Lincoln Minerals (ASX: LML) says it has all the attributes needed to push it to the forefront of the global graphite supply chain – and it plans to show how at an Australian Government-led critical minerals trade mission to Europe next month.
The company says it will showcase the competitive advantages it believes it has at its Kookaburra graphite project (KGP) in South Australia, including its high-grade component of mineralised ore on an approved mining lease in a tier-one jurisdiction. It was invited to join the trade mission to the United Kingdom, France and Germany after appearing in Austrade’s 2023 edition of Australian Critical Minerals Prospectus.
The European Union’s annual trade mission will this year focus on graphite and lithium – two critical battery minerals that are expected to play a big role in future electric vehicle (EV) uptake. It will provide Lincoln with the opportunity to develop a network of offtakers in the EV battery space, in addition to companies involved in the automotive, defence, electronics and aerospace fields.
The opportunity comes amid significant supply chain tensions following China’s recent ban on exports, which has increased demand for new, quality sources of the material from outside that country.
Lincoln Minerals chief executive officer Jonathon Trewartha
Lincoln’s Kookaburra project, that sits about 35km north of the South Australian fishing town of Port Lincoln, will be the focus of its presentation at the trade mission to prospective companies needing to source the battery material. And the strong alliance that currently exists between Europe and Australia in the trading of various commodities is another factor that could help the company lure the interest of battery manufacturers and auto-makers based within the EU.
Lincoln Minerals has the potential to play a pivotal role in meeting the EU’s critical minerals needs as we progress development of our Kookaburra Graphite Project. Our participation underscores our dedication to driving partnerships in the global minerals sector and comes at an opportune time as we are expanding the scale and scope of our potential Tier-1 graphite project, which will be enhanced by the potential involvement of strategic offtake and funding parties such as those in the EU.
Lincoln Minerals chief executive officer Jonathon Trewartha
The company says its latest mineral resource for the KGP sits at 12.8 million tonnes going 7.6 per cent total graphitic carbon (TGC) for 973,000 tonnes of contained graphite. It says that makes the KGP the second-biggest graphite resource on the Eyre Peninsula, which it describes as “Australia’s premier graphite province”.
The high-grade component of the resource consists of 2.9 million tonnes at 13.6 per cent TGC, with resources in the coveted measured category also doubling to 1 million tonnes. The KGP resource comprises the Kookaburra Gully, Koppio and Kookaburra Gully Extended deposits.
Lincoln recently extended the resource by 114 per cent after targeting growth at Kookaburra Gully with its first drilling program in seven years. It now shows 412,000 tonnes of contained graphite and management is eyeing an updated prefeasibility study (PFS) in the second half of this year.
Further resource growth is possible as the KGP has a multitude of electromagnetic (EM) anomalies that spread south-west and north-east and span more than 15km. The anomalies are the result of an airborne EM survey conducted in 2012, with the company systematically working its way through the targets with each drill program.
It is now planning to drill targets outside the known mineralisation areas later this year.
Management says it is also considering up to 100,000 tonnes per annum of concentrate being produced. It adds that the project has started to attract interest from potential partners and offtakers, with an Asian-based graphite buyer recently visiting the site.
The KGP sits about 30km from Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula, which is responsible for about 60 per cent of Australia’s JORC-classified graphite resources. It sits between Renascor Resources’ Siviour project that contains 8.5 million tonnes of graphite at 6.9 per cent TGC to the north-east and Quantum Graphite’s Uley play that consists of 760,000 tonnes at 10.5 per cent TGC to the south-west.
All three projects are situated on the Hutchison Group – the region’s dominant graphite mineralisation trend.
Lincoln holds 100 per cent of the graphite rights over 1151 square kilometres of exploration tenure and the Kookaburra Gully mining lease, of which 982.5sq km are considered prospective for graphite. Management also notes increased recent pricing for graphite appears to be supported by the export restrictions imposed by China on the battery commodity.
Now, the opportunity to rub shoulders with a myriad of graphite-hungry customers at the EU trade mission may just be the answer to the company’s Kookaburra calling.
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