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Quarterly Activities Report - March Quarter 2022
Arcadia Minerals Ltd (ASX:AM7, FRA:8OH) (Arcadia, AM7 or the Company), the diversified exploration company targeting a suite of projects aimed at Lithium, Tantalum, Nickel, Copper and Gold in Namibia, is pleased to provide its quarterly activities report for the period ending March 2022.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Satellite and aerial photo interpretation of the Bitterwasser license areas identify total of 14 exposed surface pans totalling 9 594 hectares.
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: 64 auger drill holes completed at the Eden Pan (1 of the 14 known pans) for 412.60 m of core
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Assay results for 32 of the 64 holes drilled over the Eden Pan on a 500m grid has been received
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Mineralogical test work conducted on a composite sample produced during the current drilling campaign identified the Bitterwasser clay mineral as the favoured montmorillonite
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Initial unoptimised leach test work on the Bitterwasser lithium clays conducted at the University of Stellenbosch, indicate that an organic acid attained up to 78% recoveries and could be used to extract lithium from the Bitterwasser clays
- Swanson Tantalum Project: A 29-hole diamond drilling campaign totalling 1,217.54 m, focussed on possibly expanding the existing open-pit Mineral Resource over eight of the fifteen known pegmatites comprising the Swanson Swarm, have been completed1,2 .
- Swanson Tantalum Project: 3 drill holes over the D-pegmatite returned intersections with an average true width of 10.62 m @ 372 g/t Ta2O5, 26 drill holes over the F and E-pegmatites returned intersections with an average width of 1.58m @ 583 g/t Ta2O51,2
SUMMARY OF MINING EXPLORATION FOR THE QUARTER
Swanson Tantalum Project
In February a total of 29 diamond drill holes, totalling 1,217.54 m of drilling was completed. All the holes contained pegmatite intersections, have been sampled and were sent to Scientific Services Laboratory in South Africa for analyses. Significant drill results are summarised below, additional information can be reviewed in the original market announcements.
Three holes were drilled to possibly increase the openpit potential of the D Pegmatite area
The drillhole database has now been delivered to Snowden Mining Consultants to commence a review and update of the Mineral Resource Estimate, which is expected to be completed by Q2/2022. Once completed successfully, the updated Mineral Resource will form the basis of a feasibility study that is currently underway over the project.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Arcadia 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.
Drilling Completed At Karibib Copper-Gold Project
HIGHLIGHTS
- 551m (10-hole) Reverse Circulation (RC) Drilling program completed, with visual mineralisation encountered in 8 of the 10 holes
- Drilling only covered a 3km x 1km section of the 20km x 2km metasedimentary structure defined, where previous sampling included mineralisation grades of1:
- Average 4.32% Cu/1.49 g/t Au (Highest 28.4% Cu/7.65 g/t Au) in skarn-type, AND
- Average 1.94% Cu/2.06 g/t Au (Highest 5.69% Cu/26.3 g/t Au) in vein-type
- Visual inspection of RC-chip samples confirmed the interception of lithologies containing known mineralisation
- Mineralisation of sulphides and oxides (Chalcopyrite, Bornite, Pyrrhotite, Malachite and Azurite) were observed in RC-chip samples
- Samples dispatched to Scientific Services in Cape Town, South Africa for assay
- Results expected to be received by end of October 2022
- Electro-magnetic survey underway to delineate detailed structural features associated with mineralisation
The drilling program consisted of 10 drill holes drilled at a -60 and -75 degree inclination and at varied azimuths and depths dependent on the inferred geometry and geology of the targeted zone (refer to table 1 attached hereto as Annexure 1). Visual mineralisation was successfully encountered in drill holes KRC01, KRC02, KRC03, KRC07, KRC09, KRC10, KRC11 and KRC13. As a consequence, an additional hole was drilled to intersect mineralisation at deeper depth. Drilling only covered a 3km x 1km section of the 20km x 2km metasedimentary structure previously defined by a grab sampling program. A location map of the drilled holes is attached hereto as Annexure 2.
240 samples were taken from lithologies that are known to contain mineralisation in the area, and dispatched to Scientific Services in Cape Town, South Africa for assay. Results expected to be received by end of October 2022.
