Nickel Discovery 5th Since 1966

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31658, 19 April 1968, Page 17

Nickel Discovery 5th Since 1966

(New Zeeland Preu Aseeciattom SYDNEY, April 18. The fifth nickel discovery since 1966, and the second within the last week, has been made in the Kalgoorlie area of Western Australia.

The participants include the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, Ltd and International Nickel Company, and the Dawm Syndicate. The nickel has been found in an 84 square mile temporary reserve held by the Dawm Syndicate. B.H.P. which made the announcement yesterday afternoon, said International Nickel had reported that low copper-nickel mineralisation had been encountered near Widgiemooltha, about 100 miles south of Kalgoorlie. B.H.P. and Inco have an equal royalty in the area. Other Find The other most recent find was last week when Metals Exploration reported finding nickel assaying at 16.55 per cent at Nepean, north-west of Widgiemooltha. B.HP.’s report, which was very conservative, came after rumours at the week-end of a nickel find by 8.H.P., and the companies moved up strongly in Sydney on Tuesday and yesterday in Melbourne in advance of the announcement. However, the report cautioned that until considerably more drilling and other investigations had been done there was no adequate basis for assessing the commercial significance of the prospect.

The B.H.P. - Inco - Dawm strike is the fifth in the Kalgoorlie - Kambalda - Widgiemooltha area since Western Mining Corporation first discovered nickel in 1966. The Western Mining discovery is still the only one proved economic to date but Great Boulder, AnacondaC.R.A., Metals ExplorationFreeport and now 8.H.P.-Inco-Dawm have all located nickel. Supremely Confident One of the members of the Dawm syndicate, Mr W. Waterhouse, said that although the B.H.P. statement had been conservative, he believed he could be supremely confident about the area. The Dawm group’s finance manager (Mr G. Thornley) was of the opinion B.H.P. had been “more guarded than necessary about the nickel prospects.”