Micro-cap nickel-play, Widgie, soars following lithium hit

Widgie Nickel (ASX: WIN) was up around 30% this morning after the micro-cap mineral explorer announced a major discovery of high-grade lithium spodumene at its newly named Faraday Prospect in Mt Edwards, WA.

Lithium bearing pegmatites outcropping over a 600-metre strike with surface expressions of up to 25 meters wide have been identified at the prospect.

Visible spodumene were identified at several locations with multiple high-grade Li2O values returned from 14 rock chip samples.

While there is significant potential to extend strike to the north under transported cover, multiple pegmatite occurrences were also observed across broader Widgie tenure.

Faraday prospect showing historical soil anomaly, rock chip sample locations and Li2O values

Field work

The company expects to commence field work immediately to drill test high-priority targets at the Faraday prospect as well as detailed mapping, soil and rock chip sampling across the Widgie tenure.

With limited historical lithium exploration across the Mt Edwards project, managing director Steve Norregaard notes recent rock chip results, highlighting the prospectivity of the project area are extremely encouraging.

“This initial reconnaissance work identifying high grade spodumene over a significant strike length couldn’t be a better outcome for Widgie. To think we have 170,000t of contained nickel and we now can lay claim to hosting complementary and widespread lithium pegmatites in this world class lithium corridor,” Norregaard said.

“Widgie looks forward with great anticipation to getting a drill rig on this highly prospective target which will only complement the existing drilling effort on our nickel resources.”

Previous exploration

Historical wide spaced soil sampling by previous explorers identified a strong lithium anomaly located within tenement M15/102.

The soil anomaly has had no follow up exploration until the recent rock chip samples collected by Widgie during early September 2022.

The sampling has identified high grade lithium occurrences over a coherent strike extent of at least 600 metres to date, with significant potential to extend strike to the north under transported cover.

Geological Interpretation

The Mt Edwards project lithium tenements cover the northern margin of the Widgiemooltha Dome.

Management notes the region is well endowed with lithium occurrences and includes three major resources at Dome North (Essential Metals Limited (ASX: ESS) to the south, Bald Hill (Lithco) to the east and Mt Marion (Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN) to the north.

The Mt Edwards project is said to be central to this highly prospective corridor for lithium which covers a total strike extent of more than 100 kilometres.

At the Faraday prospect the pegmatite bodies are a result of a very late-stage intrusive event and are interpreted to be located proximal to larger scale granitic intrusion.

Coarse grained spodumene has been recorded at several locations, and the outcrop covers a strike extent of approximately 600 metres in a north-south orientation.

Production ready late in 2023

Meantime, Widgie Nickel, which was spun-off from Neometals (ASX:NMT) in September last year expects to be a ‘production ready’ nickel stock by the end of 2023.

The company’s primary focus is the ‘Mt Edwards’ project in WA, where 162,600t of nickel across 11 separate resources have already been identified.

High-grade nickel discoveries at Gillet North, within the wider Mt Edwards project, include massive and semi-massive nickel sulphides intersections of up to 12m at 3.40% nickel from 200m, including 5m at 4.84% nickel from 206m and 18m at 4.69% nickel from 246m.

Widgie Nickel share price over one year.