On the 7th of September 2021 the Company announced1 results from a grab sampling program over an inferred 20 km x 2 km metasedimentary structural feature. This structure contains similar geology than that encountered at the nearby Navachab Mine (5.3MozAu)2 and by various other explorers for gold mineralisation in the area, such as Osino Resources who developed its Twin Hills prospect3 (located 45km also within the Karibib gold belt) to contain a Mineral Resource of 2.1MozAu.
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This article includes content from Arcadia 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.
Drilling Commenced At Karibib Copper-Gold Project
HIGHLIGHTS
- 526m (9-hole) Reverse Circulation (RC) Drilling program commenced
- Drilling targets focussed on lithologies known to contain mineralisation following comprehensive mapping and from previously attained grab sampling data
- Previous sampling reported a 20km x 2km metasedimentary structural feature, with mineralisation grades of:
- Average 4.32% Cu/1.49 g/t Au (Highest 28.4% Cu/7.65 g/t Au) in skarn-type, AND
- Average 1.94% Cu/2.06 g/t Au (Highest 5.69% Cu/26.3 g/t Au) in vein-type
- Aim of drilling program is to intersect significant mineralisation and to obtain a better understanding of the geology
- Geological environment similar to Navachab (5.3MozAu) and Twin Hills (2.1MozAu)1
Philip le Roux, the CEO of Arcadia stated: “Our focus with this drilling program is to test the geological horizons identified from our previously announced grab sampling program and recent comprehensive mapping, which horizons are considered most prospective for mineralisation based on previously received results. Once drilling has been completed, we should know a lot more about the tenor of mineralisation to shallow depths, which may warrant further drilling”.
Drilling Program
The drilling program is expected to consist of 9 drill holes drilled at a 60 degree inclination and at varied azimuths and depths dependent on the inferred geometry and geology of the targeted zone. Dependant on whether visual mineralisation is encountered in drill holes, an additional 3 holes will be drilled. A location map of the planned drill holes is attached hereto as Annexure 2.
On the 7th of September 2021 the Company announced2 results from a grab sampling program over an inferred 20 km x 2 km metasedimentary structural feature (See Figure 1 below). This structure contains similar geology than that encountered at the nearby Navachab Mine (5.3MozAu)3 and by various other explorers for gold mineralisation in the area, such as Osino Resources who developed its Twin Hills prospect4 (located 45km also within the Karibib gold belt) to contain a Mineral Resource of 2.1MozAu.
Results attained from the grab sampling program at Karibib were impressive, and were taken from lithology identified as either Skarn-type or Vein-type mineralisation:
Skarn-type mineralisation returned average copper mineralisation of 4.32 % Cu, with a highest value of 28.40% Cu. Average gold values of 1.49 g/t Au were returned, with a highest value of 7.65 g/t Au. Significant Silver mineralisation was also encountered (av. 50.50 g/t Ag with highest 453 g/t Ag) and up to 1% Tungsten.
Vein-type mineralisation returned average results of 1.94% Cu (highest 5.69% Cu), 2.06 g/t Au (highest 26.30 g/t Au) and 12.68 g/t Ag (highest 30.10 g/t Ag).
Both vein- and skarn-type mineralisation is known to contain economic mineralisation in the area5, and were encountered on or near the contact margins of large diorite intrusions.
Following the receipt of the high-grade sampling results and newly attained knowledge of the geology of the area, the Company conducted follow-up work by identifying locally occurring favourable geological settings which are likely to host diorite-proximal skarn- and vein-type mineralisation suitable for drilling.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Arcadia 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.
Quarterly Activities Report – June Quarter 2022
Arcadia Minerals Limited (ASX:AM7, FRA:8OH) (Arcadia, AM7 or the Company), the diversified exploration company targeting a suite of battery metal projects aimed at Lithium, Tantalum, Nickel, Copper and Gold in Namibia, is pleased to provide its quarterly activities report for the period ending June 2022.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Final assay results for remaining 32 of the 64 holes drilled over the Eden Pan on a 500m grid received
- Bitterwasser Lithium Project: Regional investigation into Bitterwasser Lithium-in-clay and Lithium-in-brines minerals system defined extensive tectonic rift-related fault structures in a closed basin (the Kalkrand half-graben), similar to Clayton Valley in Nevada1
- Kum-Kum Nickel Project: Historical core samples obtained during investigation were sampled and returned the first known record of PGE and Au mineralisation in the ultramafic units of the Tantalite Valley Complex. The best results indicated mineralisation of2:
- 0.71% Ni, 0.28% Cu, 0.84 g/t Pd and 0.4 g/t Pt in orthopyroxenite
- 0.58% Ni, 0.30% Cu, 0.69 g/t Pd, 0.31 g/t Pt and 0.26% Au in orthopyroxenite
- Swanson Tantalum Project: Mineral Resource update delivers an estimate for a total indicated and inferred resource of 2.59Mt (an increase of 115%) at an average grade of 486 ppm Ta2O5 (an increase of 17.9%), 73 ppm Nb2O5 and 0.15 % Li2O.3 An Environmental Clearance Certificate and Mining Licence was also issued for the project.
