Beneath the sun-scorched plains of SA’s Lake Eyre Basin, Alligator Energy unearthed what may be a new frontier for Australia’s energy future.
It began with a concept, a hunch buried beneath layers of geological data, remote terrain and generations of energy history.
For Alligator Energy, the Big Lake uranium project was not a proven resource, but a possibility. What followed was years of analysis, deep stakeholder engagement, and a pioneering spirit that took the company into uncharted territory.
When the drill rigs finally touched down on the parched, wind-battered plains of South Australia’s Lake Eyre Basin, they were chasing a long-held vision. And that vision has now been rewarded.
Alligator Energy was presented last year with the Discovery of the Year award at the Australian Mining Prospect Awards, recognising the company’s groundbreaking work at the Big Lake uranium project, a discovery that could reshape the future of uranium exploration in the country.
Alligator Energy chief executive officer Andrea Marsland-Smith was thrilled to have the project honoured across the national mining industry.
“This award is a tribute to the vision and teamwork behind the Big Lake discovery,” she said in her acceptance speech. “We set out to be the first dedicated uranium explorer in the region, and it paid off.”
Located in the Lake Eyre Basin, the Big Lake project represents a frontier exploration success story. In its first-ever drilling campaign in 2024, Alligator intersected broad zones of anomalous uranium mineralisation within palaeochannel sands of the Namba Formation, a well-known uranium-bearing geological feature 250km to the south of the project.
Follow-up chemical assays confirmed substantial uranium content, validating field observations and marking a significant new uranium discovery in an area that had never had dedicated regional uranium exploration undertaken.
Beneath the discovery lies the Cooper Basin, a historically hydrocarbon-rich zone that has long been a powerhouse for Australia’s energy sector. That same ground, Marsland-Smith said, could now support a different kind of energy future.
“We are hopeful that the region could possibly be a future supply of uranium, which is poised to play a central role in the energy transition and global decarbonisation,” she said. “Discoveries such as this have the potential to make a global impact.”
The significance of Big Lake extends beyond geology. The company’s approach to stakeholder engagement has been central to the project’s progress. Alligator Energy has worked in close consultation with the Yandruwandha Yawarrawarrka Native Title land owners, as well as pastoralists and regional partners, to develop Big Lake with transparency and respect for Country.
Marsland-Smith acknowledged those efforts directly.
“We appreciate your partnership and your presence here tonight,” she said. “This discovery really is a reminder that even in well-trodden ground, there are still new stories waiting to be told.”
Further drilling is planned for early 2026, with Alligator continuing to position Big Lake as a potential new uranium province, one that not only supports decarbonisation efforts globally but also reaffirms Australia’s role in the future of clean energy supply.
“This started as a very conceptual geological target,” Marsland-Smith said. “Two years of technical analysis, stakeholder engagement and planning went into it. The team toughed it through wind, rain, extreme heat and multiple stakeholders just to get on the ground.”
That perseverance has now been recognised with one of Australian mining’s highest honours.
And, perhaps more importantly, it’s opened the door to a new chapter in uranium exploration beneath the red dust of Big Lake.
The Discovery of the Year award was proudly sponsored by Australian Resources and Investment.