The Conversation (0)
Flynn Gold Limited (ASX: FG1, “Flynn” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce results from its in-fill soil sampling program at its 100% owned Mt Dove lithium-gold project in Western Australia. The program was designed to evaluate multiple lithium and gold anomalies outlined from the Company’s 2022 Ultra-fine fraction (UFF) soil sampling program.1
Highlights
- Seven high priority lithium anomalies confirmed and enhanced by in-fill soil sampling at the Mt Dove Project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia
- Coherent lithium anomalies extend up to 3,100m length within predominantly shallow sand covered eastern part of licence area
- Outcropping pegmatite samples, with high rubidium (max 0.14% Rb) identified within the highest priority lithium anomaly
- Project located near world class Pilgangoora (ASX:PLS) and Wodgina (ASX:MIN) lithium mines and Hemi gold deposit (ASX:DEG)
- Mt Dove Project also near recent lithium pegmatite discoveries at Tabba Tabba (ASX:WC8) and Pippingarra (ASX:IND)
- Planning underway for design and permitting of a first pass aircore drilling program to cover high-priority targets
The Mt Dove project is located approximately 25km NNW of Mineral Resources’ (ASX: MIN) Wodgina Lithium Mine, 34km WNW of Pilbara Minerals’ (ASX: PLS) Pilgangoora Lithium Mine, 12km SE of De Grey Mining’s (ASX: DEG) Hemi gold deposit, 45km SW of Wildcat Resources’ (ASX: WC8) Tabba Tabba lithium deposit and 41km SSW of Industrial Metals’ (ASX: IND) Pippingarra lithium prospect in the Pilbara region (see Figure 1).
Managing Director and CEO, Neil Marston commented,
“The Mt Dove in-fill soil sampling program has confirmed seven broad areas of lithium and associated pathfinder element anomalism, highlighting the exciting lithium potential of the project.
“Flynn has recently commenced an accelerated work program on its Mt Dove, Lake Johnston and Forrestania lithium projects in Western Australia.”
“The projects are located close to world class lithium deposits and some exciting new discoveries including the Tabba Tabba and Pippingarra projects in the Pilbara and the Burmeister, Jaegermeister and Mt Gordon prospects in the Lake Johnston region.
“The aim of our fieldwork has been to identify pegmatite bodies across our tenements from mapping, sampling and target generation for drill testing. We look forward to providing updates to shareholders on our exploration progress including the plans for our first drill program.”
Figure 1: Flynn Gold Limited’s Mt Dove project location plan.
Soil Sampling Program
The results from an in-fill soil sampling program at the Mt Dove project (E45/5055) have been received and have outlined seven high priority coherent lithium anomalies with associated pathfinder geochemistry and eleven lower priority, less coherent lithium anomalies (Figure 2). The program has been successful in confirming and enhancing the seven high priority lithium geochemical anomalies and in providing further detail of the pathfinder zonation trends (refer to Table 1 and Appendix 1 for further details).
The seven high priority anomalies reveal broad areas of lithium soil anomalism extending between 600m and 3,100m in length and between 200m and 1,000m in width. The soil anomalies have been defined by clusters of samples which are greater than 75ppm Li (+160ppm Li2O) for the original UFF samples and greater than 21ppm Li (+45ppm Li2O) for the recent -2mm soil samples. These are considered significant anomalies particularly when taking into account the supporting associated pathfinder anomalism and trends (Figures 5 - 9).
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Flynn Gold, 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.
Flynn Gold Investor Kit
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects
GET YOUR FREE INVESTOR KIT
Flynn Gold
Overview
Flynn Gold Limited (ASX: FG1) is an Australian mineral exploration company with a portfolio of projects in Tasmania and Western Australia.
Tasmania is home to several world-renowned deposits and is rich in diverse mineral resources and operating mines. The region has established mining districts, excellent infrastructure such as rail and ports, and a skilled workforce, with a stable political and regulatory environment. These features are a big positive for the company’s projects in this region.
The company has nine 100 percent owned tenements in Northeast Tasmania which are highly prospective for gold and tin/tungsten with three major projects — Golden Ridge, Portland and Warrentinna. In Northwest Tasmania, it has the Henty zinc-lead-silver and the Firetower gold and critical minerals projects.
Flynn Gold’s exploration at its Golden Ridge Project has focused on an 8-kilometre-long granodiorite-metasediment contact zone with diamond drilling programs completed at the Brilliant and Trafalgar prospects, with multiple high-grade gold vein intersections.