1 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 09 May 2022 titled “Regional study advances work program for district scale Lithium in brines”
2 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 09 May 2022 titled “Kum-kum nickel project mineral systems approach results”
3 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 06 May 2022 titled “JORC Mineral Resource at Swanson Tantalum project doubles in size
SUMMARY OF MINING EXPLORATION FOR THE QUARTER
Bitterwasser Lithium Project
Assay results for the outstanding 32 drill holes from the 64-hole follow-up auger drilling campaign completed on 9 February 20224 over the Eden Pan was received during the quarter. All the drill holes commenced in the mineralised Upper Brown Clay Unit and every hole, except two drill holes where thin clay units were intercepted at the edges of the Eden Pan, were sampled from top to bottom up to a depth of 9.60m. Notably, the entire sequence of the drill holes sampled (i.e. Upper Brown Clay Unit and Middle Green Glay Unit) returned lithium mineralisation5.
Figure1: Stacked cross section of the Eden Pan depicting drill-hole interpretation with reference to the existing Mineral Resource (green layers) and clay units intercepted in the follow-up auger drilling program.
4 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 10 March 2022 titled “Encouraging lithium drilling assay results at Bitterwasser”.
5 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 2 May 2022 titled “Final Lithium Drilling assay results at Bitterwasser”.
6 Refer to ASX Announcement dated 3 November 2021 titled “Arcadia acquires lithium project with JORC Mineral Resources”.
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This article includes content from Arcadia 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.
Kum-Kum Nickel Project Mineral Systems Approach Results
Arcadia Minerals Ltd (ASX:AM7, FRA:8OH) (Arcadia or the Company), the diversified exploration company targeting a suite of projects aimed at Tantalum, Lithium, Nickel, Copper and Gold in Namibia, is pleased to announce that the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Stellenbosch concluded a Minerals Systems Approach investigation over the Kum-Kum Ni-Cu-PGE Project Licenses and delivered a report to the Company styled “Geological overview and sulphide mineralization potential of the Tantalite Valley Complex” by Drs. Martin Klausen and Bjorn von der Heyden & Mr Daniel Ferreira, Department of Earth Sciences, Stellenbosch University, May 2022, and this report will be made available on the Company’s website at www.arcardiaminerals.global.
- The Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Stellenbosch concluded a Minerals Systems Approach investigation over the Kum-Kum Ni-Cu-PGE Project Licenses
- During the investigation several historical documents containing exploration results over the Kum-Kum Project were discovered, which reported best historical borehole intersections from three boreholes drilled by Rio Tinto Exploration, Tantalite Valley Minerals and Southern Sphere between 1972 and 1976 as follows:
- 16.00 m @ 0.65% Ni, 0.16% Cu
- 6.00 m @ 0.61% Ni, 0.30% Cu
- 2.44 m @ 0.62% Ni, 0.30% Cu
- Historical core samples obtained were sampled and returned the first known record of PGE and Au mineralisation in the ultramafic units of the Tantalite Valley Complex. The best results indicated mineralisation of:
- 0.71% Ni, 0.28% Cu, 0.84 g/t Pd and 0.4 g/t Pt in orthopyroxenite
- 0.58% Ni, 0.30% Cu, 0.69 g/t Pd, 0.31 g/t Pt and 0.26% Au in orthopyroxenite
- The primary magmatic sulphides comprise of coarse-grained pentlandite, pyrrhotite, and chalcopyrite
- Whole rock geochemistry highlights the geochemical similarities between the TVC and the Kum-Kum complexes. The TVC crystallized as a mafic/ultramafic layered intrusion and likely from a primitive mantle-derived parental magma.
