Pitfield

A globally significant discovery in a Tier 1 jurisdiction

Near the northern wheatbelt town of Three Springs, Pitfield lies 313km north of Perth and 156km south of Geraldton, Australia.

Key facts

5.1% TiO₂
2.2Bt Mineral Resource Estimate
113Mt Contained TiO₂

Overview

Pitfield is Empire Metals’ flagship titanium project and the foundation of the company’s long‑term growth strategy. Located in Western Australia, Pitfield hosts a globally significant, district‑scale titanium mineral system, with mineralisation starting at or near surface and extending across a vast footprint within a tier‑one mining jurisdiction.

Recent drilling and geological work have confirmed Pitfield as a large, laterally continuous titanium‑rich system, underpinned by a substantial Mineral Resource Estimate and supported by encouraging metallurgical testwork.

Mineral Resource and geology

The MRE reported the resource as totalling 2.2 billion tonnes, grading 5.1% titanium dioxide (TiO₂) for 113 million tonnes of contained TiO₂. The MRE, which covers only the Thomas and Cosgrove deposits (see Figure 1), includes a weathered zone resource of 1.26 billion tonnes at 5.2% TiO₂ and a significant Indicated Resource of 697 million tonnes at 5.3% TiO₂, predominantly from the Thomas deposit. The multi-generational mine life from the Thomas and Cosgrove deposits, which cover only the top 70m of and extends across just 20% of the known mineralised footprint, alongside the rapid development success which has produced a TiO₂ product grading 99.25%, demonstrates Empire’s ability to supply high-value sectors such as aerospace and defence for decades to come.

Key geological highlights:

Extensive titanium mineralisation mapped across a footprint of approximately 40km by 8km, with drilling confirming thick, bedded TiO₂‑rich zones.
Mineralisation intersected to depths of at least ~350m, with strong grade continuity along strike and down dip, supporting the potential for a large‑scale, long‑life operation.
The current resource represents only 20% of the known mineralised system, leaving significant upside for further resource expansion through step-out and infill drilling

Metallurgy and processing concept

Empire’s vision is to produce a high-value pigment quality or titanium metal product at Pitfield, to realise the full value potential of this exceptional deposit.

Metallurgical studies to develop a process flowsheet are underway, with an initial step through from ore to a final product using conventional processing steps producing the high-grade 99.25% TiO₂ product.

The larger test work program is assessing a range of potential unit processes to develop an optimised process flowsheet to treat the unique Pitfield mineralisation.

Opportunities have been identified for lower cost and less intense processing steps, compared to conventional ilmenite titanium ore processing.

Figure 1: Grey-scale magnetics map overlain by gravity data with the location of drillhole collars and Exploration Target.

Infrastructure and location

Pitfield is located within the Mid-West region of Western Australia, near the northern wheatbelt town of Three Springs, Pitfield lies 313km north of Perth and 156km south of Geraldton, the Mid West region’s capital city and port.

Western Australia is a top tier mining jurisdiction and is renowned for having mining-friendly policies, stable government, transparency, and advanced technology expertise.

The immediate project area has existing road and rail connections to the port of Geraldton (a major west coast seaport providing service and logistics to regional mining projects as well as other industries), HV power substations, and natural gas pipelines, and is nearby to a proposed green energy hydrogen fuel hub which is under planning and development.