Dig Deep Uncovering an Emerging Giant: The World’s Largest Titanium System at Pitfield
In today's episode, we chat to Shaun Bunn, Managing Director at Empire Metals, an AIM and OTC-traded exploration & resource development company who are developing Pitfield, an emerging giant titanium project in Western Australia.
We talk about titanium, a critical mineral the West desperately needs more of and dive into the scale and purity of the Pitfield discovery in Western Australia and the upcoming drill programme. Why its location and government backing matter, and what makes this deposit fundamentally different from most titanium projects worldwide. Most importantly, we discuss how that difference could give Empire a serious strategic advantage as secure supply becomes a global priority.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The Pitfield project is described as one of the world's largest titanium systems, with a 2.2 billion-tonne mineral resource that covers less than one-fifth of the identified anomaly.
- Titanium is a critical mineral for the West, particularly for NATO defence and aerospace; currently, supply is heavily concentrated in China (60%) and Russia.
- Unlike 90% of the world's supply which comes from ilmenite, Pitfield consists of anatase and rutile in sandstone, which lacks common impurities like chrome or uranium.
- Because the minerals are already oxidised, they can be processed at lower temperatures (just over 100°C) without the intensive acid and energy requirements of traditional smelting.
BEST MOMENTS
"We’ve found what is clearly the world’s largest titanium system on the planet... it probably represents at least a third of the world’s total resource in one spot."
"Titanium is as strong as steel and half the weight... but the concentration of supply sits in, firstly China—something like 60% of all the metal—and Russia."
"Metals is one of the key cornerstones of the mining industry... you need innovation, you need courage amongst all things to tackle some of these projects."
"It's like replicating the chemistry that’s already happened over time, only trying to do it in 24 hours and not 600 million years."
GUEST RESOURCES
Website: https://www.empiremetals.com/
Contact: https://www.empiremetals.com/contact/
X: https://x.com/Empiremetalsltd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/empiremetals/
VALUABLE RESOURCES
Mail: rob@mining-international.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/
X: https://twitter.com/MiningRobTyson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DigDeepTheMiningPodcast
Web: http://www.mining-international.org
CONTACT METHOD
rob@mining-international.org
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/
Podcast Description
Rob Tyson is an established recruiter in the mining and quarrying sector and decided to produce the “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast to provide valuable and informative content around the mining industry. He has a passion and desire to promote the industry and the podcast aims to offer the mining community an insight into people’s experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.
This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/