Philip le Roux, the CEO of Arcadia stated:
“Historical drilling results reporting high values of Nickel and Copper mineralisation attracted us to the Kum-Kum Project. From the work done by the team from the University of Stellenbosch it is evident that PGE and Au mineralisation is also present and that we are looking at a geological environment that possibly could contain a stratiform Ni-Cu-PGE disseminated sulphide ‘reef’ horizon. The prospect of possibly discovering a polymetallic (Ni, Cu, Au & PGE’s) deposit has increased the allure of the KumKum Project for us, which we will eagerly follow up with further exploration. The results of the study will assist the Company to focus its exploration efforts in order to define drill targets.”
Mineral Systems Approach Results
The Tantalite Valley Complex (TVC) has been subject to a geological study by a team from Arcadia and the University of Stellenbosch involving two field sampling campaigns (8 days; 94 field samples collected) augmented with detailed consideration of historical drill core segments (57 samples), and supporting data from historical records, hyperspectral mapping, and stream sediment sampling.
Collected field- and core- samples were subjected to a suite of analytical protocols including reflected- and transmitted-light optical petrography, whole-rock major and trace element chemistry, precious metal assays, sulphur isotope analyses, scanning electron microscopy with associated spectrometries and in-situ Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) of individual sulphide grains. Together, these results provide novel insights into the known mineralisation and prospectively of the TVC.
The TVC is a ~7 km long by 3.3 km wide and roughly oval-shaped mafic-ultramafic complex representing a fault-bound block inside a dextral Pofadder Shear Zone (PSZ) that cuts across southern Namibia. Existing geochronology places the TVC as a ~1.2 Ga intrusion and roughly coeval with a Kum Kum Klippe mafic complex that is located roughly 40 km south-east and along the strike of the PSZ.
Whole rock geochemistry highlights the geochemical similarities between the TVC and the Kum Kum suite, but with the former uniquely showing much stronger geochemical evidence for overwhelmingly cumulate rocks. This implies that the TVC crystallized as a significant mafic/ultramafic layered intrusion and likely from a primitive mantle-derived parental magma that originated from a metasomatized mantle.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Arcadia 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.
Broad High Grade Lithium Intersections Extend BP33
Advanced Australian lithium developer, Core Lithium Ltd (Core or Company) (ASX: CXO), is pleased to provide an update on exploration activities and results from the Finniss Lithium Project (Finniss Project) near Darwin in the Northern Territory.
Highlights
- Broad and high-grade lithium intersections continue to be delivered at the Finniss Lithium Project near Darwin in the NT
- Two recent deep diamond drill holes at BP33 have produced high grade spodumene-rich intersections including:
- 57.35m @ 1.83% Li2O in NMRD016
- 51.0m @ 1.63% Li2O in FRCD023
- Significant southern extension to spodumene bearing pegmatiteatBP33identifiedinadditionalreversecirculation anddiamond drilling
- Intersections outside of the current Mineral Resource at BP33 expected to deliver substantial extensions
- Further drilling planned at BP33 for the coming field season
- Expanded exploration and resource drilling to recommence and ramp-up in early Q2 2022 across the Finniss Project
This article includes content from Core Lithium, 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.
Latest Drilling At Salinas Lithium Project Confirms Continuity And Thickening Of Pegmatites Along Strike And Down Dip
Latin Resources Limited (ASX: LRS) (“Latin” or “the Company”) is extremely pleased to confirm that the ongoing diamond drilling campaign at the Company’s Salinas Lithium Project in Brazil (“Salinas” or the “Project”), is continuing to intersect thick, shallow dipping spodumene rich pegmatites, with SADD003 returning a best intercept of 16.17m true thickness. (Figure1).
HIGHLIGHTS
- Three diamond holes completed, with all three intersecting multiple spodumene bearing pegmatites, confirming strike and dip continuity.
- All pegmatites are open along strike and downdip.
- Drilling 180m along strike to the south has intersected 16.17m (true thickness) spodumene bearing pegmatites.
- Drillinghasconfirmedthe“pinch and swell”natureofthepegmatitesatSalinas, highlighting the significant nature of this greenfields discovery.
- Drilling of the 14-hole program is ongoing, with SADD004 currently underway testing the down dip extensions of pegmatites intersected in SADD003.
As previously reported, the Company’s initial drillhole SADD001, intersected three separate spodumene bearing pegmatites down dip from high-grade lithium outcrop samples1. Drilling of the next two holes is now complete, with SADD002 targeting approximately 100m down dip from SADD001, and SADD003 some 180m to the south along strike (Appendix 1) (Figure 2). All three holes have intersected the same three layers of pegmatites
Figure 1: SADD003 – spodumene bearing pegmatite 65.6-81.77m, (16.17m true thickness) intersected in diamond drilling approximately 180m along strike to the south of previously reported intersections1
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This article includes content from latin Resources, 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.
