Two areas located approximately 45-55 km west of Ooldea were explored for possible buried Olympic Dam - type base metal deposits in poorly known Archaean to Early Proterozoic basement beneath the Eucla and Officer Basin sedimentary sequences. A secondary objective was possible carbonate-hosted stratabound base metals within the Cambrian Officer sediments, while other scope exists for coal and oil shale in overlying Tertiary rocks. After the initial acquisition of ground magnetic and gravity surveys to detail six prospective geophysical anomalies, 3 rotary percussion holes were drilled, each to 500 m total depth. All three holes ended in ?Cambrian carbonate/siliciclastic rocks. The likely depth to basement there is now considered as being too great for any Olympic Dam type mineralisation to be economic. Slightly elevated base metal values detected in ?Cambrian pyritic carbonates confirm this cover sequence as a potential target for future exploration. Some lignite was also encountered within the Eucla Basin sequence in hole YL3.