Moreover, the company’s first diamond drilling programs at its Warrentinna and Firetower projects have been completed with assays pending.
Apart from Tasmania, the company is building a strategic lithium and gold portfolio in Western Australia, targeting hard-rock lithium pegmatites and intrusive related gold deposits in the Pilbara region and Yilgarn Craton. Its five lithium-gold projects in Western Australia are strategically located in districts hosting large gold and lithium deposits or in regions that are relatively under-explored for lithium. Of these, three lithium-gold projects are in the Yilgarn region: Forrestania, Lake Johnston and Koolyanobbing. The remaining two lithium-gold projects are in the Pilbara region: Mt Dove and Yarrie.
Flynn’s recent acquisitions have been focused on strengthening its lithium portfolio. This includes the option agreement to purchase two exploration licences at the Parker Dome Project in Western Australia, which is considered highly prospective for lithium. In addition to this, Flynn has also increased its land position closer to the Mt Holland lithium project. Four new exploration licence applications covering approximately 20 sq. km. have been lodged with the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
The focus on lithium positions the company to benefit from the global transition towards clean energy. The recent COP28 summit in Dubai signaled the world's desire to move away from fossil fuels over the next few decades to address climate change. Electric vehicles are likely to remain in focus as a key solution to the climate challenges. Most of the lithium is used to make lithium-ion batteries for electric cars and mobile devices. Summarily, lithium will be in high demand given this trend.
Company Highlights
- Flynn Gold is an Australian mineral exploration company with a portfolio of gold and battery metals projects in Tasmania and Western Australia.
- In Tasmania, the company holds 12 tenements spread across 1,475 sq. km., including three main projects in Northeast Tasmania — Golden Ridge, Warrentinna and Portland — that are prospective for gold and tin. Moreover, it has two projects in Northwest Tasmania: the Henty zinc-lead-silver project and the Firetower gold-cobalt-tungsten-copper project.
- In Western Australia, Flynn holds 24 tenements across 1,140 sq. km., including lithium-gold projects in the Pilbara and Yilgarn regions. The Yilgarn region has three lithium-gold projects: Forrestania; Lake Johnston and Koolyanobbing. The Pilbara hosts two gold-lithium projects: Mt Dove and Yarrie.
- In addition to these focus areas, the company holds an option to acquire two exploration licences at Parker Dome in Western Australia, situated near the world-class Mount Holland lithium project.
- The company’s near-term focus is on its Northeast Tasmania gold portfolio due to its geological similarity to the Victorian goldfields.
- Flynn Gold’s exploration at its flagship Golden Ridge Project in NE Tasmania has focused on an 8-kilometre-long granodiorite-metasediment contact zone with diamond drilling to date intersecting multiple high-grade gold vein intervals.
- In November 2023, the company announced strong metallurgical test results from the Golden Ridge project, as exploration commenced at two other Tasmanian projects — Warrentinna and Firetower – with results pending.
- In December 2023, the company announced plans to raise $2.4 million that will help advance its exploration activities including the acquisition of the exploration licences at Parker Dome.
- The company’s senior leadership team has a proven track record in the mining sector to capitalize on the high resource potential of its projects.
Key Projects
Northeast Tasmania
The company has three main projects in northeast Tasmania — Golden Ridge, Portland and Warrentinna. The under-explored Northeast Tasmania region is interpreted to be part of the Western Lachlan Orogen, a geological extension of the rich Victorian Goldfields which boast of historical gold production of over 80 million ounces (Moz). The company’s landholding across nine 100 percent owned tenements in the region has provided it with significant potential for gold and tin discoveries.
Golden Ridge Project
Targeted for intrusive related gold system (IRGS) style mineralization, the Golden Ridge project is located 75 kilometres east of Launceston in Northeast Tasmania. Previous gold exploration at the Golden Ridge Project has been very limited with shallow historical workings located over an 8-kilometre-long granodiorite-metasediment contact zone. Flynn Gold’s exploration has focused on the Brilliant and Trafalgar prospects, with diamond drilling programs completed at both locations between June 2021 and August 2023. In addition, a limited reconnaissance RC drilling program in late 2022 to test for gold mineralisation at the Link Zone confirmed the presence of shallow gold mineralisation between the Brilliant and Trafalgar prospects, highlighting the significant gold potential of the granodiorite-metasediment contact zone.
