Hillgrove antimony-gold project: core scanning upgrade and value notes for engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell

First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Larvotto Resources has installed an ECORE automated drill core scanner at its Hillgrove antimony-gold project in New South Wales, making it the only mine site in Australia with laser ablation–atomic emission spectroscopy core scanning in near real time. The Elemission Inc. system generates quantitative multi-element and mineral maps immediately after drilling, enabling rapid identification of mineralised zones, alteration halos and textural controls to refine geological logging, sampling and metallurgical testwork. Hillgrove is now near production, with first output targeted for Q2 next year and a stated aim to supply up to 7% of global antimony demand.
Technical Brief
- ECORE’s laser ablation–atomic emission spectroscopy delivers quantitative mineralogy directly on intact drill core surfaces.
- Automated scanning outputs multi-element and mineral maps suitable for immediate 3D geological and domaining workflows.
- Near-real-time mineral maps allow refinement of ore continuity and zonation models while drilling is ongoing.
- Digital geological library creation supports consistent logging standards across future drilling and re-logging of legacy core.
- Integration with metallurgical testwork planning enables targeted variability sampling across mineral assemblages and alteration styles.
- Streamlined sample selection reduces unnecessary assay submissions, potentially lowering analytical costs and turnaround bottlenecks.
- In-house capability reduces dependence on off-site spectral or mineralogical laboratories for early-stage process design.
Our Take
Targeting 7% of global antimony demand from Hillgrove positions Larvotto Resources at a scale comparable with the more strategic antimony names that have begun to appear alongside majors like Agnico Eagle and Perpetua Resources in our recent rankings coverage.
Among the 53 keyword-matched pieces on antimony and gold, Hillgrove is one of the few Australian projects explicitly framed around antimony supply security, which could give Larvotto additional leverage with downstream users as Western buyers look to diversify away from dominant Chinese sources.
Given Hillgrove was only acquired in 2023 yet is already being advanced towards expanded technical capability by the second quarter of next year, Larvotto is moving on an unusually compressed evaluation timeline compared with most antimony-gold projects in our database, signalling a push to capture near-term price and strategic premiums.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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