Jindalee Resources Ltd (ASX: JRL) has announced an update on the drilling program at its McDermitt Lithium Project near Nevada, USA.
The company reported that the drill program has been expanded beyond originally planned 6 holes.
Jindalee reported that the first hole has now been completed and has intersected the anticipated sedimentary sequence. There are two drill rigs currently on site at McDermitt project.
McDermitt Project
The McDermitt Project is located at the southwestern part of the United States, approximately 16km west of the town of McDermitt on the Nevada-Oregon border.
The project area hosts lithium bearing claystones that outcrop over most of the ~4km X ~5km project area with substantial thicknesses of up to 67m noted from surface.
Lithium bearing clays at McDermitt lie within the Tertiary aged McDermitt volcanic caldera in an analogous geological setting to the ‘Thacker Pass’ project 30km to the south and held by Lithium Americas.
Previous drilling at McDermitt
Assay results up to 3020 ppm Li (6502 ppm Li2O) were returned from composite channel samples, auger and shallow core drilling in 2018. Some of the highest grades returned from composite samples were over thicknesses of 50m and greater.
The metallurgical test work in June 2019 had indicated that conventional sulphuric acid leaching under a range of temperature, slurry density, and time conditions could lead to high lithium recoveries.
The company had reported that the sulphuric acid leach test results showed that over 90% of Li can be recovered within two hours at moderate temperatures.
Latest drilling at McDermitt
Jindalee had commenced a drill program at McDermitt to support maiden resource estimation, calculation of an updated Exploration Target Range, and testing for lithium mineralisation within the expanded tenement position.
The drill program was also aimed at testing for additional mineralised zones below the limit of current drilling, and testing for higher grade zones.
An initial program comprising six core holes was planned, which has now been expanded.
First drill hole completed
The company reported that the first hole (MDD-005) has now been completed at a total depth of 93.6m.
Jindalee said that the geological logging of the core indicates the same units were encountered as in the 2018 program, with minor alluvium above flat-lying, finely-laminated sediments.
The sediments are orange-grey coloured in the upper (oxidised) part of the hole, becoming darker green to dark brown downhole and comprise a mixture of sandstones, siltstones, and shales.
The company reported that the core recovery to date has been excellent.
What’s next?
The company said that the core from the first hole will be dispatched to the assay laboratory in Reno and further updates will be provided as results become available.
The company expressed confidence that the recently expanded scale of the project will enable an update to be made to the already substantial exploration target announced on November 2018.
Jindalee also announced its intention to estimate a maiden resource using the results from the drilling.
Company financials
The company reported that it holds cash and marketable securities worth around $3.2 million at the end of the June quarter with no debt. Combining with the Company’s tight capital structure (only 35M shares on issue), Jindalee said that it provides a strong base for leverage into new opportunities.