Drilling at Trafalgar consisted of 14 holes for 5,218.3 metres with multiple vein intersections grading >100 grams per ton (g/t) gold reported. The best intersections recorded in drilling at Trafalgar were 16.8 g/t gold over 12.3 metres (from 108.7 to 121 metres), including 0.7m at 152.5 g/t gold and 23.7 g/t gold over 4 metres (from 23 to 27 metres), including a high-grade zone of 0.5 metre at 169.8 g/t gold.
Drilling completed at Trafalgar intersected high-grade gold over a strike length of 400 metres and from depths of 40 to 400 metres below surface, confirming a significant new gold discovery that is open in all directions.
Initial metallurgical tests were successfully completed in November 2023 on 26 drill samples from the Trafalgar prospect. Average gold recovery of 94.5 percent was recorded using conventional bottle roll leaching.
Portland Project
The Portland gold project covers 370 sq. kms. and comprises three adjacent tenements: Portland, Telegraph and Cameron Tin. The project falls within the region mined historically from 1870 to 1917 and has similarities to Victorian geology with high-grade “Fosterville-style” gold mineralization confirmed. Geochemical surveys and costean sampling programs at Portland confirmed the presence of anomalous gold zones. Drilling at the Grand Flaneur prospect in 2022 and the Popes prospect in 2023 have both confirmed the presence of gold mineralization.
Warrentinna Project
The Warrentinna project was acquired in 2023 from Greatland Gold plc (LSE:GGP). The Project is located in northeast Tasmania and covers an area of approximately 37 sq km immediately adjacent to Flynn’s existing Lyndhurst Project. The tenement encompasses two historic goldfields, Forester and Warrentinna. Both fields produced high-grade gold deposits in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The Warrentinna goldfield is defined by numerous historic workings and largely untested prospects over a strike length of 6 kilometres.
Initial drilling by Flynn in September/October 2023 at Warrentinna consisted of two diamond drill holes, designed to test the continuity and extension of orogenic style gold mineralisation identified in historical drilling. The holes are also designed to provide stratigraphic and structural information critical to advancing understanding of the project. Assay results are pending.
Northwest Tasmania
The company has two projects in the Northwest Tasmania region: the Henty zinc project and the Firetower project.
Henty Zinc Project
The project is a 130 sq. km land holding under two 100 percent owned exploration licences and provides the company with a dominant position in a rich base metals field with proximity to an existing zinc/lead concentrate producer (MMG’s Rosebery mine).
The Henty Project has a significant pipeline of exploration targets with the Mariposa and Grieves Siding prospects ready for resource drilling
Firetower Project
The project was acquired in 2023 from Greatland Gold plc (LSE: GGP). The project spans more than 62 sq. kms. and represents an advanced gold plus battery metals project, which includes three notable prospects: Firetower, Firetower East and Firetower West. The Firetower project lies in the highly mineralized Mt Read volcanic sequence which hosts major polymetallic base metals and gold deposits such as Hellyer and Rosebery, copper-gold deposits such as Mt Lyell (3 million tons contained copper, 3.1 Moz contained gold), and the Henty gold mine (1.64 Moz gold @ 12.5 g/t gold).
Resampling of the historic core at Firetower has confirmed the significant potential for gold and critical minerals - cobalt, tungsten and copper. The results have made it clear this project represents an exciting polymetallic opportunity. The company commenced a diamond drilling program in October 2023 to target both the gold and polymetallic minerals potential.
Western Australia
Flynn holds five gold-lithium projects in the resources-rich state of Western Australia, strategically located near large gold and lithium deposits or in regions that are relatively under-explored for lithium.
The five projects include: Mt. Dove and Yarrie in Pilbara; and Koolyanobbing, Forrestania and Lake Johnston in Yilgarn.
Mt Dove Project
Located 70 kilometres south of Port Hedland in the Pilbara region, Mt Dove comprises five granted licences covering 86.6 sq. kms. and one tenement application. The project is located near the large Hemi gold deposit (De Grey Mining, ASX:DEG) and the large lithium mines at Pilgangoora and Wodgina. The company has completed two soil sampling programs at Mt Dove, which have identified lithium and gold anomalies. The follow-up exploration, which is likely to include aircore drilling, intends to test lithium and gold anomalies identified during the soil sampling program completed in 2022 and 2023.
