Aruma Resources (ASX:AAJ) reports that the next phase of drilling has started at its 100% owned Mt Deans Lithium-Rubidium Project (P63/2063) in the lithium corridor of south-eastern Western Australia.
Drilling will consist of 1,500m-1,800m of reverse circulation (RC) drilling across in 12 to 15 holes, to depths of 80m-120m.
Aruma notes that the program is designed to follow-up the ‘high-grade’ lithium and rubidium intersected in the thick vertical pegmatite in Aruma’s first phase of drilling, and a subsequent rock chip sampling program.
The current phase of drilling is expected to be complete in mid-October and results will be released when available.
“Initial indications from the first hole of the program indicate several pegmatites in the northern section of the project”
Initial indications from the first hole of the program indicate several pegmatites in the northern section of the project, which may warrant additional holes. High lepidolite content has been noted in the first holes and this is the target mineral for Li-Rb content.
Aruma reports it has secured a specialised drill rig for the second phase drilling, enabling the holes to be drilled tangential to access tracks and minimise the disturbance of vegetation.
The access tracks at Mt Deans run north-to-south and the specialised blasthole rig will utilise these tracks to drill east-west holes, to test the extent of the thick lithium-rubidium dyke intersected in the Company’s previous drilling at Mt Deans.
Aruma targeted the priority Mt Deans ‘main section’ in its first phase of drilling, which comprised a total of 1,156m of RC drilling in 8 holes.
This drilling delivered ‘highly’ encouraging results including high-grade rubidium. Lithium grades of up to 1.14% Li2O (lithium oxide) were intersected within a wide zone of lithium, all within a near-surface 25m thick, vertical body of solid pegmatite, from a depth of just 17m.
The first phase of drilling defined an interpreted strike length of at least 1,500m, which remains open at both ends. The program returned more than a dozen intersections grading higher than 0.5% Li2O, and also returned rubidium, grading up to 1.05% Rb2O (rubidium oxide), with elevated tin, tantalum, and cesium.
Aruma followed up its first phase of drilling with a rock chip sampling program designed to test for strike extensions to the interpreted pegmatite zone and help refine targets for the second phase of drilling.
This program returned ‘high-grade’ lithium of up to 1.96% Li2O and ‘very high-grade’ rubidium of up to 1.42% Rb2O, plus cesium values up to 1550ppm.
A total of 11 rock chip samples along a 500m strike were collected, and the results indicated a strong positive relationship with the first-phase drilling results.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Aruma Resources Limited
