Western Australia mining firms advance scandium exploration

Mining companies in Western Australia are advancing exploration for scandium, a critical mineral used in aerospace, defense, and telecommunications.

Hawk Resources has launched an exploration program at the Olympus project in the West Musgrave region. Following government and Traditional Owner approvals, the company plans to collect approximately 1,350 soil samples to investigate scandium anomalies. Historical data identified a 7km by 4km soil anomaly with some zones exceeding 1,000ppm scandium. If results are positive, Hawk Resources intends to begin drilling in late 2026.

Separately, Mount Ridley Mines has reported high-grade scandium intercepts at its Grass Patch project near Esperance. Re-assaying historical drill pulps revealed mineralization extending up to 8km outside the boundaries of its existing resource. The company reported intercepts including 22 meters at 119.41ppm scandium oxide. Mount Ridley Mines believes it holds the largest JORC-compliant scandium resource globally and expects these results to expand that footprint.