Koba Resources (ASX: KOB) Hits 29 Metres at 1.2% Tin at Mt Garnet

Koba Resources has intersected 29 metres at 1.2% tin in its maiden drilling program at the 100%-owned Mt Garnet Tin-Tungsten Project in North Queensland, establishing the historical Gilmore Mine as the priority for follow-up drilling.

The result from hole MGRC011 began at 111 metres and also graded 0.36% copper, 0.017% tungsten trioxide and 22 grams per tonne silver. It included 15 metres at 2.0% tin and 0.58% copper from 117 metres, with a higher-grade section of two metres at 6.3% tin from 126 metres.

The combination of width and grade is the standout from a 24-hole, 2,937-metre reverse circulation program across Gilmore and the nearby Stannex Prospect. However, the reported intervals are downhole lengths and their true widths are not yet known. The first-pass drilling is also insufficient to support a Mineral Resource estimate.

Gilmore returns to the drilling schedule

Koba drilled only three holes for 277 metres around Gilmore, marking the first drilling in more than 45 years. Historical production between 1906 and 1922 totalled 26,169 tonnes at an average grade of 7.6% tin, while intermittent mining continued between 1958 and 1980.

A second hole, MGRC013, returned five metres at 0.58% tin from nine metres, including two metres at 1.2%. It was drilled about 230 metres east of MGRC011, providing an initial indication that mineralisation extends beyond the immediate area of the historical workings.

Koba said the three-hole program demonstrated that broad, high-grade mineralisation remained unmined at Gilmore. The company is planning infill and extensional drilling, with initial follow-up holes targeted for completion before the end of 2026. Further work is also expected to include diamond drilling to investigate structural controls, determine mineralised geometry and true widths, and obtain material for metallurgical testing.

Stannex outlines a broader target

The remaining 21 holes covered the Stannex Prospect, approximately one kilometre northeast of Gilmore. This reconnaissance program tested a two-kilometre-long tin-in-soil anomaly supported by induced-polarisation chargeability anomalies and rock-chip results.

Notable intersections included one metre at 1.9% tin from five metres in MGRC020 and 10 metres at 0.25% tin from 69 metres in MGRC021. The latter contained one-metre intervals grading 0.76% and 0.56% tin.

Drilling at Stannex also encountered other metals, including three metres at 3.4% zinc, 1.5% lead, 65 grams per tonne silver and 31 grams per tonne indium from 184 metres. Koba plans further work to assess how the base-metal mineralisation relates to tin, with follow-up drilling at Stannex planned for early 2027.

Before returning to Gilmore, Koba expects to begin maiden drilling at the Kitchener and Jiminy prospects within its Stannary Hills Tin-Tungsten Project later in October. Earthworks for that program are underway.