The discovery was made near Wombat, in the Southwestern Slopes region of NSW. Credit: Khusen Rustamov from Pixabay.

Legacy Minerals and its joint venture partner Earth AI, a predictive explorer for clean energy metals, have unearthed one of Australia’s largest palladium mineral systems utilising artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

This discovery was made near Wombat, in the Southwestern Slopes region of New South Wales (NSW), within the Lachlan Fold Belt’s Fontenoy Project.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

It is said to be the first discovery of magmatic nickel, copper, and platinum group elements (PGEs) on Australia’s east coast and the first verified greenfield mineral discovery using AI.

Earth AI’s approach has revealed extensive mineralisation over a 2km² area, potentially making it the world’s largest PGEs prospect.

The Fontenoy Project’s potential was first identified by Earth AI in 2022, leading to a joint venture with Legacy Minerals.

Following a discovery hole, Earth AI secured an 80% stake in the project in exchange for committing to A$4.5m ($2.9m) in development work.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

The current known mineralised system, with geochemical and geophysical indicators suggesting growth, is undergoing further drilling.

Three additional holes are planned before year-end, aiming to expand the discovery’s scale.

Earth AI CEO and founder Roman Teslyuk said: “After years of development, we are incredibly excited to see our AI-powered technology accurately predicting the location of mineral deposits and our drilling program validating those predictions.

“The opportunity at Fontenoy is massive and it is a project that has huge significance, both in providing critical metals needed for the energy transition, as well as from a personal perspective, as a Ukrainian, in providing an alternative source to the market that doesn’t fund Russia’s war on Ukraine.”

Earth AI’s Mineral Targeting Platform (MTP) technology, which uses high-accuracy AI to work in unexplored, data poor, and untapped environments.

Moreover, Earth AI’s drilling hardware is designed to streamline site movement and logistics. The technology enables smaller drill holes, comparable to the size of a tennis ball, streamlining logistics and minimising the environmental footprint of exploration activities.

Legacy Minerals CEO and managing director Chris Byrne said: “Legacy Minerals is pleased to see results of the great work completed to date by Earth AI in unpacking the palladium, platinum, gold and nickel potential of the Fontenoy project.

“The latest results strengthen the Earth AI team’s confidence in the continuity, scale, and overall potential of this mineralised system.”