Yarrie Project
The Yarrie Project comprises three tenements and one application covering 424 sq. kms. Very limited historical exploration has been undertaken for lithium, gold and copper on the project. The project is highly prospective for iron ore, being close to historic mining operations and existing rail infrastructure.
Forrestania Project
The Forrestania project consists of one exploration licence and five exploration licence applications over a 320 sq. km. area. It is located near the Mt Holland lithium deposit (Wesfarmers (ASX:WES)/ SQM (NYSE:SQM) JV) and high-grade nickel deposits, Flying Fox and Maggie Hays.
Lake Johnston Project
Lake Johnston consists of five exploration licenses over a 116 sq. km. area, and is located near the Burmeister lithium discovery (TG Metals (ASX:TG6)) and the Medcalf, Lake Percy and Mt Day Lithium projects.
Koolyanobbing Project
Koolyanobbing comprises one exploration licence and two applications targeting gold and lithium mineralization over an 82 sq. km. area in the Marda-Diemals greenstone belt.
Parker Dome Project
In addition to the above-mentioned projects, Flynn has secured an option agreement to purchase two exploration licences at the Parker Dome project in Western Australia, which is considered highly prospective for lithium. The Parker Dome project covers 42 sq. kms. and is situated 50 kilometres north of the world-class Mount Holland lithium project in Western Australia. The licences are fully permitted allowing for an immediate commencement of exploration and drilling. The company expects to commence drilling at Parker Dome in early 2024.
Management Team
Clive Duncan – Non-executive Chair
Clive Duncan has over four decades of experience at big box hardware chain Bunnings, including as chief operating officer and company director. He has rich experience in corporate and business development, including mergers and acquisitions, business integrations, corporate government, strategy development and marketing. He has completed post-graduate studies at Harvard University and London Business School and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. He is a long-term significant shareholder of Flynn Gold’s predecessor companies.
Neil Marston – Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Neil Marston was appointed managing director in May 2023 and has been the company CEO since August 2022. He has more than 30 years of experience in the mining and minerals exploration sector and is a proven ASX-listed company leader, with a strong governance and corporate finance background. Previously, he held several senior roles including managing director at Bryah Resources (ASX:BYH) and Horseshoe Metals (ASX:HOR).
Sam Garrett – Technical Director
Sam Garrett has more than 30 years of exploration management, project assessment and operational experience with multinational and junior mining and exploration companies, including Phelps Dodge and Cyprus Gold. He has a background in copper and gold exploration with strong exposure to iron ore, base metals and specialist commodities. He is associated with discoveries at Mt Elliott (copper), Havieron (copper-gold), and Tujuh Bukit (gold). Moreover, he co-founded Flynn Gold and its predecessor Pacific Trends Resources.
John Forwood – Non-executive Director
John Forwood is a director and chief investment officer of Lowell Resources Funds Management (LRFM). He is qualified as a lawyer and geologist and has more than 20 years of resources financing experience, including with ASX-listed Lowell Resources Trust (ASX:LRT), as a director of RMB Resources, and as manager of Telluride Investment Trust.
This article was written in collaboration with Couloir Capital.
DLE Pilot Plant Produces High Quality Eluate
- The DLE pilot plant has produced high quality eluate with low impurities
- The performance of the DLE process is based on the composition of the eluate achieving key metrics of:
- A lithium grade in feed brine of 196mg/L was concentrated to 710mg/L in the eluate, or a 3.6X concentration factor
- Lithium adsorption recovery rate of 94%
- Rejection rates over 99% for key contaminants calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium and sulphate
- A reverse osmosis unit at the DLE pilot plant is used to concentrate the eluate prior to shipment, concentrating the test batch from a lithium grade of 710mg/L in the eluate to 2,194mg/L in the concentrated eluate
- An initial 200L of concentrated eluate has been sent to a third-party processor in North America for test work to set up the process plant for conversion of eluate into battery grade lithium carbonate
- CTL will ship batches of 24m3 of the concentrated eluate for conversion with the first batch scheduled for later this month
- The pilot plant in Copiapó has demonstrated that it can operate at the designed capacity of concentrated eluate production sufficient for conversion to 1 tonne per month of battery grade lithium carbonate
- This places CleanTech Lithium at the forefront of exploration companies in Chile and the wider sector, in its ability to make available large samples of lithium carbonate product to potential strategic and offtake partners seeking to start product qualification
Steve Kesler, Executive Chairman, of CleanTech Lithium PLC, said:
"The analysis of the eluate shows the DLE performance has exceeded our expectations, concentrating the lithium grade of the feed brine by 3.6X while achieving high recovery rates and low impurities. The first full batch of 24m3 of concentrated eluate is scheduled to be shipped in the coming weeks. The pilot plant has met its design capacity capable of producing 1 tonne of LCE per month, positioning CleanTech Lithium to produce significant quantities of lithium product samples for potential strategic partners. We are edging closer to be one of the first DLE based companies in Chile to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate."
