Lithium Australia NL (ASX:LIT, OTC:LMMFF)’s joint venture partner, fellow ASX-lister Galan Lithium Ltd, has doubled down on a series of lithium targets at the Greenbushes South Lithium Project in Western Australia.
Recently, Galan rolled out an extensive fieldwork campaign at the project, and positive, anomalous soil assays have delineated prospective targets within the Donnybrook-Bridgetown Shear Zone.
Now, data from the campaign is being processed by Thomson Airborne, which carried out an airborne geophysical survey at Greenbushes South, and Southern Geoscience Consultants will interpret the results.
The results will inform the next phase of exploration at the lithium play, enabling Galan to generate and prioritise targets across the property.
Lithium Australia retains a 20% stake in Greenbushes South — in January 2021, it sold an 80% interest in the asset to Galan.
Strengthening geological data
Speaking to the fieldwork campaign, Galan managing director JP Vargas de la Vega said: “We are excited with the prospectivity at our Greenbushes South Lithium Project and are encouraged with the new soil sample results that continue to indicate that the tracing elements that are found within the Donnybrook shear zone may well host lithium pegmatites the same as in the Greenbushes mine bordering to the north of our tenements.
“Galan looks forward to further strengthening its geological data and knowledge within its tenements as soon as the report from our consultants is completed.
“The results will formulate our next exploration phase when we will be able to generate and prioritise specific exploration targets in the area."
Fieldwork campaign
Recently, Galan secured results from a geochemical survey at Greenbushes South, which produced 425 soil samples and 14 rock chip samples.
These samples were taken at the northern edge of Galan’s E70/4790 tenement and at the mapped location of the Donnybrook-Bridgetown Shear Zone (DBSZ).
Notably, the zone is primarily associated with the syntectonic emplacement of lithium-bearing pegmatites from the Greenbushes mine to the north.
An airborne geophysical survey also wrapped up recently and is now in the data processing phase.
All up, 7,622 kilometres were flown at heights between 45 and 65 metres and the findings will improve targeting across the DBSZ and help identify lithium-bearing pegmatites.
Interestingly, pathfinder elements such as arsenic and antimony show elevated levels in soil samples near the trace of the DBSZ.
When combined with historical data in the area, this indicates the strong potential for pegmatite targets within Galan’s pending applications to the north.
Other pathfinder elements such as tin and rubidium show a broad lag (transported) signal east of the DBSZ.
Next steps
Galan has also submitted the final revision of its conservation management plan (CMP), which covers planned exploration activities on its pending applications.
The CMP outlines the proposed exploration and prospecting activities, management and communications for work within the Hester State Forest and proposed nature reserve.
Additionally, Galan has submitted a new CMP for a wholly-owned, pending tenement in the Donnelly State Forest.
Exploration within the tenement has been the focus for pegmatite-derived mineralisation, notably tin and tantalum, since the early 1900s.
More recently, however, exploration has targeted base metal mineralisation and lithium-tin-tantalum pegmatites.
A re-interpretation of historical geophysical data, acquired by Galan, indicates the DBSZ extends into Galan's pending tenement and may be responsible for the emplacement of pegmatites.
About Greenbushes South
Lithium Australia and Galan’s lithium play covers 353 square kilometres and is 200 kilometres south of Perth.
It rubs shoulders with the prolific Greenbushes Lithium Mine, which starts 3 kilometres south of the current Greenbushes open-pit mining operations.
Greenbushes is the largest hard-rock lithium mine in the world. It has been in operation since May 2014 and is run by Talison Lithium Pty Ltd (TSX:TLH), an incorporated joint venture between the Tianqi Lithium Corporation and Albemarle Corporation.
Greenbushes produces a concentrate of the lithium mineral, spodumene, to feed both China and Western Australian based mineral conversion plants or consumers of spodumene concentrates in Europe, North America and China.
In December 2020, Australian mining company IGO Ltd signed a deal to acquire a 24.99% stake in Greenbushes from Tianqi.
