The World Silver Institute has projected a continued silver supply deficit, making this a prime time for explorers like Maronan Metals to advance their drilling efforts. With one of Australia’s largest undeveloped silver reserves — over 118 million ounces waiting in the ground — Maronan has a rare opportunity to capitalise on high prices by positioning itself for the future.

This puts extra pressure on Maronan to optimise their drilling programs, gain a crystal-clear view of their performance, and make data-driven decisions to drive exploration productivity.

But there’s a catch: in their most recent drilling campaign, productivity hit a snag. Instead of accelerating their progress, they were falling behind.

Drilling Deeper: The Need for Operational Efficiency

This unexpected downturn highlighted the critical importance of operational efficiency in every aspect of their drilling operations.

As Maronan Metals accelerates towards production, operational efficiency is paramount. Every metre drilled is a major investment, and maximising the return on that investment is crucial.

“For junior explorers like us, drill programs are the backbone of our operations. Every metre drilled is a significant investment,” says Andrew Barker, Exploration Manager at Maronan Metals. “We need to maximise value, especially with tight budgets.”

Facing the Challenge: Drilling Costs Skyrocket

In June 2024, Maronan Metals launched a new drilling program but ran into a roadblock: productivity levels plummeted. With cost-per-metre exceeding planned rates and penetration rates falling, Andrew knew they needed to take action.

"When we started drilling in June and July, our productivity was way down compared to our previous program," Andrew explains. "This sent our cost-per-metre through the roof."

Despite using the same drilling crews, performance metrics were drastically worse. Recognising the urgent need for deeper insights into drilling performance, Andrew turned to CorePlan.

CorePlan: Unlocking Data-Driven Insights

Despite having used CorePlan for some time, Andrew realised he needed to leverage its full potential to gain a deeper understanding of the drilling performance issues.

"With CorePlan, I could instantly compare key metrics like penetration rates and average metres per shift between our programs," says Andrew. "I quickly discovered our penetration rates were much lower than before."

Armed with this knowledge, Andrew initiated a data-driven discussion with his drilling contractor. Using CorePlan's dashboards, he could visualise drilling performance across their rigs and over various timeframes, highlighting metres drilled per shift and analysing specific activities.

This clear evidence facilitated a productive conversation with their contractor, leading to a win-win solution: drilling more metres at a lower cost.

"CorePlan empowered me to have that critical conversation with our drillers," Andrew reflects. "I wouldn't have had the same impact or insights with just Excel spreadsheets."

Reaping the Rewards: Cost Savings and Enhanced Performance

The impact of CorePlan was undeniable. In just three months, Maronan Metals’s drilling strategy transformed from struggling to outperforming expectations, slashing drilling unit costs by 37%. The average metres drilled per shift rocketed from under 20 to nearly 35, exceeding even their best previous performance.

"Since our discussion in late July, we've seen a dramatic performance improvement," Andrew adds. "This delivered the ultimate outcome: a significant reduction in our cost per metre of drilling."

A Partnership for Exploration Success

The drilling contractor welcomed Andrew's feedback, acknowledging they had "taken their eye off the ball" They implemented corrective measures, such as increased supervision and adjustments to drilling practices.

"I'm thrilled because we can now drill more metres with the same budget, and the drillers are happy because they're hitting their metre bonuses," Andrew notes.

Unveiling Hidden Inefficiencies

Beyond operational metrics, CorePlan's timeline view gave Maronan Metals a powerful visual representation of drilling activities. In one instance, it exposed a subtle inefficiency with a significant impact.

"Our crew had to free a stuck core barrel but then drilled another three metres before the bit died," Andrew explains. "The timeline view clearly showed they hadn't inspected the drill bit after freeing the core barrel. Seeing that data visualised sparked a productive conversation with our drillers about preventing avoidable downtime."

Looking Ahead: A Data-Driven Future

As Maronan Metals continues exploring, Andrew is confident about the future. "Moving forward, we'll continue leveraging CorePlan to refine our processes and maintain our momentum," he notes. "The software has been essential to our success, helping us uncover more mineralised potential while controlling costs."

For junior and mid-tier mining companies, Maronan Metals' experience is a compelling testament to how data-driven solutions can fuel significant operational improvements and cost savings.