafine soil sampling programs completed within the Transline (“Transline”) tenement portfolio of the wider Orpheus Project in the Fraser Range of Western Australia (Figure 4 and 5). The Transline tenements include E28/2738, E28/2957 (100% Constellation) and E28/2403 (70% Constellation, 30% Enterprise Metals Limited (ASX: ENT)).
The results of the ultrafine program identified promising areas of elevated coincident nickel, copper and gold soil anomalism, along with other pathfinder elements, cobalt, silver, tellurium, selenium and chromite in the Eucla Basin cover sequence (Figure 4). The Eucla Basin thickness is interpreted to be 60-100m over the Proterozoic Basement units, based on a previous passive seismic survey undertaken by the Company. The Company had previously interpreted ten priority Geophysical Targets (of which five were drill tested) at Transline from completed gravity and aeromagnetic surveys that could represent Proterozoic mafic intrusions that are concealed beneath the Eucla Basin cover sequence.
Mafic intrusions in the Fraser Range are the key host unit for nickel sulphides deposits as displayed at the IGO Nova nickel mine. The nickel and copper anomalous soil results are located near Geophysical Targets 8, 9 and 10, however, importantly, no drilling has been undertaken where the soil anomalies have been identified. Future exploration work programs at the Orpheus Project in the Fraser Range include the testing of prospective targets with air-core drilling, expected to take place in due course, subject to the finalising of terms for heritage agreements for access.