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Charger Metals NL (ASX: CHR, ‘Charger’ or ‘the Company’) is pleased to provide an update on the maiden RC drilling programme at the Bynoe Lithium Project, Northern Territory.
- First-pass “reconnaissance” reverse circulation (RC) drilling has been completed at the Megabucks and Old Bucks Prospects at the Bynoe Lithium Project, Northern Territory
- 14 drill-holes were completed across the two prospective target areas for 2,045m
- Pegmatites1 up to 36m thick (down-hole) with varying degrees of weathering were successfully intersected at both prospects
- Drilling is now underway at the Enterprise Prospect with the first hole (114m) completed
- Remote Drilling Services Pty Ltd (RDS) is now on-site for a further ~2,000m programme which will initially focus on the Enterprise Prospect
- Samples from all completed drill-holes have been submitted to the laboratory, with first assays expected within the next two weeks
Fourteen drill-holes for 2,045m have been completed as first-pass “reconnaissance” drilling at the Megabucks and Old Bucks Prospects (Figure 1). The holes were designed to confirm the presence and size of the pegmatites observed at surface, and to test any pegmatite intersections for potential economic lithium mineralisation.
Pegmatites of varying thickness up to 36m (down-hole) were intersected at both prospects, with weathering ranging from completely oxidised through to predominantly fresh rock in the deeper intersections (Table 1).
All samples from the completed drill-holes have been submitted to the Intertek laboratory in Darwin, with the first batch of results expected within the next two weeks.
First-pass drilling is now underway at the Enterprise Prospect, with the first completed hole recording a shallow 8m intersection of completely weathered pegmatite (Table 1). The programme at Enterprise is continuing with another local drilling contractor, Remote Drilling Services Pty Ltd, using a drill rig capable of drilling to 250m where required. As the ground conditions continue to dry out and improve, the RDS rig will drill a planned ~2,000m at the Enterprise Prospect, as well as deeper holes at the Megabucks and Old Bucks prospects. The programme will also test new emerging drill targets in the area that have been generated from recent reconnaissance mapping by the Company’s geologists.
Charger’s Managing Director, Aidan Platel, commented:
“We are pleased with the progress of our maiden drill programme at Bynoe, despite some difficult ground conditions initially. We have completed the first 2,000m across the Megabucks and Old Bucks Prospects and successfully intersected pegmatite1 units, albeit with variable degrees of oxidation and weathering.
With the more capable drill rig now on-site we have the ability to drill deeper into the fresh rock, which is important because lithium is often leached from the host rock by the weathering process.
We look forward to drilling the planned holes at the Enterprise Prospect, and to testing some of our new drill targets which continue to emerge as our technical team spend more time on the ground.
All samples to-date have been submitted to the Intertek lab in Darwin and we look forward to updating the market when the assay results are received.”
Figure 1. Location of the completed RC drill-holes at the Old Bucks, Megabucks and Enterprise Prospects of the Bynoe Lithium Project. Core Lithium’s drill-holes at its Blackbeard Prospect are shown for reference. 2
Cautionary Note
Throughout this document Charger refers to “pegmatite”. While the Company is encouraged by its geological observations, no quantitative or qualitative assessment of lithium mineralisation is possible at this stage. Drilling widths reported are down-hole and no estimate of true width is given. The observed presence of pegmatite does not necessarily equate to lithium mineralisation until confirmed by chemical analyses which are currently underway.
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This article includes content from Charger Metals, 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.
CHR: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.
