Baramine Project - Manganese

In August 2008, the Company announced the acquisition of a 70% interest in the manganese and iron rights in three Pilbara tenements at Baramine from Pandell Pty Ltd. The tenements are considered highly prospective for manganese.   Preliminary rock chip sampling at Baramine in July 2008 returned manganese assays up to 58.51% Mn.

The Baramine Project consists of three tenement applications located 80km north west  of the Woodie Woodie Manganese mine which has a current mining resource of 15 million tons of Manganese ore grading 41% Mn.  

Reconnaissance rock chip sampling along a 17km trend in July 2008, identified over 10 separate locations with ore grade manganese in outcrop.  Samples taken returned assay values up to 58.1% Mn, with 34% of the samples taken returning over 30% Mn.  The average of the samples using a 30% Mn cutoff had ore grade characteristics with 41%% Mn, 13.8% Fe, 10.2% SiO2, and 0.04% P.

Further reconnaissance was undertaken over the Baramine area in the September 2008 Quarter confirming the significant manganese potential of the region:

1. Over 100 locations showing surface manganese enrichment have been identified within the project boundaries
2. The project area has been geologically mapped at 1:5,000 scale providing a detailed geological framework of the project area and enabling effective base for future sampling of the manganese enrichment.

Geology

The Baramine Project is located 250km east of Port Hedland and contains rocks of the Archaean age Hammersley Basin. Within the Hammersley Basin, manganese mineralization is associated with the occurrence of the Carawine Dolomite and Pinjian Chert. The world class Woodie Woodie Manganese Project, located 80km to the south east (operated by Consolidated Minerals Pty Ltd) is an example of the style of deposit that Shaw River is exploring for within the project area.

Geological mapping by Shaw River has determined the project area covers an identical geological sequence to Woodie Woodie, in the core of an open north-south trending syncline. The Pinjian Chert and Carrawine Dolomite sits, with apparent conformity, on sediments and andesitic volcano-sediments assigned to the Jeerinah Formation. The dolomite and chert form a range of locally rugged hills that protrude about 75 metres above the underlying Jeerinah Formation sediments.

Occurrences of manganese hosted are principally hosted within or along the contact between the Carawine Dolomite and Pinjian Chert, and cross cutting faults and fractures are considered to be an important control in the development of significant accumulations of manganese mineralization.

Manganese mineralization has been traced over a distance of 17km within the prospective units, and there is potential that these units continue for up to 23km to the NW under cover of the Canning Basin sediments.

Plans for 2009

The company is seeking high grade direct shipping manganese ore targets at Baramine.

Shaw River will commence an extensive mapping and sampling program over the outcropping manganese occurrences.  Detailed geological mapping using expert mapping skills will allow the Company’s exploration team to immediately target potential mineralisation for drilling by creating an improved and consistent understanding of the geological environment.

Geophysical techniques such as gravity and Hoist EM surveys, which have proved successful at Woodie Woodie, will be used to develop buried targets and depth extensions of known surface targets. These techniques will be extended to the northwest where Shaw River holds an additional 23 km of strike potential under cover.