Operator : Evergreen Lithium
Ownership (01/06/22) : Currently 13.16%
Location:
Western & Northern Australia
Development Stage:
Early Exploration
Highlights
- Evergreen Lithium owns Picasso (Western Australia – WA), Litchfield (Northern Territories – NT) and Alcoota (NT) all of which are in regions with proven lithium mineralisation and supportive mining infrastructure.
- Litchfield Lithium Project (Figure 1; NT) is contiguous to Core Lithium’s (ASX: CXO) strategic Finniss Lithium Project which has JORC compliant ore reserves (7.4Mt @ 1.3% Li2O), with production slated to commence in 2H 2022.
- Cadence owned 31.5% of these assets and sold them for AS$3.16 million (£1.81 million) in Evergreen shares.
- Subject to Evergreen achieving performance benchmarks Cadence would receive a total consideration of A$6.63 million (£3.80 million)
- Evergreen will spend a minimum of A$4 million over the next three years on the exploration of the prospective Litchfield in Northern Australia.
- Litchfield Lithium Project (Figure 1; NT) is contiguous to Core Lithium’s (ASX: CXO) strategic Finniss Lithium Project which has JORC compliant ore reserves (7.4Mt @ 1.3% Li2O), with production slated to commence in 2H 2022.
Litchfield Lithium Project, NT
The Litchfield Lithium Project is close to Darwin Port in a mineral-rich region, yet under-explored. In geological terms, it is in the Bynoe pegmatite field, which is known to host lithium mineralisation. A key positive for the Litchfield Lithium Project is neighbour CXO’s contiguous Finniss Lithium Project which has four demonstrable spodumene lithium deposits within 1-2km of the northwest boundary.
A closer analysis of satellite imagery, encompassing the Litchfield and Finniss Lithium Projects, demonstrates the geology along the former’s western boundary is comparable to that prevalent in the latter. As such, with the potential for lithium pegmatite bodies to be apparent in the western zone of the Litchfield Lithium Project, there is the possibility for contiguous mineralisation.
The primary and secondary targets were selected for their potential to host lithium-bearing pegmatites intruded within the Burrell Creek Formation. Pleasingly, the current owners undertook a comprehensive surface sampling campaign, collecting up to 600 soil and rock-chip samples, which are presently being analysed at a laboratory. The assay results, which are due back shortly, will form a significant component of the preliminary due diligence.
Picasso Lithium Project, WA
The Picasso Lithium Project is circa 50km from Norseman which connects via road / rail to Esperance Port. This is a well-known lithium producing region as it hosts the Mt Marion and Bald Hill Lithium Mines which have JORC compliant total resources at 71Mt @ 1.37% Li2O & 26Mt @ 0.96% Li2O8 respectively.
More significantly, the Picasso Lithium Project is proximal to LTR’s Buldania Lithium Project, circa 20km west, which has a JORC compliant resource at 14.9Mt @ 0.97% Li2O9
Encouragingly, the Picasso Lithium Project hosts geology that is comparable to occurrences found in LTR’s tenure and ground proximal to the Bald Hill Lithium Mine. Drilling down, the Geological Survey of Western Australia10 (GSWA) has mapped granitic pegmatites (which typically host lithium bearing minerals such as spodumene) within the Picasso Lithium Project.
Reflecting the exploration potential, a closer analysis and interpretation of GSWA’s maps suggest there are potentially more outcropping granite units and mapped pegmatites in the Picasso Lithium Project’s proximal to the Bald Hill Lithium Mine.
Within the Picasso Lithium Project, historical exploration drilling for gold-copper-zinc-lead was undertaken by Anglo Gold. This entailed air-core drilling along a predetermined path (Figure 5) which largely encapsulated known outcropping pegmatites. Pleasingly, the assay results for many of the drill-holes returned elevated lithium levels (up to 75ppm Li), with >30ppm deemed significant to warrant closer geological investigation11. Interpreting the geochemistry findings reinforces the argument that pegmatites within several target areas across the tenure have the potential to host lithium mineralisation.