** Shares of minerals explorer Metallica Minerals MLM.AX
rise as much as 10%to A$0.033, their highest since Aug. 25
** Co says drilling program at its Cape Flattery Silica
Sands Project in Queensland confirms significant intervals of
high purity silica sand urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nASXbG2xzz
** Stock posts its biggest intraday percentage gain since
Sept. 10
** Over 1.2 mln shares change hands, vs 30-day average
volume of ~950,000
** Stock down 7.4% YTD as of last close
(Reporting by Arundhati Dutta in Bengaluru)
((Arundhati.Dutta@thomsonreuters.com;))