Lithium Energy (ASX:LEL) has completed metallurgical testwork on samples from its Burke Graphite Project in Queensland, reporting ‘excellent’ flake concentrate results.
The $72.62 million market capitalisation company says the results from the latest testwork support the potential development of a vertically integrated manufacturing facility of Purified Spherical Graphite (PSG).
Total graphitic carbon (TGC) graphite flake concentrate above 95% has been achieved for the Burke Graphite Project, which allows the next step for the PSG testwork to begin. This will be conducted by ProGraphite in Germany.
This ProGraphite testwork program will consist of initial material characterisation, spherical graphite testwork, purification of the spherical graphite, and electrochemical characterisation of the purified spherical graphite.
In addition, Lithium Energy reports its total graphite inventory has doubled to 2.6 million tonnes of contained graphite following the recent delineation of a JORC inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for graphite at the Corella Graphite Project.
This increase has allowed Lithium Energy to explore the suitability of the Corella Project as further feedstock to supplement Burke Graphite at the proposed PSG Plant, which is being examined under a Pre Feasibility Study (PFS).
A 500kg sample of Corella Graphite has been sent to the Beijing General Research Institute for Mining and Metallurgy Technology Group (BGRIMM) to undergo the same type of metallurgical testwork and flake concentrate production as the recently completed Burke Graphite testwork program.
Lithium says the objective is to test the Corella Graphite performance in the flowsheet developed for the Burke Graphite, which will determine whether the same or a similar flowsheet methodology can be used for graphite sourced from the Corella Project.
The Corella flowsheet development and assessment, alongside the bulk flake concentrate testwork, is expected to be completed by BGRIMM by October 2023, after which the PSG testwork program will begin, which is anticipated to be completed in January 2024.
The Burke Graphite Project is located 125km north of Cloncurry and the Corella Project 20km west of Cloncurry in Queensland, Australia.
Lithium Energy is a battery minerals company focused on developing its flagship Solaroz Lithium Brine Project in Argentina and its Corella and Burke Graphite Projects in Queensland.
As of 31 March 2023, the company had $8.049 million cash and cash equivalents at hand, according to its latest quarterly report published on 28 April 2023.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Lithium Energy Ltd
