Kodal Minerals PLC (AIM:KOD) has announced a 40% increase to the previous JORC mineral resource estimate for the Bougouni Mineral Project in southern Mali.
The significant increase is specific to the Ngoualana and Boumou deposits following the drilling programmes completed in early 2023.
The 40% increase in Bougouni's spodumene resource added 10.6 million tonnes to the overall estimate of 31.9 million tonnes at 1.06% Lithium Oxide (Li2O) following 3,230 metres of RC/diamond drilling during 2023.
The next drilling campaign will commence imminently, focussing on further resource definition, infill and exploration drilling at Boumou and Sogola-Baoule prospects, as well as those not included in the mineral resource estimate to date, including Kola and Bougouni South, all within the current Bougouni mining licence.
"The significant increase in Bougouni's lithium endowment is a further step towards becoming a West African spodumene producer of substance and scale,” Kodal Minerals’ chief executive Bernard Aylward stated.
Aylward said he is “looking forward to bringing Bougouni into production at the end of 2024, as well as ramping up the drilling programme to include infill and extension definition drilling, and uncovering additional discoveries within our extensive mining licence”.
"We are currently planning the next phases of extension and definition drilling at the Bougouni Lithium Project with the Boumou prospect being a clear priority,” added Aylward.