Latin Resources Ltd (ASX:LRS) continues to expand its high-grade Salinas Lithium Project in Brazil with a strategic tenement acquisition.
The company’s newly secured Lajinha tenement covers 470 hectares to the east of its existing landholding in an area considered highly prospective for lithium mineralisation.
Recent drilling on Latin’s tenements has confirmed that spodumene pegmatites in this region are ripe for lithium, reporting a peak grade of 3.22% lithium oxide in early drilling.
Moving ahead, Latin will mobilise its regional mapping team to the new tenement area, where it will begin systematic mapping, outcrop and stream sediment sampling in a bid to identify potential drill sites.
It brings the explorer’s ground position in the iconic Bananal Valley district up to 6,230 hectares, where multiple drill targets have already been defined within a prospective lithium corridor.
Building lithium development pipeline
Commenting on the expansion, Latin Resources managing director Chris Gale said: “We are very pleased to have secured the Lajinha tenement area, we continue to expand our foothold in this developing regional lithium pegmatite field.
“Our preliminary reconnaissance mapping and outcrop sampling of this area has confirmed the presence of spodumene pegmatites.
“Our regional mapping team will now complete a more systematic survey to better understand the extent of the known pegmatite system and select initial drill sites.
“With resource definition drilling underway at our main Bananal Valley area, first-pass drilling underway at our Monte Alto area, first pass mapping and sampling completed at our Salinas South area; and now the initial systematic work to commence at the new Lajinha tenement, this provides the company with a full project lithium development pipeline in the Salinas Region.
“Now the company has made a significant new lithium discovery, this strategic expansion approach to our exploration is critical for long-term success of developing our first maiden JORC resource.”
Weather spodumene in outcrop at the new Lajinha tenement.
The fine print
Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Latin has secured an exclusive and binding 24-month option agreement over the new concession in the Bananal Valley.
This means the explorer can acquire a 100% interest in the Lajinha tenement, thereby expanding its Bananal Valley lithium project.
In exchange, Latin will pay the vendor US$600 per month over the 24-month option period, and if it exercises the option, it’ll hand over US$30,000 in cash and US$10,000 in LRS shares, priced at a 30-day volume-weighted average price.
In addition, an extra US$50,000 is due within 13 months of exercising the tenement option.
Further, if Latin defines a JORC-compliant resource of at least 10 million tonnes at 1.3% lithium, it will pay the vendor another US$50,000 and US$50,000 worth of LRS shares within 30 days of the resources’ declaration.
The tenement vendor will retain a 3% net smelter royalty over the Lajinha property.
Work underway
Latin is in the middle of a systematic resource definition drilling campaign around 6.3 kilometres to the west of the new Lajinha tenement, where results from the company’s maiden diamond drilling campaign have confirmed high-tenor lithium.
Drilling is also underway just 2.3 kilometres to the west of Lajinha, where the company is undertaking first-pass drill testing on outcropping, spodumene-bearing pegmatites.
So far, this has returned high-grade lithium results from outcrop sampling, including 2.30% lithium oxide.