Shares in Alien Metals (AIM: UFO) rose 16% to 0.12p after the company reported progress at two separate joint venture projects in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with drilling under way at its Elizabeth Hill silver project and material upside potential identified at the Munni Munni platinum group metals project.
At Elizabeth Hill, joint venture partner West Coast Silver (ASX: WCE) has launched a 1,500-metre diamond drilling programme beneath the historic high-grade silver mine near Karratha.
Alien holds a 30% interest in Elizabeth Hill through a joint venture with West Coast Silver, which is operating the programme.
The six-hole programme is the first systematic test of silver mineralisation at depth along the Munni Munni Fault, the primary structural control on high-grade silver at the site.
Drillers are testing a “Pearls on a String” concept, the hypothesis that high-grade silver mineralisation repeats at regular intervals along the fault, which, if confirmed, could materially expand the scale of the system beyond the historical mine.
Elizabeth Hill has a proven production history, having yielded 1.2 million ounces of silver from just 16,830 tonnes of ore at a head grade of 2,194 grams per tonne before operations ceased in 2000 when silver prices fell to $5 per ounce.
All holes are designed to intersect the fault within approximately 200 metres of surface, with drilling expected to take four to six weeks and assay results due progressively through the second quarter of 2026.
Separately, joint venture partner GreenTech Metals (ASX: GRE) has identified material upside potential at the Munni Munni platinum group elements, copper and nickel project, which is not captured in the historic mineral resource estimate of 24 million tonnes grading 2.9 grams per tonne platinum group elements for 2.2 million ounces.
Alien retains a 30% interest in Munni Munni, free carried to the completion of a bankable feasibility study, following the sale of a 70% stake to GreenTech.
GreenTech’s review of historical data has identified high-grade platinum group element zones grading above 4 grams per tonne, previously under-recognised copper and nickel mineralisation, and eastern zones with a shallow plunge from surface that suggest potential for lower-cost open-cut mining.
GreenTech’s maiden drilling and resampling programme concluded in March 2026, with results expected in mid-April, which could support an expanded re-estimation of the resource under the JORC (2012) reporting standard.