Saga Metals and Rio Tinto Form Joint Venture for Legacy Lithium Project in Québec
Privately owned explorer Saga Metals has announced the execution of an option to joint venture agreement with Rio Tinto Exploration Canada (RTEC) for its Legacy lithium project in Québec, Canada.
Announced on Wednesday (July 3), the deal outlines the terms under which RTEC can acquire up to a 75 percent interest in the asset through staged investments and exploration expenditures.
The Legacy lithium project, located in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Québec, is comprised of 663 claims covering 34,243 hectares and features 100 kilometers of striking paragneiss.
Under the agreement, RTEC, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO,NYSE:RIO,LSE:RIO), has the opportunity to earn an initial 51 percent stake in the project over four years by meeting financial and exploration commitments.
To earn the initial 51 percent interest, RTEC will have to make cash payments totaling C$410,190 to Saga by August 11 of this year. Additionally, RTEC is committed to spending C$9,571,100 on exploration activities, including a firm commitment of at least C$1,709,125 within the first 20 months of the agreement.
Upon earning its first 51 percent interest, RTEC has the option to increase its stake to 75 percent over an additional five year period. This second option requires RTEC to invest an additional C$34,182,500 in exploration.
During both the first and second option periods, RTEC will serve as the project operator for Legacy, overseeing the exploration and development activities. A technical committee made up of members from both Saga and RTEC will be established to review and prepare the exploration programs for the site.
“This marks a significant milestone in the Company’s development and creates a non-dilutive pathway for the necessary capital to properly explore our Legacy Lithium Project over the coming years,” said Mike Stier, Saga's CEO and director.
In a related development, on Tuesday (July 2), Saga entered into an agreement with two undisclosed private vendors to acquire a 100 percent interest in the Amirault lithium property, also in Québec.
Amirault, which is contiguous to Legacy, covers an area of 31,347 hectares and expands Saga’s holdings within the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region to a total of 65,849 hectares — an increase of over 1,274 claims.
In the release, Stier notes that Saga continues to move toward an initial public offering.
“We are working through the regulatory process and anticipate filing our final prospectus in the coming days," he said.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time news updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
New Drilling and Exploration Programs Launched for Critical Minerals and Gold Targets in World-Class Australian Mineral Provinces
Metals Australia Ltd (ASX: MLS) is ramping up exploration programs across Critical Minerals and gold targets on the three key projects acquired through the purchase of an 80% interest in Payne Gully Gold Pty Ltd (PGG)1.
- A series of new drilling and exploration programs have been launched, testing Critical Minerals and gold targets across three key project areas. These projects all lie along strike from major deposits in world-class mineral provinces in Western Australia and the Northern Territory (see locations, Figure 1).
- The exploration programs at these highly prospective projects, acquired through the purchase of an 80% interest in Payne Gully Gold Pty Ltd1, include:
- Initial drilling of un-tested key copper-gold target corridor at the Warrego East Copper-Gold Project within the Tennant Creek Mineral Field (TCMF) in the NT (see Figure 1), which has historically produced 25Mt @ 6.9 g/t Au and 2.8% Cu2. The granted Warrego East EL32725 lies directly east of Warrego, the largest historical mine at Tennant Creek, which produced 6.75Mt @ 1.9% Cu, 6.6 g/t Au2, and covers a fault corridor interpreted from detailed magnetics and the Company’s gravity survey that connects Warrego with the Gecko and Orlando copper-gold deposits (past production and resources 11Mt @ 2.3% Cu, 1.8 g/t Au2,3 – see Figure 2). A Mine Management Plan (MMP) has been submitted to the NT Government for approval for an extensive aircore drilling program and follow-up RC/diamond drilling across ironstone hosted copper-gold targets which have not been previously tested. The Company also has four EL applications in the TCMF, all of which sit on key mineralised corridors (see Figures 2 & 3).