Further Information
The Company´s DLE pilot plant is in Copiapó, Chile, approximately 250km from Laguna Verde, and finished commissioning in late March. At the R&D centre where the pilot plant is located, brine from the Laguna Verde project is stored in a large 243,000 litre vessel outside the pilot plant and then fed into an indoor tank having passed through filtration to remove suspended solids. It is then fed into the DLE columns shown in Figure 1, which are filled with adsorbent designed to be selective for lithium molecules. Lithium, as lithium chloride, is adsorbed from the brine, before desorption with water to create a purified lithium chloride eluate.
A reverse osmosis (RO) unit at the DLE pilot plant, as shown in Figure 2, then concentrates the eluate by extracting approximately 75% of the water before this concentrated eluate is shipped to the facilities of Conductive Energy in Chicago, USA for conversion into battery grade lithium carbonate. A 200L batch of concentrated eluate was recently air freighted to Conductive Energy for test-work to optimise the planned conversion process before larger volumes of concentrated eluate, which will be shipped in 24m3 containers, are dispatched with the first such shipment scheduled for later this month.
|
|
Fig. 1: Pilot Plant Multi-Valve Feeding Brine to DLE Columns (approx. 2.5 metres high) | Fig. 2: Reverse Osmosis Unit Used to Concentrate Eluate at the Pilot Plant |
Brine is processed at the DLE pilot plant in cycles where each cycle represents the 30-hour sequence of adsorption, displacement wash and desorption using all 30 of the DLE columns to process the feed brine into eluate. The 200L test batch provides a representative sample taken from the first two DLE cycles completed at the pilot plant. Analysis of the feed brine, eluate and concentrated eluate is provided in Table 1 below.
Element (ions) | Unit | Feed Brine | Eluate | Concentrated Eluate |
Boron (B) | mg/L | 451 | 279 | 411 |
Calcium (Ca) | mg/L | 640 | 2 | 7 |
Chloride (Cl) | mg/L | 70,893 | 3,429 | 11,039 |
Lithium (Li) | mg/L | 197 | 710 | 2,194 |
Magnesium (Mg) | mg/L | 2,293 | 4 | 14 |
Potassium (K) | mg/L | 4,533 | 0 | 0 |
Sodium (Na) | mg/L | 48,776 | 20 | 134 |
Sulphate (SO4) | mg/L | 7,768 | 91 | 103 |
Total Dissolve Solids (TDS) | mg/L | 142,432 | 4,837 | 19,260 |
Table 1: Composition of Feed Brine, Eluate and Concentrated Eluate (Major Ions)
The concentration of lithium from 197mg/L in the feed brine to 710mg/L in the eluate is 3.6X, which is considered to be a very positive result. DLE primarily acts as a purification stage, recovering lithium chloride from the brine whilst rejecting other impurities. For all the major ions in the brine, apart from boron, the rejection rate was 99% or higher and almost 100% for the largest impurity in the brine which is sodium, as shown in Table 2 below. The adsorbent shows very good selectivity for these ions with extremely high selectivity for lithium to sodium.
The low selectivity for boron is expected with the Company´s process flow sheet, as described in the completed Laguna Verde scoping study, which includes a boron removal stage using ion exchange. The current process flow sheet also includes a nano-filtration stage for magnesium and calcium as a high-level purification of these two elements is required before conversion to battery grade lithium carbonate. The very low levels of these two elements in the eluate indicates nanofiltration may not be required. CleanTech Lithium´s process team is also working on solutions that would reduce or eliminate the requirement for the Boron removal stage to further simplify the process.
