Future Metals NL (‘Future Metals’ or the ‘Company’, ASX : FME) is working to establish the terms on which the Panton PGM Project could be developed. The deposit’s scale and continuity are established; the central question is economics rather than existence.
Where the Project stands
In July 2026 the Company reported an updated JORC (2012) Mineral Resource, reported on a platinum equivalent basis and constrained by open pit and underground optimisation studies. The updated Mineral Resource provides the basis for a new Scoping Study.
The proportion of Inferred material constrains how far a study can go. A Pre-Feasibility Study, or any Ore Reserve estimate, requires Indicated Mineral Resources. An infill drilling programme targeting the ABC Block — where 14.6 Mt of the 17.2 Mt underground Mineral Resource is Inferred — is therefore the Company’s near-term priority.
Refer ASX Announcement, 9 July 2026.
Mineral Resource Estimate
A lower-capital processing pathway
An independent engineering assessment of the Savannah processing plant, approximately 70 kilometres north of Panton, indicates that trucking Panton material to an existing plant could materially reduce pre-production capital compared with the 2023 Scoping Study, and supports a staged development approach.
The Company continues to assess both standalone and third-party processing pathways.
Refer to ASX Announcement 16 April 2026 – Savannah Plant Assessment for Panton PGM Project
What the Project has behind it
Panton has been the subject of sustained investment by successive owners over six decades, including:
- Approximately 45,000 metres of drilling
- A historical decline providing physical access to the mineralisation, developed for metallurgical sampling
- Comprehensive bulk metallurgical test work, including pilot plant test work on a bulk sample of Upper Reef material
- A Bankable Feasibility Study completed by a previous owner in September 2003
- Prior environmental studies
- More than A$50 million invested to date, underpinning the Project’s technical understanding and advancement.
The Project sits on three granted mining leases, approximately 1 kilometre from a sealed highway, with sealed road access to the deep-water Port of Wyndham.
Tenure, history & royalties
Previous studies
Important — the results below are historical and should not be relied upon.
The 2023 Scoping Study was based on the Panton Mineral Resource Estimate as it stood in 2023. The Mineral Resource has since been restated (ASX Announcement, 9 July 2026) on a different reporting basis. The production target, mine plan and forecast financial information summarised below were derived from the superseded estimate and have not been restated. The updated Mineral Resource provides the basis for a new Scoping Study.
2023 Panton Scoping Study — announced 7 December 2023
The 2023 Scoping Study is a preliminary technical and economic assessment prepared to evaluate the development potential of the Panton Project. As a Scoping Study, it is based on lower-confidence assumptions and is insufficient to support the estimation of Ore Reserves or provide assurance of an economically viable development outcome. The study incorporates both Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources, and further drilling, technical studies and evaluation are required before progressing to future development studies. Investors should refer to the full Scoping Study announcement for the underlying assumptions, risks and cautionary statements.
View the 2023 Panton Scoping Study announcement