LSE-listed Altona, the Africa focused critical minerals exploration and development company, has announced the receipt of rare earths assay results from its 2025 drilling campaign at Monte Muambe.
Highlights
- All rare earths assay results from the 2025 drilling programme are now in hand, and geological modelling of heavy rare earths (HREE) mineralization associated to fluorspar has started.
- Wide significant intercepts have been observed, with up to 30m at 2,677ppm HREO(1), and HREO/TREO(2) ratios ranging from 21% to 77%, confirming HREE enrichment is widespread across the Fluorite Zone.
- Up to 567ppm dysprosium oxide in individual drilling intercepts.
- Xenotime, a HREE mineral, identified for the first time at Monte Muambe, provides a potential pathway to producing a marketable HREE concentrate as a by-product of fluorspar processing.
The company received results are from samples from diamond drilling and reverse circulation drilling holes at the Fluorite Zone, Southern Extension, Kudu and Python. All drilling samples were reassayed for rare earths following the identification of HREE enrichment in association to fluorspar announced on 14 April 2026.
Individual dysprosium grades reach up to 567ppm Dy2O3, and the significant intercepts weighted average is172 ppm Dy2O3, which is with the usual range for HREE projects. Dysprosium is a highly sought-after HREE used in a wide range of high technology and defence applications, and the main value driver for this mineralisation.
Mineralogy results from a representative fluorspar ore sample currently undergoing metallurgical testing indicate the presence of xenotime, a HREE mineral reported for the first time at Monte Muambe and absent from the main rare earths resource (which is primarily a neodymium and praseodymium resource). Critically, this suggests that a HREE concentrate could potentially be recovered during fluorspar processing at
materially lower incremental cost than a standalone HREE operation, which could significantly enhance the overall fluorspar project economics.
Next steps
Subject to the outcome of ongoing geological modelling, the Company expects to determine in the coming weeks whether a dedicated HREE mineral resource estimate is warranted.
Cedric Simonet, CEO, commented: "These results are highly significant. Widespread HREE enrichment in association with fluorspar, combined with the first identification of xenotime at Monte Muambe, opens a compelling pathway to HREE production as a by-product of our fluorspar operation. If confirmed by ongoing metallurgical work and geological modelling, this would meaningfully enhance the project's value proposition
and add a fourth strategic commodity to Monte Muambe's already exceptional multi-commodity profile.”
