Polymetallic mineral explorer Aldoro Resources has encountered its thickest pegmatite intersections to date. A third phase of drilling continues to churn out solid pegmatite intervals at the company’s Niobe lithium project 40 kilometres south of Leinster in WA. The campaign consisted of 13 RC holes with each one intersecting multiple pegmatite intervals. A total of 45 holes have been drilled to date over the three phases at Niobe.
The best pegmatite intersections recorded in the most recent program was a 26m wide pegmatitic interval, an 18m wide pegmatite and two separate hits of 17m thickness the company says highlights the potential scale of the system.
According to management the recent drilling validates and extends both the phase 1 and phase 2 works in addition to the historic results at Niobe. The ongoing third campaign forms part of a larger 64-hole investigation of the project’s landholdings.
All results from the recent three phases of drilling at Niobe are still pending as the company waits to confirm the lithium and rubidium grades of the intersected pegmatites.
Not content to wait on the labs, Aldoro is utilising portable x-ray fluorescence, or an “XRF” gun to take preliminary readings on the mineral cocktail in the pegmatite to get ahead of the lengthy wait times for assays being experienced industry wide. Every metre of drilling is being analysed for an array of different lithium pathfinder elements by portable XRF to fast-track interpretation and assist further planning.
Once the planned 64-hole program has been completed and assays received, Aldoro aims to complete the first JORC lithium mineral resource estimate for the project.
Once the drill rig is finished at Niobe, it is then pencilled in to make its way over to the company’s Wyemandoo lithium and rubidium project located approximately 80km southeast of Mt Magnet. Work there aims to follow up on a spate of elevated rubidium and lithium values from pegmatite rock chip sampling that fetched grades up to 1.7 per cent rubidium and 2.12 per cent lithium from surface.
With lithium now among the top performing commodities on global exchanges – Aldoro looks to have made a strategic investment in its lithium assets at an opportune time. Should the drill results live up to the early indicators, a few pulses may start to quicken amongst Aldoro followers.
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By Matt Birney