- Initial drilling of lithium-pegmatite targets on the Warrambie Critical Minerals (Li, Ni-Cu-Co) Project in WA’s northwest Pilbara (see Figure 1). Warrambie is located just 10km east of the major Andover lithium discovery which has produced drilling intersections of up to 209m @ 1.42% Li2O4. Targets have been defined by detailed gravity and reprocessed magnetics imagery5 which are analogous to the Andover geophysical signature but have not previously been tested due to the presence of shallow soil cover. A Program of Work (PoW) has been submitted to the WA Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DEMIRS) for approval to drill a series of aircore drilling traverses and follow-up with RC or diamond drilling across identified lithium pegmatite targets (see Figures 4 & 5). This program is expected to commence during H2 2024.
- An aeromagnetic (fixed wing) survey is underway across the granted gold tenements located along strike to the northeast of the 5Moz Big Bell gold deposit in WA’s Murchison Gold Province. (see Figures 1 & 6). The tenements cover a 50km strike length of the regional scale Chunderloo Shear Zone and regional magnetics show potential for greenstone and potentially gold-mineralised splay structures which have not been tested in areas of cover1. The detailed aeromagnetics will define these targets prior to planned aircore drilling to test bedrock targets.
Metals Australia CEO Paul Ferguson commented:
“These new exploration programs are important steps in advancing our extensive and highly prospective Critical Minerals and gold projects in WA and the NT, which are all located along strike from major deposits in world-class mineralised terranes.
High-quality drilling targets have been identified by our geological team at the Tennant Creek project, east of the high-grade Warrego copper-gold mine, and at our Warrambie project in the northwest Pilbara, which is only 10km east of the major Andover lithium discovery. We have also commenced a detailed aeromagnetic survey across a large project area located directly along strike from the 5-million-ounce Big Bell mine in WA’s Murchison district.
With exploration programs across five key projects in Australia and Canada, the second half of 2024 will be an extremely exciting period for the Company as we look to unlock the value of our portfolio.”
The target areas being tested are all located along strike from major mineral deposits (see Figure 1, below).
Figure 1: Metals Australia key Critical Minerals and gold exploration projects in world-class mineral terranes (adapted from Geoscience Australia, Australian Mineral Deposits)
Warrego East Copper-Gold Targets, Tennant Creek, NT
The Company’s Tennant Creek Project includes granted EL32725 at Warrego East and four EL applications, EL32397, EL32837, EL32410 and the more recent EL33853, located in the Tennant Creek Mineral Field (TCMF) (see Figure 2 below).
The TCMF has produced 25Mt @ 6.9 g/t gold (Au) & 2.8% copper (Cu) historically2, the equivalent of more than 8.5Moz or $20 billion worth of gold at current prices, with all production coming from deposits in outcropping areas.
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This article includes content from Metals Australia Ltd, 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.
Gradiant's Water-focused Vision for DLE and Tailings Management
There are many companies vying to produce the direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology of choice, but privately owned Gradiant is one of the few that is taking a water-first approach.
Speaking with the Investing News Network (INN) at Fastmarkets' Lithium Supply and Battery Raw Materials Conference, held in Las Vegas from June 24 to 27, Anurag Bajpayee, co-founder and CEO, and Prakash Govindan, co-founder and COO, explained the company’s water-first philosophy and highlighted Gradiant’s current endeavors.
The water-focused company is the brainchild of both Bajpayee and Govindan, who founded the Boston-headquartered company while studying at MIT. Gradiant was developed to offer advanced water and wastewater treatment solutions for critical industries like mining, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and renewable energy.
Utilizing proprietary technologies, Gradiant’s goal is to reduce water use, minimize wastewater discharge, reclaim resources and convert wastewater into freshwater. To better serve the lithium sector, the company recently spun out alkaLi, a new company focused on scaling battery-grade lithium production using its proprietary EC2 technology.
As noted on the company's website, EC2 is designed to extract, concentrate and convert lithium quickly and efficiently, reducing operational costs and environmental impact. The technology, which adapts to various lithium sources and integrates with existing infrastructure, has been successfully tested and proven commercially.
“It's a startup that benefits from over a decade of experience, and from all the funding we have raised,” said Bajpayee.
For Govindan, Gradiant’s success in the water treatment space is a natural fit for the lithium extraction sector.
“The DLE space is glorified water treatment,” he explained while speaking with INN. “Adsorption, resins, ion exchange and membranes are our bread-and-butter water treatment processes. "
Gradiant's primary water focus and proprietary technologies give alkaLi an edge, noted Bajpayee.
