Future Battery Minerals has confirmed the presence of shallow and thick lithium-bearing claystone at its Lone Mountain prospect that forms part of its Nevada lithium project in the US State of the same name.
The company has recorded two whopping 170m hits at the operation that it says highlights a mineralised footprint that currently measures 3km by 1.3km, with a further 2km of prospective strike open to the south.
One hole recorded a 179.8m intercept going 766 parts per million lithium from 39.6m, including 19.8m at 1010ppm lithium from 80.8m. A second hole revealed a 170.7m hit grading 764ppm lithium from 67.1m to the end of the hole, including 27.4m at 1030ppm lithium from 112.8m.
Additional results show a 44.2m section reading 542ppm lithium from 114.3m, while a second hit from the same hole recorded a 22.9m hit at 652ppm lithium from 163.1m. The company has highlighted that the depth to higher-grade mineralisation has been confirmed as shallowing towards the surface to the south.
Management says the consistency of the thickness and lithium grades gives it the confidence to begin resource definition drilling, with a new campaign set to kick off next month once permits and planning have been completed.
Future Battery will use data from the third phase of drilling to calculate a maiden mineral resource for the operation and it expects to deliver it in the first quarter of next year. Samples will also be collected for early-stage metallurgical testing.
The company has also flagged exploring the opportunity for US federal grants to support funding for its ongoing testwork. US Department of Defence grants are available to encourage the investigation and advancement of the viability of critical minerals.
The assay results from the second round of drilling confirm the outstanding thick intercepts of lithium mineralised claystone, highlighting the significance of the discovery at the NLP. Importantly, the Li intercepts are shallowing to the south with mineralisation now identified at less than 40m down hole and up to 180m in down hole thickness. The significance of the scale is highlighted by the current mineralised east-west strike of 3km and north-south strike of 1.3km, which still remains open to the south for a further 2km. Future Battery Minerals technical director Robin Cox
Previous results from the company’s maiden drilling campaign in March featured 109.7m at 766 parts per million lithium from 135.6m, including 29m grading 1010ppm from 210m. Another hit returned 44.2m going 570ppm from 169m.
In June last year, Future Battery acquired an 80 per cent share in the Nevada operation from the shareholders of Nevada Australia, who will retain the remaining 20 per cent interest.
The project is in prime lithium real estate, with several big sedimentary-hosted deposits calling the area home. They include Ioneer Resources’ Rhyolite Ridge and American Lithium Corporation’s TLC lithium project. Albemarle’s Silver Peak operation, which is currently the only producing lithium mine in North America, lies about 45km to the west of the Nevada project.
Future Battery believes its Nevada project hosts the same geological makeup as its neighbouring sites. According to the latest Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies, the US State has overtaken Western Australia as the top mining jurisdiction in the world.
So, with a maiden mineral resource set to be revealed early next year, the company appears to be sitting in a prime position. The market seems to agree this morning with Future Battery’s share price jumping more than 28 per cent during intraday trading to touch 13.5 cents after closing at 10.5c before a trading halt on Tuesday.
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