Great Western progresses drilling activities at Steenkampskraal mine

Great Western Minerals Group (CVE:GWG) said Tuesday it completed 26 coreholes, totaling 2,307 metres on its Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa.
The 26 coreholes are comprised of 19 holes dedicated to metallurgical mini-bulk sampling, with the remaining seven holes intended for geological resource delineation, the company said.
Great Western said the 19 holes intersected mineralization ranging from a few centimetres in length to 3.55 metres.
Additionally, a representative selection of the seven resource definition coreholes have been identified and sampled for ongoing mineralogical and textural studies.
"Our drilling and sampling program will continue to mid-December 2011," said president and CEO, Jim Engdahl.
"This moves us toward completion of two goals at Steenkampskraal - first, to provide information in support of a fully compliant National Instrument 43-101 resource estimate report and second, to expand the resources at Steenkampskraal through testing the down-dip extension of the main structure as well as investigation of the encasing host rock mineralization."
With regards to the second objective of the drill program, the company said that around 185 kilograms out of a proposed 600 kilograms of underground monazite sample has been collected by underground channel sampling, which will be submitted for studies once completed.
Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rare Earth Extraction Co., Great Western holds a controlling interest in the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa.
The company also owns two rare earth processing plants through its subsidiaries Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan, where it makes rare earth element-based specialty alloys.
In addition to its Steenkampskraal property, Great Western also owns four rare earth exploration projects throughout North America.
Demand for rare earths is booming, and despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.
Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attention.
China currently produces around 97 percent of global rare earths, but in July of last year, the country announced significant reductions to rare earths export quotas, claiming protection of a strategic and dwindling resource. Since 2006, rare earths prices have increased between 1,000 and 10,000 percent.
On the TSX-Venture Exchange, Great Western's stock has gained 42.86 percent over the last year.