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Lithium development company Critical Resources Limited ASX:CRR (“Critical Resources” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce a maiden JORC Code 2012 compliant Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for its100%-owned Mavis Lake Lithium Project in Ontario, Canada.
Highlights
- Maiden JORC Code 2012 compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) defined for the 100% owned Mavis Lake Lithium Project – Ontario, Canada
8.0 Mt at 1.07 % Li2O
- The Mineral Resource is based on drilling on approximately 2% of the Mavis Lake Project area and includes drilling results completed by the Company between April 2022 to March 2023
- Drilling from April 2023 has not been included in the MRE, and will be included in any future Mineral Resource upgrade
- Significant potential for further Mineral Resource upgrades have been identified with the Mavis Lake Main Zone mineralisation remaining open both along strike and down-dip
- Multiple, mapped spodumene-bearing outcrops across the Mavis Lake Project are yet to be drill tested
- Spring exploration works will also be conducted on the contiguous Gullwing and Tot Lakes prospects, located immediately north of the Mavis Lake Main Zone
- 2023 drilling campaign to continue in parallel with development studies
- Critical Resources is now one of only two ASX-listed companies with a JORC Code 2012 compliant Lithium Mineral Resource in Ontario, Canada
The maiden Inferred Mineral Resource of 8.0Mt grading 1.07% Li2O has been estimated following a continuous drilling program over the last 11 months. This reflects Critical Resources’ strategy to rapidly establish a significant inventory of high-quality, hard-rock lithium resources at Mavis Lake, setting the foundation for the Company to play a significant role in the North American critical minerals sector.
Critical Resources Managing Director, Alex Cheeseman, said:
“This is a significant milestone for our company and an accomplishment our staff, management and shareholders should be very proud of.”
“Critical Resources only began drilling at Mavis Lake 11 months ago and to have defined and declared a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate in such a short time is testament to the diligence and focus of our team and the high quality nature of the project.”
“Critical Resources is now just one of two ASX-listed companies with a JORC Code 2012 compliant Mineral Resource in Ontario putting us in an enviable position as we begin to engage with potential strategic and off-take partners, whilst continuing to advance the project.”
“A key message for investors is that this Resource is just the beginning of the Mavis Lake story.”
“The deposit itself remains open both along strike and down-dip, with significant potential to add further tonnes to the MRE with continued drilling.”
“In addition, the Gullwing/Tot Lakes prospects offer outstanding potential for new discoveries, supporting the already impressive MRE at Mavis Lake.”
“We expect that we will be able to continue to grow the Resource while working in parallel on the development aspects of the project in the years to come.”
Requirements for Material Mining Projects
The following subheadings are provided to satisfy the requirements applicable to reports of Mineral Resources for material mining projects under ASX Listing Rule 5.8.
Classification Criteria
The Mineral Resource has been classified in accordance with guidelines contained in the JORC Code. Key criteria that have been considered when classifying the Mineral Resource are detailed in JORC Table 1.
This classification is based on assessment and understanding of the deposit style, geological and grade continuity, drill-hole spacing, input data quality (including drill collar surveys and bulk density).
The Mineral Resource was classified as Inferred, accounting for the level of geological understanding of the deposit, quality of samples, density data, drill-hole spacing and sampling, analytical and metallurgical processes. Material classified as Inferred was considered sufficiently informed by geological and sampling data to imply geological, grade and quality continuity between data points.
The classification reflects the level of data available for the estimate, including input drill-hole data spacing, and high level of confidence in geological continuity for this particular style of deposit.
Geology and Geological Interpretation
The Mavis Lake Lithium Project consists of a large Main Zone and multiple smaller zones proximal to the Main Zone. The Main Zone pegmatite area has a dominant 1km E-W strike that has a shallow dip to the north that has been tested to a down-dip depth of ~300m (~250m vertical depth). The Main Zone is a complex structure that is associated with multiple stacks of pegmatites and bifurcation. Spodumene is the main lithium-bearing mineral and occurs in varying concentrations within pegmatites of the Main Zone.
