An area located on central western Eyre Peninsula between Minnipa and Port Kenny was taken up to explore the Precambrian basement rocks, which are poorly exposed there, for possible economic buried iron oxide - associated copper-gold (IOCG) deposits. A review made of the area's prospectivity had noted, from previous explorers' inspections made at the historic Kottata gold mine workings, the recorded presence of altered and brecciated hematite+chlorite - bearing Proterozoic granite which appeared to lack significant gold or copper mineralisation. Resampling of the ferruginous wall rock was done by Minotaur (7 samples collected and assayed), but the outcome was the same, although some samples are anomalous in rare earth elements. Nevertheless, Minotaur regarded the presence regionally of Mesoproterozoic primitive gabbronorite intrusive rocks, bimodal mafic/felsic Gawler Range Volcanics units, plus this hydrothermally altered Hiltaba Suite granite at the mine, as likely to be promising for having formed IOCG mineralisation. Because existing gravity survey coverage of the area had been made at reconnaissance station spacings only, Minotaur decided to acquire a new gravity survey over most of the tenement, despite the on-ground access in some places being seriously handicapped by thick vegetation and lack of tracks. During March-April 2004, 469 gravity stations were able to be read at ~1 km intervals along E–W lines spaced ~2 km apart. Total coverage of the tenement, and a regular station grid spacing, were not achieved. Interpretation of the resulting data identified circular regional residual gravity anomalies of low amplitude spread over much of the tenement, consistent with the presence of several inferred granitic plutons of the Mesoproterozoic Hiltaba Suite that are at least 12 km in diameter. Another observation of importance which was made was that Mesoproterozoic gabbroic intrusions are spatially associated with prominent NNW-trending faults. A NNW-trending magnetic lineament seen west of Moonlight Flat, consisting of both high and low amplitude anomalies, is ~20 km long and ~5 km wide. Coinciding positive residual gravity anomalies are ~1 km across and have amplitudes of ~2–4 mGal, perhaps reflecting zones of Mesoproterozoic hematite-rich alteration. The following year, the licensee was assisted in its geophysical exploration of EL 3135 by PIRSA's PACE Initiative Year 1 programme, when the SA Government as part of its Gawler Craton mineral prospectivity promotion activities conducted a gravity survey during April-May 2005 that in part incorporated total coverage for EL 3255 and majority coverage for ELs 3135, 3366 and 3367, as done at a station spacing of ~2 km x 2 km. Anomalies detected within these tenements have amplitudes of up to ~10 mGal. Minotaur's interpretation of the merged regional gravity datasets revealed that the Hiltaba Suite granitic intrusions appear to have two different gravity signatures. A large, elongate batholith ~100 km long located between Streaky Bay and Poochera consists of material which is relatively denser than that comprising some smaller plutons (10–15 km across) lying within it which are associated with discrete very low amplitude gravity anomalies. Hiltaba Suite granite exposures in the region predominantly coincide with these smaller plutons. Three gravity targets were selected for drill testing of their IOCG potential. During the third year of the subject licence, Minotaur successfully applied to PIRSA for PACE Initiative Year 3 collaborative drill project funding (awarded under PACE Project DPY3-57) to allow it to drill test IOCG and sedimentary uranium targets [for a full description of the results of this work, see the PACE project final report which is held separately in Env 11285]. However, the three targets that had been selected within EL 3135 all lie within the Kulliparu Conservation Park, and their drilling was postponed because gaining drill rig access to them would have been impossible without clearing tracks. In February-March 2006, a microgravity survey comprising ten traverses over interpreted buried Tertiary palaeochannels of the Venus Bay palaeodrainage system was acquired on ELs 3135, 3255, 3326 and 3367. Locations and orientations of the traverses were chosen primarily through the interpretation of NOAA earth satellite night-time emission spectra thermal images, coupled with information extracted from past drilling data. Gravity readings were taken from 547 stations sited at ~100 m intervals along the traverses. Minotaur's interpretation of this detailed gravity data led to an improved definition of the sections of palaeochannel geometry (positions of channel margins and channel thalweg) profiled by Traverses 4, 5 and 9. Aircore drilling of the selected, previously untested palaeochannels commenced in mid-March 2006 as part of