Brazilian giant Vale joins Fraser Range nickel rush – by Peter Ker (Sydney Morning Herald – September 30, 2014)

http://www.smh.com.au/

It’s the hottest exploration province in Australia, and now Brazilian mining giant Vale wants a piece of it. Vale’s Perth-based exploration unit is understood to have joined a long list of explorers in the Fraser Range region of Western Australia, in the hope of making a new major nickel discovery.

The region came to prominence after Sirius Resources hit the jackpot with the Nova nickel and copper discovery two years ago, and has since become one of the most active exploration regions in the nation. Most of the companies drilling in the region are tiny ASX-listed hopefuls, making the $US55 billion Brazilian quite the exception.

Vale is the world’s second biggest producer of nickel, behind only Norilsk Nickel of Russia, which decided to quit operating in Australia about 12 months ago.

Vale’s Australian office declined to comment on the strategy behind the move into the Fraser Range, but it is understood the claim area was acquired within the past month, and is located slightly off the main mineralisation trend, on the eastern edge of the range.

The company’s move into the Fraser Range is ironic, given Sirius’ first big nickel discovery in the region in 2012 was notable for the fact that it revealed a type of nickel mineralisation not previously seen in Australia.

That type of mineralisation was likened to the Voisey’s Bay nickel mine in Canada owned by Vale. Furthermore, it is believed that Canadian nickel miner Inco Limited was exploring in the Fraser Range before the company was acquired by Vale in 2006.

Inco was active in the Fraser Range in the early 2000s because they believed that large, Voisey’s Bay-style deposits were likely to be found in the area.

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