By: OrePulse

ASX-listed Fortuna Metals has started a 66-hole Phase 1 drilling programme at its Kampini rutile and graphite project in Malawi, as part of exploration work spanning two licences, Kampini and Mkanda, that together cover 658 square kilometers.

At Mkanda, the company has completed a 7,618-meter aircore drilling programme to expand rutile, graphite and rare-earth mineralization. The 2026 drilling used tighter 200-meter-by-200-meter spacing, compared with the 400-meter-by-400-meter grid used in a 2025 reconnaissance programme at the same site. Results from priority samples are expected to be released over the next four to six months.

At Kampini, the new Phase 1 programme uses hand-auger drilling to target a 50-kilometer strike length of rutile-bearing rock. Chief executive Tom Langley said "every drill hole found a substantial portion of high-grade titanium," citing results including 8 meters grading 1.46% titanium oxide and 7 meters grading 2.14% titanium oxide among the strongest intercepts.

Earlier drilling at Mkanda returned 10 meters grading 1.37% titanium oxide, compared with a 2025 result of 10 meters at 0.76% titanium oxide at the same location, pointing to higher grades in some of the newer results.

Fortuna said the projects benefit from nearby infrastructure, including proximity to Malawi's capital, Lilongwe; a railway connection to a deep-water port in Mozambique; nearby electricity lines; and access to freshwater resources.