Krakatoa Resources Ltd (ASX:KTA) has wrapped up resource drilling at its 100%-owned Dalgaranga Critical Metals Project, around 70 kilometres from Mt Magnet in WA.
The company drilled 32 reverse circulation (RC) holes for 3,045 metres during May and June, targeting a suite of mineralised pegmatites rich in rubidium, tantalum, caesium, niobium and lithium.
This program has highlighted additional thick pegmatite zones outside of the historical exploration footprint, which remain open to the north and south, while infill drilling has reaffirmed the existing drill model.
Targeting rubidium
Infill drilling at Dalgaranga was designed to targeted rubidium, which is thought to be present in highly anomalous values from previous work, and will allow calculation of a maiden mineral resource.
Rubidium (as rubidium carbonate) has many industrial uses and typically enhances stability and durability as well as reducing conductance.
It is principally used in speciality glasses such as fibre optic cables for telecommunications systems and has an important role in GPS systems, night vision devices, medical equipment and quantum computing.
The rubidium mineralisation is not obviously visible therefore it is not possible to infer grades at this stage but thick intersections of pegmatite were regularly encountered at the expected depths and the existing geology model was shown to be accurate.
Around 1,400 samples are on their way to the lab for assaying with results expected in due course.
Extensional drilling indicates open strike
A number of extensional holes were added to the program with very promising results, allowing the company to add significant tonnage to the pegmatite model and, importantly, also indicating that the system has not been closed out yet.
At this stage there is insufficient data to infer continuity of the pegmatites along the full 650 metres of strike extent, but future drilling plans will seek to test this theory.
Reconnaissance drilling to the south has intersected shallow pegmatites with up to 16 metres encountered within the upper 30 metres in one hole.
All samples are at the laboratory for analysis.
"Potential strengthened"
Krakatoa CEO Mark Major said: “The potential of the Dalgaranga project has been strengthened with rising demand and prediction of further demand and price increases of critical and strategic metals identified within this pegmatite complex.
“The company recognised the project’s potential and the current drilling has highlighted this with extensions of the main pegmatite being identified and remaining open.
“This complements the thick shallow pegmatite already intersected in the reconnaissance holes to the south.
“All things considered, the drilling has been very successful and we now await the assay results with some excitement. We believe the project has substantial upside which could be a great result for the shareholders.”
Next steps
The Dalgaranga area is considered prospective for tantalum, lithium, niobium, tungsten, tin and rubidium. Historical mechanised mining produced tantalum, beryl, tin and tungsten from a shallow open pit during 2001 and 2002.
Work is in train to model the pegmatites in detail and compile supplementary data to support a maiden mineral resource estimation.
Once the company can positively define the resource, it will undertake metallurgical test-work to identify suitable product suites from the various zones within the pegmatite complex.
Krakatoa believes that the current demand for currently identified speciality metals may make potential extraction viable.
The expansion of Krakatoa’s land holding has also brought the company closer to this ambition.