IRIS Metals (ASX:IR1) expanded its critical minerals footprint by executing a definitive farm-in agreement to earn a shareholding in Finley Mining.
The deal grants the company access to the high-grade Finley Basin Tungsten Project, located within the historically productive Flint Creek Mountain Range of Granite County, Montana.
The agreement follows a binding heads of agreement established in late 2025, marking a significant step in the company’s diversification strategy into metals essential for defence, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing.
The Finley Basin Project encompasses approximately 378 hectares of unpatented mining claims.
The site hosts tungsten-rich skarn mineralisation, with historical data from Union Carbide’s work in the late 1970s and early 1980s indicating a non-JORC compliant reserve estimate of 850,000 tons at 0.68% WO3.
A Phase 1 drill program is scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2026.
The primary objective of this exploration is to validate historical data and facilitate the announcement of an initial JORC-compliant mineral resource estimate by early 2027.
At the time of reporting, IRIS Metals' share price was $0.12.