A reassessment of exploration data by Askari Metals has revealed a “corridor of interest” about 15km long and 5km wide and with visible lithium mineralisation at the company’s Uis project in Namibia.
Management says planning is now underway to focus its exploration activity on the intriguing new area, as the explorer also evaluates recent acquisitions near its project.
Askari Metals chief exploration and project manager (Africa) Cliff Fitzhenry said: “After re-assessing and re-interpreting all results received to date, as well as visiting the project site and areas of confirmed lithium mineralisation, we have defined a new, highly prospective “corridor of interest”. Going forward, we will embark on a more traditional and systematic exploration strategy focused on this zone, which will allow us to generate high confidence targets which we will aim to drill test and fast track. This latest discovery is an exciting development for the company following an aggressive exploration campaign at the Uis lithium project.”
The Uis project is made up of two areas known as EPL 7345 and EPL 8535. Previous rock-chip sampling across the ground has seen 749 rock-chip samples collected from EPL 7345 and 292 from EPL 8535. Highlights from the program include rock-chip samples going up to 3.32 per cent lithium.
The project sits less than 5km from the township of Uis and less than 2.5km from Andrada Mining’s operating lithium-tin-tantalum mine in west-central Namibia that hosts a 2012 JORC mineral resource of 81 million tonnes grading 0.73 per cent lithium and 0.15 per cent tin. It is also less than 230km from the deep-water port of Walvis Bay and management says infrastructure in the region is readily-accessible, with a well-maintained network of roads direct to site and easy access to power and water.
Notably, the new zone sits along strike from Andrada’s mine and its Spodumene Hill B1/C1 project. Recent drilling at Spodumene Hill has included headline intersections including 14.52m at 1.38 per cent lithium, 285 parts per million tantalum and 0.131 per cent tin from 15m, containing 5m going 2.32 per cent lithium from 18m and 2.5m running 2.04 per cent lithium from 25.5m.
Based on the figures tossed up by the company’s reassessment, it is now focusing on its new zone by using traditional exploration methods, including geochemical soil sampling, trenching and high-resolution remote sensing data in order to define drill targets. Once Askari can get its hands on a drill rig, it plans to wheel it straight out onto its Uis project.
Earlier this month, the company added to the size of its project by 68.2 square kilometres by securing full ownership of a new tenement in an area known for its lithium, tantalum, tin and rubidium mineralisation. Management says its strategic purchase of the tenement, known as EP 7626, takes its total landholding in the area to about 380sq km … and it is still on the lookout for more acquisitions.
At the other end of the lithium production line, Telsa boss Elon Musk signalled this week that he would continue to cut prices on electric vehicles (EVs), even though his price war with automaker rivals was squeezing his company's own margins.
Tesla has reduced prices several times in the United States, China and other markets since late last year, in addition to increasing discounts and other incentives to reduce inventory, as it tries to shield against growing competition and economic turbulence.
But with the competition among EV-makers heating up, Askari is keen to find out how much lithium it has lurking under the surface as it looks to dangle some more of it under the noses of the mineral-hungry auto giants.
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By Steve Kaless
