Tasman Metals (TSX-V: TSM; FSX: T61) announced Wednesday that a third phase drill program is now underway at the company's Norra Karr heavy rare earth element project in southern Sweden.
Rare earth element consumption is growing, as the minerals are essential in the production of hybrid and electric cars, solar panels, wind turbines, compact fluorescent lighting, high-energy magnets, mobile phones and computers.
Tasman's new drilling program of approximately 3,500m of drilling is anticipated to take three months, and is designed to upgrade the mineral resource to indicated status. Additional core sample suitable for future metallurgical testwork will also be collected in the current program, the company said.
Using a base case TREO (total rare earth oxide) cut off of 0.4%, an NI 43-101 compliant report estimated an inferred mineral resource of 60.5 million tonnes grading 0.54% TREO and 1.72% ZrO2 (zirconium oxide), with 53.7% of the TREO being the higher value heavy rare earth oxide.
"In 2011, Norra Karr will move through the next stages of development, with additional drilling, a resource update, further rounds of metallurgical testing and a scoping study," said president and CEO Mark Saxon.
Norra Karr is believed to be the only NI 43-101 compliant rare earth element deposit in mainland Europe. The site has a forest road network that allows all-year round access by two wheel drive vehicle. It also has power and water facilities at site and rail and port facilities nearby.
In addition, Tasman said the project is unusually low in uranium and thorium, and therefore will not require any special permitting or monitoring for radioactivity.
Aside from Norra Karr, the company, with more than C$12 million of cash in the bank, plans on accelerating work on other projects within its Scandinavian rare earth element portfolio.