Latin Resources says its latest core assays, including a 9.25m intercept at a grade of 1.21 per cent lithium oxide from 395.29m, confirm the large-scale potential of its Salinas lithium project in Brazil.
In an ASX release today, the company says the same hole also yielded a separate 16.14m intercept running a grade of 1.29 per cent lithium oxide from 425m including 7.14m at 1.63 per cent from 434m.
Cumulative significant intercepts from the hole total 32.94m and further confirm the significant coarse-grained spodumene lithium mineralisation Latin observed during core logging. It comprises the company’s third major spodumene discovery – now known as the Planalto prospect – in the Salinas corridor.
2023 saw a series of major upgrades and increases to the Colina mineral resource, the declaration of a maiden mineral resource at Fog’s Block, and the discovery of the new Planalto Prospect. With 16 diamond drill rigs across the project, 2024 will be a busy year for us. Our primary focus will remain on developing the Colina deposit up to DFS, but we will continue exploration drilling at Planalto and Fog’s Block, and advance other targets in our large portfolio of peripheral tenements to drill-readiness. Latin Resources vice president of operations (Americas) Tony Greenaway
The 1km to 3km-wide Salinas corridor extends along a north-east/south-west trend across Latin’s tenement suite for about 12km, with the current main Colina resource target located at the corridor’s north-eastern extremity in the company’s north-easternmost license area. The new Planalto prospect area lies about 1.5km south-west of the southern boundary of the Colina deposit, with the intervening zone still untested.
The latest results come from the Planalto discovery hole which was put in last year to test a geophysical anomaly, attaining a maximum depth of 450m. Management says the discovery hole and resulting lithium analyses validate its initial spodumene identification.
Moreover, with Planalto sharing similar structural controls and host rocks to those at the nearby Colina deposit, the company’s hopes have been raised that mineralisation may extend through the intervening zone and may even link the two targets.
While the drill intercepts are deep, the company remains confident that the pegmatite system will extend towards the surface. Ultimately, if the Planalto pegmatites can be shown to run closer to surface and extend laterally along strike towards Colina, potential exists for significant expansion of the current lithium resource.
Latin is designing an extensive follow-up drilling program at Planalto to kick off early this year, with the aim of producing a maiden mineral resource estimate for the prospect.
More widely, management says last year was transformational, particularly through its delivery of exploration and development milestones at Salinas. It committed more than 209 diamond drill holes for 70,459m of drilling to define the Colina and Fog’s Block deposits and to identify several encouraging lithium prospects.
It released an updated Colina mineral resource estimate of 45.2 million tonnes at a grade of 1.34 per cent lithium oxide in June last year, based on 135 holes for 39,033m of drilling and updated it to 63.5 million tonnes at 1.3 per cent lithium oxide in December, based on a total of 198 holes for 64,769m of drilling.
The company also released a maiden mineral resource estimate at Fog’s Block for 6.8 million tonnes going 0.87 per cent lithium oxide and a conceptual estimated exploration target range for between 7 and 18 million tonnes at grades ranging from 0.8 to 1.1 per cent lithium oxide in December, both of which were based on 9 holes for 3,709.15m of drilling.
Overall, Latin says its current global measured, indicated and inferred mineral resource estimate on the Salinas project, which combines Colina and Fog’s Block estimates, stands at 70.28 million tonnes at a grade of 1.27 per cent lithium oxide.
The company has also undertaken a preliminary economic assessment of possible phase-one production from Colina in 2026 and has submitted likely ore material for dense media separation tests to examine the potential beneficiation of spodumene concentrate.
Meanwhile, in Australia, Latin says it is rationalising its tenure and spinning out its Lachlan Fold Belt (LFB) projects that now form part of a live initial public offer (IPO), in return for shares in Maverick Minerals.
Maverick is about to list on the ASX with a global portfolio of exploration projects in three high-profile mining and exploration jurisdictions – Western Australia (gold-nickel-lithium), New South Wales (copper-gold) and Ontario in Canada (lithium).
Latin has become a cornerstone investor in Maverick with 16.28 per cent ownership and board representation through its non-executive director Brent Jones. Shareholders will retain an interest in the LFB assets and will also be eligible to participate in a priority offer to raise up to $2.5 million.
The company’s latest quarterly report reveals that it held a healthy $51.8 million in cash and $2.3 million in investments at the end of December, after completing a $35 million raise through an institutional placement.
In all, Latin appears to be on a roll in Brazil with its Colina deposit and the tantalising thought of possible extensions into Planalto. With 16 drill rigs on the go and a healthy bank balance to support good drill hole densities and metreage, the company is poised for a robust 2024.
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