With major resource definition drilling complete at the Colina Lithium deposit in Brazil, Latin Resources Ltd (ASX:LRS, OTC:LRSRF) is targeting a mineral resource estimate (MRE) upgrade for this month, seeking to grow the contained lithium within the Salinas Project.
Tasked with producing the updated MRE, independent consultants SGS Geological Services are processing 39,033 metres of infill samples from 135 diamond holes at Colina – part of a 65,000-metre infill campaign across the greater Salinas Project – which have confirmed the mineralised system continues to the southwest, still wide open for further exploration.
“With all the planned drilling for our MRE upgrade now complete and assay results received, SGS has commenced the resource estimation process, and this is on track to be released in June,” Latin Resources vice president of operations – Americas Tony Greenaway said.
“We are all eagerly awaiting the outcome of this process, as we believe that we will see a significant expansion in the JORC resource for Colina, given the exceptional results we have been seeing in our drilling this year.”
Drilling continues at Colina
“Our drilling rigs are still turning on site, with all eight rigs operational,” Greenaway continued.
“This next phase of drilling will focus on the continued expansion of the Colina deposit to the southwest, where our high-grade mineralisation remains open, infill drilling to increase the JORC classification of the defined resources and testing of new areas along strike, where our regional teams have identified multiple new target areas through mapping and geochemical sampling.”
LRS is keen to report the next round of results from extensional and regional drilling programs from the tenure, which will be reported as they arrive.
High-grade intercepts from this latest round of resource expansion drilling at Colina include:
- 8.16 metres at 1.36% lithium from 318 metres;
- 13.8 metres at 1.35% from 283.3 metres;
- 22.0 metres at 0.98% from 309 metres;
- 8.36 metres at 1.50% from 243.59 metres;
- 16.93 metres at 1.36% from 187.07 metres;
- 14.7 metres at 1.72% from 132.94 metres;
- 8.48 metres at 1.74% from 209.84 metres;
- 14.94 metres at 1.01% from 166 metres;
- 11.11 metres at 0.97% from 134.44 metres; and
- 13.24 metres at 1.89% from 168.07 metres.
Colina deposit drill collar plan highlighting potential MRE growth areas, including Colina West and Colina South.
Next steps
From here, Latin intends to focus drilling on pegmatite mineralisation beyond the current Colina resource boundary, and further define its Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) once the updated MRE is released.
The company will then move directly to producing a definitive feasibility study, as well as other works including large-scale dense media separation (DMS) test work on Colina’s lithium ore.
Latin Resources is well-armed to pursue its goals, being debt free and cashed up with $50.2 million in the bank as of April 30, 2023.