Askari beefs up its Namibian Uis Lithium Project with acquisition of second tenement nearby
Come January, two drill rigs will be active at Uis Lithium Project. High-grade rock chips on radar
Source: iStock
Mentioned
KEY POINTS
- Askari Metals has executed a binding agreement to acquire a second tenement along strike of company’s existing Uis Lithium Project
- Uis project is so-named after a town in Namibia nearby; the second tenement acquired today is along strike of Askari’s first Uis tenement
- Askari notes today’s second tenement contains spodumene pegmatite mineralisation; rock chip samples of 3.2% lithium logged
Askari Metals (ASX:AS2), a battery-metals focused polymetals explorer which recently expanded to Africa, has today boosted the size of that overseas project by acquiring a second tenement nearby.
Shares are up 5% In the second hour of trade.
Called the Uis Lithium Project (and so named after the nearest town,) the Namibian asset is now larger to the tune of a 308km2 footprint across both parcels of land.
A 3,500m RC drill-run will be undertaken next month at the second tenement to kick off 2023, and the company’s exploration team is already on-site conducting field sampling.
An erstwhile drill run remains ongoing at the first tenement (EPL 7345).
Previous samples at the new tenement (EPL 8535) has turned up rock chip samples grading at 3.2% lithium concentrations from spodumene pegmatites.
Spodumene as a gold standard
Spodumene is the most-desired naturally occurring host of lithium mineralisation given its well-understood and commonly executed downstream refining process.
Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) auctions spodumene monthly, and through 2022, those auctions have broken price records multiple times. Forecasts that lithium prices may calm through 2023 remain to be seen.
Askari also wants to sniff out tin, tantalum and rubidium; all three elements are commonly associated with lithium. Rubidium, on its own, is also a high-value metal.
Why is Askari moving into Namibia?
Askari views its move into the African country of Namibia as transformational, and also notes that China’s Zheijang Kanglongda are supportive of the company’s African exploration.
Askari and Zheijang teamed up back in October.
Askari will continue to develop its assets across Africa and Australia, which it notes will see tandem exploration campaigns.
A “potential spin-out of the Australian-based gold and copper assets is planned for 2023,” Askari notes today, as well as its intention to continue growing its footprint in Namibia.
Not a deal made in haste
“During our recent site visit to the Uis Lithium Project in October 2022, we visited both EPL 7345 and EPL 8535 and inspected a number of the large mine workings and mapped pegmatites,” Askari chief Gino D’Anna said.
“An initial site evaluation campaign was completed at EPL 8535 during which only 7 samples were collected to provide a high-level overview of the project area. These results identified spodumene rich mineralisation with grades up to 3.2% Li2O.”
“We are steadily building the mineralisation model for the project and are planning to commence an RC drilling campaign at EPL 8535 of 3,500m starting in late January 2023 at the same time that we embark upon Phase II RC drilling at EPL 7345.”
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Disclaimer: Market Index helps small-cap ASX listed companies connect with Australian investors through clear and concise articles on key developments. Askari was a client at the time of publishing. All coverage contains factual information only and should not be interpreted as an opinion or financial advice.
