Kodal Minerals PLC (AIM:KOD) said initial drilling assay results at the Boumou prospect at the Bougouni Lithium Project in Mali had confirmed high-grade and wide extensions to the original resource estimate.
Results included 52m at 1.51% lithium (Li2O) from a depth of 173m in one hole and 66m at 1.26% Li2O from 72m in another.
Assays from additional reverse circulation and diamond drill holes are pending.
The strike length of the Boumou prospect pegmatite bodies has now increased to 970m, marking an additional 470m from previous results, and remains open along strike, Kodal added.
Bernard Aylward, chief executive, commented: "The Boumou prospect at our flagship Bougouni Lithium Project continues to exceed our expectations.
“These new wide, high-grade intersections provide further support for the interpretation of the continuity of the pegmatite mineralisation.
“The extension and definition of the Boumou prospect continues to be the highest priority for the exploration drilling, and the potential to define further coarse grained mineralisation suitable to dense media separation (DMS) treatment may provide the opportunity to further extend the current 4-year life of the Stage 1 Ngoualana DMS treatment plant currently in construction
"The diamond drill core programme is continuing at Boumou and our exploration team is reviewing a metallurgical test work programme to plan for the optimisation of the Stage 2 floatation design and optimise the mining schedule with Boumou and Sogola-Baoule Prospects."
Current site activity at Ngoualana Mine development includes the civil concrete work for the footings of the DMS and crushing circuits, the preparation of the project office and site area and topsoil stripping for the open pit.
In addition, the DMS units, crushing circuit, steelwork and other items are currently in transit to the Abidjan Port in Côte d'Ivoire from China, said the statement.