Multiple smaller zones have been identified through present and historical drilling. These are known as: Pegmatite 18, Main Zone East, and South Zone (Figure 1). All these zones were included in the MRE.
Figure 1: Plan Map of Mavis Lake Lithium Property highlighting all zones to date defined by historical and recent drilling
Sampling and Sub-Sampling Techniques
All samples in the 2023 MRE are from diamond drill cores. The sample lengths within mineralised rocks were from 0.3 m to 2.9 m or to match logged lithologies (Figure 2).
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This article includes content from Critical Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
CRR:AU
Spodumene Pegmatite Discovery at Esperança Project in Brazil Yields LIBS Results up to 4.04% Li2O
The discovery has been made during early-stage exploration programs which include project scale geological mapping, ground reconnaissance, and soil sampling. These early-stage programs remain ongoing with further results to come over the coming weeks. The discovery supports the Company’s exploration thesis and uplifts the remaining prospectivity across all three project areas: Canabrava, Caraíbas and Esperança projects.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Artisanal excavations reveal a lithium bearing pegmatite with elongate crystalline spodumene crystals up to 50cm in length
- LIBS (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) results of spodumene crystals return up to 18,800 ppm Lithium, or 4.04% Li2O
- Discovery provides walk up drill target for fully funded drilling campaign to begin Q1 2025
- Soil sampling and geological mapping continues across the Esperança, Canabrava and Caraíbas projects with further results due over the coming weeks
Lightning Minerals Managing Director Alex Biggs said, “I am highly encouraged by these results from Brazil. As I have spoken about, as a team we are committed to discovery and completing our works in a diligent and structured manner, the proof of which is in these results. The Company is progressing its projects in Brazil quickly and cost effectively and generating significant results for the business which we feel will be transformational. I am proud of and congratulate our geology teams both in Australia and Brazil who have conducted themselves in a professional and astute manner which has been crucial in making a discovery such as this. This is a great first step for us in Brazil and is testament to the prospectivity of the region as I have discussed previously. We look forward to drilling in Q1 2025 and further results to come imminently from all three project areas in Brazil. I would also like to thank our shareholders who have supported our vision and exploration strategy. As a Company we are firmly committed to the lithium thematic and firmly committed to Brazil where we see significant potential moving forwards”.
Lithium Discovery at Esperança Project
During geological mapping fieldwork conducted in mid-November 2024 field geologists encountered a previously unknown historical artisanal mine within the Esperança project area. The site presented with a small access which opened into a set of sub vertical shafts sunk several meters into schists of the Salinas formation. Upon investigation the geology team has discovered pegmatitic lithologies in the walls of the excavations, of which the suite of minerals indicates inclusion of macro crystalline (up to 50cm) elongate crystals of spodumene as shown in Figure 1(a) and Figure 1(b).
Figure 1a (left): Brazilian geologist Vitor Araujo Alves showing the spodumene rich portion of the zoned pegmatite discovered at the Esperança Property. Figure 1b (right): Large elongate spodumene crystals (Spd) up to 50cm in length showing homogeneous growth patterns amongst a quartz (Qtz) and Feldspar (Fdsp) rich matrix
The Company’s geologists have collected selective mineral specimen grab samples in sample VLM207 (Figure 2). Six separate minerals have been analysed via a SciAps Z-903 hand-held LIBS (Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) device which has returned lithium endowment of up to 18,800 ppm lithium, which equates to a lithium oxide percentage of 4.04% Li2O.
The SciAps Z-903 handheld LIBS device is considered a qualitative analysis technique only and is used as an in-field preliminary check to establish if a mineral is lithium-bearing. Certified laboratory assays are required to provide accurate, quantitative analysis. A table of the six SciAps Z-903 handheld LIBS results testing the spodumene crystals is shown in Table 1. A full table of results are presented in Appendix 2, Table 2.
While the current field observations indicate that the mineral identified is a lithium-bearing mineral, the percentage of lithium produced from the LIBS analyser does not correlate to an accurate quantitative measurement of the lithium concentration of the mineral itself, or to the overall grade of the pegmatite.
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This article includes content from Lightning Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