Element (ion) | Rejection in Eluate |
Boron (B) | 38.1% |
Calcium (Ca) | 99.7% |
Magnesium (Mg) | 99.8% |
Potassium (K) | 100.0% |
Sodium (Na) | 100.0% |
Sulphate (SO4) | 98.8% |
Table 2: DLE Performance - Rejection of Major Impurities
The recovery rate in Cycle 2 was 94% in adsorption with an overall recovery after desorption of 89%. The desorption recovery rate is expected to be further optimised as the pilot plant stabilises over more operational cycles. The production rate achieved was 2.57 kg LCE/hr which meets or exceeds the design capacity of the plant.
Downstream Processing into Battery Grade LithiumCarbonate
For the conversion of the concentrated lithium chloride eluate into battery grade lithium carbonate, CleanTech Lithium has engaged a leading lithium concentration and refining company, Conductive Energy, based in Alberta, Canada, which has a conversion facility in Chicago, USA (see Figure 3). Concentrated eluate will be shipped in batches of 24m3, which corresponds to a shipping container, to the port of Los Angeles before transiting to Chicago.
|
|
|
Figure 3: Conductive Energy - Milling and Refining Equipment, Continuously Stirred Tank Reactor, and Lithium Carbonate product (pictures left to right) |
The first step will be to further concentrate the eluate using Forward Osmosis (FO), with the FO unit provided by Forward Water Technology, another Canadian company based in Ontario. FO achieves a high concentration factor with low energy use. Following FO, the conversion process stages undertaken by Conductive Energy, involve polishing by ion exchange to remove trace impurities, carbonation to precipitate lithium carbonate, solid/liquid separation and drying. These standard industry processes for lithium carbonate production are reflective of the conversion process CleanTech Lithium plans to use at a commercial scale for the Laguna Verde project.
Samples of the lithium carbonate product will be analysed by Conductive Energy and a third-party independent laboratory to confirm the benchmark of 99.5% Li2CO3 is achieved for battery grade lithium carbonate. The product will be packaged for shipping to potential strategic partners and off-takers for product verification in the coming months.
Competent Persons
The following professional acts as qualified person, as defined in the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies (June 2009) and JORC Code (2012):
Marcelo Bravo: Chemical Engineer (Universidad Católica del Norte), has a Master's Degree in Engineering Sciences major in Mineral Processing, Universidad de Antofagasta. He currently works as a Senior Process Consulting Engineer at the Ad-Infinitum company. Mr Bravo has relevant experience in researching and developing potassium, lithium carbonate, and solar evapo-concentration design processes in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia. Mr Bravo, who has reviewed and approved the information contained in the chapters relevant to his expertise contained in this announcement, is registered with No. 412 in the public registry of Competent Persons in Mining Resources and Reserves per the Law of Persons Competent and its Regulations in force in Chile. Mr Bravo has sufficient experience relevant to the metallurgical tests and the type of subsequent processing of the extracted brines under consideration and to the activity being carried out to qualify as a competent person, as defined in the JORC Code. Mr Bravo consents to the inclusion in the press release of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
The information communicated within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain. The person who arranged for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company was Gordon Stein, Director and CFO.
For further information contact: | |
CleanTech Lithium PLC | |
Steve Kesler/Gordon Stein/Nick Baxter | Jersey office: +44 (0) 1534 668 321 Chile office: +562-32239222 |
Or via Celicourt | |
Celicourt Communications Felicity Winkles/Philip Dennis/Ali AlQahtani | +44 (0) 20 7770 6424 cleantech@celicourt.uk |
Beaumont Cornish Limited (Nominated Adviser) Roland Cornish/Asia Szusciak | +44 (0) 20 7628 3396 |
Canaccord Genuity (Joint Broker) James Asensio | +44 (0) 20 7523 4680 |
Fox-Davies Capital Limited (Joint Broker) | +44 (0) 20 3884 8450 |
Daniel Fox-Davies |
Beaumont Cornish Limited ("Beaumont Cornish") is the Company's Nominated Adviser and is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Beaumont Cornish's responsibilities as the Company's Nominated Adviser, including a responsibility to advise and guide the Company on its responsibilities under the AIM Rules for Companies and AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers, are owed solely to the London Stock Exchange. Beaumont Cornish is not acting for and will not be responsible to any other persons for providing protections afforded to customers of Beaumont Cornish nor for advising them in relation to the proposed arrangements described in this announcement or any matter referred to in it.
Notes
CleanTech Lithium (AIM:CTL, Frankfurt:T2N, OTCQX:CTLHF) is an exploration and development company advancing sustainable lithium projects in Chile for the clean energy transition. Committed to net-zero, CleanTech Lithium's mission is to produce material quantities of sustainable battery grade lithium products using Direct Lithium Extraction technology powered by renewable energy. The Company plans to be a leading supplier of 'green' lithium to the EV and battery manufacturing market.
