The Treppo Grande Project covers an area of 68 km² and is located approximately 32 km west of the Macarthur Iron Projects.  The project is also 35km east of current iron ore producer Mineral Resources Ltd (formerly Cliffs’ Asia Pacific Iron Ore Operations) and in close proximity to established rail infrastructure to the Port of Esperance.

This area has been held by a private exploration company wholly owned by renowned Kalgoorlie Prospector Mel Dalla-Costa for the past 8 years under an Exploration Licence (EL77/1208).  During this time, approval was granted for an exploration program of diamond drilling and geophysical mapping. The Treppo Grande Project has already benefited from flora and fauna baseline surveys indicating the conservation values of Mt Manning are a lower priority than surrounding BIF ridges. In addition, an ethnographical cultural heritage survey by the Traditional owners has cleared the area for sites of significance.

Treppo Grande was explored in recent years for high grade hematite iron ore mineralisation. Exploration by Mel Dalla-Costa identified three potentially economic styles of Direct Shipping Ore (“DSO”) mineralisation including massive dense hematitic ironstones, specular hematite and oxidised ‘Indurated Detrital Ironstone’. A drilling programme consisting of two diamond holes have penetrated the hematitic iron stone at the J-Hook prospect. Significant intercepts include 17.5m @ 65.49% Fe from 2.5m from hole MMS002 and 40.4m @ 55.77% Fe from 3.6 m from hole MMS001. The iron-rich mineralisation (> 55% Fe) is centred on the J-Hook prospect that contains occurrences of massive, fissile and specular hematite.