“I think one difference is we are a water company trying to do DLE, not a DLE company trying to do water. Because you can't just do DLE — you either have to do water, or you have to partner with water companies,” the CEO explained.
alkaLi's EC2 is a flexible, three stage system designed to process lithium from various sources, including brine, evaporation and recycling. It can be used in full or in standalone stages, integrates with existing infrastructure and offers an option to boost production with Gradiant's SmartOps AI platform.
Extracting value from wastewater
While alkaLi is lithium centric, Gradiant has a long history of aiding the mining sector in the extraction of commodities from water. “We have worked across mining applications, not just critical minerals like nickel, cobalt and lithium, but also iron ore mines, uranium mines and other sectors,” said Govindan.
In his view, the mining sector has two very specific issues. First, in lithium processing, the mineral is found in water, requiring expertise in concentration, decontamination and conversion to produce battery-grade materials. This process is also applicable to nickel, cobalt and other critical minerals.
The second issue is wastewater treatment or tailings reprocessing, such as in Chile's copper mines, where tailing ponds contain critical minerals and highly polluting wastewater. The technology Gradiant has developed can reclaim valuable minerals while recycling wastewater into fresh water for industrial use.
Pointing to Chile's Atacama province, where water scarcity is a prominent issue, Govindan noted that as much as 60 percent of the potable water in the region is used for mining applications.
“When we recover and reuse that wastewater to the extent of 90 percent, we can reduce that 60 percent all the way down to 6 percent,” he said. “So it's a huge environmental impact, water sustainability impact.”
According to a 2023 article published in the journal "Science of the Total Environment," tailings reprocessing can reduce the amount of tailings that need to be stored, minimize the greenhouse gas emissions associated with new mining and supply approximately 2 percent of the EU’s future copper demand.
Govindan highlighted a nickel project in Australia, where the company was brought in to recover 20 percent of the nickel that wasn't recovered during processing, leading to losses in wastewater.
Gradiant proposed a solution to recover much of the lost nickel, significantly boosting the project's profitability.
Targeting tailings can also produce industrial water for reuse, as the Gradiant executives pointed out. Additionally, as Bajpayee noted, the processes used by Gradiant and alkaLi not only produce reusable water, but can also recover salt and other minerals, resulting in “true zero-discharge projects.”
Junior-focused business model
Being able to recover lost minerals while reusing water can lead to significant cost savings.
“Instead of selling the equipment and walking away, we will put it at the site and operate the equipment. The owner pays us per liter of water we produce, per tonne of lithium we produce, which really helps the juniors,” said Govindan.
“(Juniors) are in a capital-intensive industry, and when prices are US$12,000 per tonne for lithium, they're not able to raise capital. Then there is Gradiant, the only unicorn in the water tech space. We have an excellent balance sheet; also we are able to raise debt and equity capital, which we can use to help them by putting the equipment ourselves.”
EC2’s modular design makes it easy and fast to set up, which is another plus for junior miners looking to take advantage of future market trends quickly. “Two things are very important in terms of product philosophy for us (and) for lithium especially: productization and digitalization. The EC2 technology is very modular and it's very digital,” said Govindan.
“We have artificial intelligence; we have a SmartOps platform we developed for water treatment, but is lithium applicable. So we are able to provide highly modular, highly digitalized solutions.”
For companies looking to produce lithium hydroxide instead of carbonate, a simple converter can be implemented that converts carbonate to hydroxide, the executives explained.
Being a bespoke water-first company also makes the technologies developed by Gradiant versatile.
“Using variable brines is something that actually comes quite naturally to us,” said Bajpayee. “And the ability to customize solutions makes it also widely applicable, whether it's South America, the US or Australia.”
Aside from designing water solutions for industries like mining, Gradiant has developed technologies to target perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as forever chemicals.
Gradiant's ForeverGone is a comprehensive solution for permanently eliminating PFAS. Unlike current technologies that only transfer PFAS waste, ForeverGone uses micro-foam fractionation to concentrate PFAS, as well as a destruction engine for electro-oxidation to completely destroy the chemicals.
This process ensures water meets or exceeds US Environmental Protection Agency standards, offering an efficient, cost-effective and sustainable method for PFAS removal.
“(The goal is) to build an impact that will outlast you. That's the ultimate measure of success,” said Bajpayee.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
Jindalee Lithium Limited (ASX: JLL) – Reinstatement to Quotation
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The suspension of trading in the securities of Jindalee Lithium Limited (‘JLL’) will be lifted immediately, following the release by JRL of an announcement regarding a capital raising.
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