CleanTech Lithium has two key lithium projects in Chile, Laguna Verde and Francisco Basin, and hold licences in Llamara and Salar de Atacama, located in the lithium triangle, a leading centre for battery grade lithium production. The two major projects: Laguna Verde and Francisco Basin are situated within basins controlled by the Company, which affords significant potential development and operational advantages. All four projects have direct access to existing infrastructure and renewable power.
CleanTech Lithium is committed to using renewable power for processing and reducing the environmental impact of its lithium production by utilising Direct Lithium Extraction with reinjection of spent brine. Direct Lithium Extraction is a transformative technology which removes lithium from brine, with higher recoveries than conventional extraction processes. The method offers short development lead times with no extensive site construction or evaporation pond development so there is minimal water depletion from the aquifer. www.ctlithium.com
Strong Lithium Anomalism Continues at Dundas Project
Highlights
- Positive assays for the Company’s 96 hole, 3,820m Aircore drill campaign1 on tenement E63/2000 have now been received
- Assays have returned elevated lithium values on composite samples with peak results of 994ppm lithium, confirming and increasing the tenor of the previously identified anomalism
- Results highlight three sites of interest which exhibit correlated elevations in lithium and pathfinder elements supporting continued exploration
Strong assay results have continued at the Company’s Dundas South Project within tenement E63/2000 following completion of drilling in February 2024. Results continue to demonstrate the presence of elevated lithium across the project area with strategies now being reviewed to identify the potential source of the anomalous lithium values. The staged approach to exploration across the Company’s Dundas projects continues to build confidence in lithium potential throughout the region.
Lightning Minerals Managing Director Alex Biggs said, “Drilling on E63/2000 has yielded positive results that suggest we are potentially closing in on what might be a source of lithium mineralisation. The staged approach we have taken: geophysics, soil sampling, infill soil sampling and now Aircore drilling have helped us identify the areas of highest importance and we will continue to follow up on these with further targeted drilling. It also demonstrates that this approach to exploration works, while at the same time conserving capital and ensuring maximum value proposition for exploration expenditure.
The Company remains committed to its exploration at its Dundas project and is excited to begin exploration at its newly acquired Caraíbas and Sidrônio projects in Brazil’s Lithium Valley region of Minas Gerais. It is important that we generate optionality in our exploration strategy and we now hold projects in three of the most prospective lithium districts in the world: Minas Gerais, Brazil, Dundas, Western Australia and Quebec, Canada. We remain excited about the Company’s project’s potential and are supportive of the overall lithium thematic”.
Drilling Results for Dundas Tenement E63/2000
During early 2023 Lightning Minerals completed a first pass reconnaissance soil geochemistry program consisting of 1,391 soil samples at its Dundas South Project. Results within tenements E63/2000 and E63/1993 defined a broad lithium in-soil anomaly over an approximate 2.4km x 1.0km area, including a peak result of 218ppm lithium (Figure 1). Infill sampling was then completed to further define anomalism and to delineate drill targets through the shallow regolith and alluvial cover present in the area. The positive results of the infill program were sufficient to support the continuation of exploration activities through Aircore drilling.
Figure 1: Dundas South tenement E63/2000 and E63/1993 showing UFF+ lithium soil geochemistry results and recent Aircore drill collar locations (white)
The maiden drill program within E63/2000 was then completed in February 2024 and assays have now been received for all samples submitted for laboratory analysis. Results show three sites of interest, these exhibit broadly correlated elevations in pathfinder elements within highly weathered saprolites. Two of the three sites (Drill Traverse 4 and 6, Figure 2) are located on the eastern extents of east west orientated drill lines and will require follow up exploration to continue vectoring toward any potential lithium mineral system that may be responsible for the elevated results.
Samples were collected from all holes using a 4m composite sampling technique from surface. The samples were then submitted to Nagrom laboratories for a full suite of exploration stage low level elemental analysis. Lithological logging via suitably qualified contract geologists reported a range of end of hole (EOH) rock types including mafic volcanics, granites, and metasediments, with some holes ending at hard undifferentiated saprock/saprolite boundaries.
Click here for the full ASX Release
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.
Flynn Gold Investor Kit
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects