South Harz Potash Ltd (ASX:SHP) has kicked off work on its second confirmatory drill hole at the Ohmgebirge mining licence within its namesake German potash project.
The potash exploration and development company expects to complete work on the drill hole in early May.
This comes after South Harz reached the finish line at its first confirmatory hole earlier this month, drilling 721 metres deep.
Both drill holes were designed to twin with historical targets at Ohmgebirge, drilled well over a century ago in 1906.
Core samples from the first drill hole are with the lab for assay and results will underpin work on a resource upgrade and scoping study, slated for release in May and June this year.
“Zero safety or environmental incidents”
Speaking to the achievement, South Harz managing director Dr Chris Gilchrist said it was yet another momentous milestone for the company.
“After months of planning and preparation, drilling has advanced according to our overall objectives, which also includes zero safety or environmental incidents and with the full support of the local communities,” he stated.
“We are on target now to complete the second drill hole by early May and to release the mineral resource upgrade and scoping study thereafter.”
Work at Ohmgebirge
South Harz is out to prove up the mineral resource at Ohmgebirge with assays from its two confirmatory drill holes.
The company’s existing, inferred potash resource stands at 5.3 billion tonnes, with its flagship project making up 325 million tonnes of that resource, grading 13.1% potassium oxide.
In addition, it’s hoped results from both of the confirmatory holes will allow South Harz to upgrade the current Ohmgebirge inferred resource to the indicated category.
Beyond that, the revised mineral resource estimate (MRE) will allow South Harz to report technical and economic information about Ohmgebirge for the first time in a scoping study.
Essentially, the study will include a detailed resource assessment by Micon International Co Ltd and results from the twin drill holes.
Once a revised MRE is complete, K-Utec Salt Technologies GmbH will review the scoping study’s mining and processing sections and update both capital and operating costs.
The study will also include an expert appraisal of the potash and industrial salt markets and provide guidance price forecasts to underpin a financial model.
South Harz will keep the market updated on further developments at its namesake potash play.