Multi-commodity explorer Kairos Minerals has stumped up a slew of anomalous lithium-in-soil at its Roe Hills project, nestled within an emerging pegmatite province 100km east of Kalgoorlie.
The freshly minted “Crystal Palace” prospect is located in the northern reaches of Kairos’ Roe Hills 350 square kilometre tenement package, only 5km along strike from Global Lithium’s Manna lithium deposit. Global Lithium upgraded the mineral resource estimate late last year at its newly acquired deposit to 32.7 million tonnes grading 1.0 per cent lithium oxide.
With sampling in full swing on a 6000-sample deep soil program, the company has already etched out two 400m long lithium anomalies from the first 572 assays returned.
Importantly, multiple outcropping pegmatites up to 10m in thickness have been mapped in the area coinciding with the lithium anomalism. The company has collected a grab bag of rock chip specimens over the prospective pegmatites for analysis.
Whilst lithium is the focus of the company’s exploration efforts in the region, the soil sampling program will test the rock sequence for gold and base metals that are known to be scattered throughout the large tenement area.
Early gold results are proving promising, yielding a 360m long anomaly with values peaking at 143ppb.
Kairos Minerals Managing Director Dr Peter Turner said: “Kairos can confirm a new lithium soil anomaly with coincident pegmatites at ‘Crystal Palace’ along strike from the Manna Li-Ta deposit in an area that has never been explored for lithium.”
The latest results show Kairos appears to be unlocking the lithium potential of its Roe Hills project after uncovering a bevy of coincident lithium-cesium-beryllium soil anomalies close to its Black Cat prospect in November last year.
The company’s Black Cat prospect, a 2.6km long lithium-cesium-beryllium anomaly, is located on the western flank of the nearby Cardunia Syenogranite pluton. The regionally significant pluton is thought to be the source of spodumene-bearing pegmatites in the emerging pegmatite province.
The company’s extensive soil sampling blitz will look to extend and infill the Black Cat lithium anomaly ahead of a planned reverse circulation drilling program to test the bedrock source.
Earlier this week the Australian Financial Review reported brokers at global financial house UBS lifted its lithium price outlook by up to 50 per cent on a long-term forecast deficit. This could bode well for Kairos as it continues its hunt for the critical metal.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Matt Birney