the PACE-subsidised DPY3-57 drilling project. The gamma ray logs which were run in completed holes showed generally low gamma values, typically 0-30 cps within cover sequences and more elevated values, typically 40–100 cps, within basement. But Traverse 5 over the newly named Kottata Palaeochannel returned anomalous gamma ray log values (200 - >600 cps) in holes spread over a 500 m interval across the channel, plus anomalous U3O8 equivalent assays up to 271 ppm. Ongoing exploration by Toro Energy was therefore directed towards further investigating the Kottata Palaeochannel. That company concluded that the microgravity results had given only limited success in locating the margins of the palaeochannel, as not all seven Stage 1 drillholes had intersected palaeochannel sediments. Therefore during July 2006, another six holes were drilled to the east of the shows initially made on Traverse 5 (Kottata Stage 2 drilling). Three adjacent holes here recorded anomalous uranium assays to 230 ppm U within a mineralised envelope of carbonaceous sands and clays up to 7 m thick below 43 m depth. During the 2006-2007 reporting year, Toro continued its drilling by undertaking Stage 3 in November 2006, of 40 open vertical aircore exploratory holes with a total penetration of 3758 m [note - the Stage 3 drilling adopted a new drillhole numbering system to identify the drilling method, year drilled and hole ID sequential numbering system, for ease of company internal reporting], and assayed drill cuttings samples taken at 1-metre depth intervals for uranium, thorium and zirconium. The highest values returned for these elements were 193 ppm U, 50 ppm Th and 2600 ppm Zr. A maximum gamma ray log response of 350 cps was recorded in hole AC07KA019, above a general background of 100 cps. This hole was located along traverse SBU05 within 400 m of the anomalous uranium area found in previous Toro drilling (hole SBU05008), and the uranium bearing zones were lithologically correlated as occurring at the contacts of oxidised and reduced carbonaceous clays and silts. Other lesser radioactivity spikes were recorded over widths of up to 5 m in the 30 m - 40 m depth range, defining an additional 400 m extent to the mineralised zone which was now thought to occupy ~3 km in an east-west orientation. Aster satellite night time infrared spectral data covering the entire subject licence area were acquired and interpreted, but due to the extent of then current ground disturbances caused by agricultural land use, Toro found that the data images it examined were of little use in identifying palaeochannels. A palynological assessment was made of drill cuttings sediment samples from three selected drillholes, which proved to be unsuitable for biostratigraphic dating but which indicated a fresh water swamp depositional environment. Based on the limited palynomorphs seen, it was inferred that the uraniferous zone may lie within strata of late Miocene to early Pliocene age. During the 2007-2009 project reporting period, because the perceived potential for finding Prominent Hill - style IOCG mineralisation, Fe-depleted Au mineralisation and palaeochannel-hosted uranium mineralisation within the project ground was now regarded as unlikely, three of the subject tenements were fully surrendered by the joint venture partners, leaving only EL 3366 Tootla active after September 2008. On this licence area the following work, now focussed on kaolin production economics, was done by new licence holder GSK: • drilling of eight 810 mm diameter Calweld bulk sampling vertical holes at the Carey’s Well kaolin prospect in July 2008 (for ~180 m total penetration), thereby producing an ~55 t bulk sample of kaolinised granite; • performing bench-scale treatment of subsamples of the kaolinised granite bulk sample, to produce minus-38 micron grainsize fraction crude kaolin samples; • submitting 16 splits of the crude kaolin samples to the Ian Wark Research Institute (at Uni SA) for fine particle size distribution determinations and incident light reflectance measurements; • submitting remains of the same splits of the crude kaolin samples to Adelaide Microscopy Centre for scanning electron microscope examination to determine the precise clay mineralogy and specific mineral habit; • undertaking updated resource modelling for the kaolin deposits at Carey’s Well and Tomney; • designing and constructing a skid-mounted kaolin treatment pilot plant; • investigating suitable sites for installing a proposed seawater desalination plant to allow for operating a possible future kaolin wet treatment plant at Carey’s Well; • assessing the current level of interest by potential investors for funding reprised development of the previously abandoned Poochera kaolin project (for that history see Env 6695); and • continuing with research into kaolin products marketing.