The explorer on Wednesday said the WA Government had signed off on its stage three conservation management plan that will allow drilling across the full 30km interpreted strike length at Julimar, which lies within State forest land north of Toodyay.
The company said exploration would be within non-vegetated areas using techniques that have no impact on vegetation or the environmental values of the forest.
The program, which is due to start soon and run for at least six months, will target high-grade discoveries at the untested Torres, Jansz and Baudin targets which lie between 10 and 20km from its flagship Gonneville deposit.
“Chalice will maintain the same rigorous environmental controls previously applied to the company’s exploration program in the Julimar State Forest, using small-footprint tracked drill rigs on existing tracks and non-vegetated areas,” it said.
Shares in the Tim Goyder-backed company have been on a downward slide since it released a disappointing scoping study for Gonneville in August.
The company has pitched the project as an important contributor to the energy transition, producing palladium, platinum, nickel, copper and cobalt for use in decarbonisation technologies.
But investors questioned metals price assumptions, recovery rates and the development bill for Gonneville following the release of the long-awaited scoping study.
