AUSTRALIAN lithium developer, Core Lithium, has announced a world-class, high-grade lithium intersection of 107m at 1.70pc Li2O at the BP33 Prospect within its wholly owned Finniss Lithium Project, situated near Darwin in the Northern Territory.
The discovery of the coarse spodumene crystals is an outstanding find and will add life to the Finnis project.
Managing Director, Stephen Biggins, said the find of more than 100m of high-grade lithium mineralisation, located 25km from Australia’s closest port to Asia, highlighted the natural advantages the Finniss Project has regarding quality and cost.
“We are confident in having the Finniss Project construction-ready in early 2020, so that we are well-positioned to be Australia’s next sustainable lithium producer as market conditions continue to improve,” he said.
This exceptional result signifies that the primary pegmatite body at BP33 continues for at least a further 100m vertically and remains open at 400m vertical depth.
The discovery of the new spodumene pegmatite intersections offer an opportunity to considerably increase ore reserves and mine life via cost efficient underground mining of the with the potential to develop Grants as a simple open-cut mining operation.
The coarse nature of the find allows recovery of the lithium by the simple process of gravity dense media separation, which carries lower processing costs, lower capital expenditure and therefore an attractive risk level.
Other drilling programs also indicate positive results.
The Finnis Lithium Project benefits from its proximity to Darwin Port, the closest Australian port to Asia.
The location is also within 25km of a power station, gas and convenient to an established workforce residing in the city of Darwin, saving costs on village accommodation and transport and energy infrastructure.
Opportunities have been highlighted at BP33 and the neighbouring Carlton Prospect to increase ore reserves and mine life through economically advanced mining methods.
