The latest assays have highlighted a thick, high-grade mineralised structure, starting from surface and sitting oblique to the current Mavis Lake mineral resource estimate (MRE).
Managing director Alex Cheeseman said the latest results have highlighted an important connection between previous drilling results, validating the Swell Zone discovery and demonstrating substantial resource upside.
“These latest results are incredibly important and mark a key milestone in the evolution of our understanding of the growth opportunity at Mavis Lake. They have allowed us to piece together a consistent, thick, high-grade structure that we believe has the continuity, size and grade required to underpin a future mining operation,” Mr Cheeseman said.
“Mining study work will be undertaken over the coming months and is a key aspect of determining the project’s economics. The highly successful drilling results over the last few months will all feed into a future Resource upgrade for Mavis Lake.”
Notably, the new results have confirmed substantial thicknesses of high-grade lithium spodumene mineralisation, with Critical Resources now able to incorporate the latest results with historical drilling to assess data from tight drill spacing.
Mr Cheeseman said the thickness and continuity of the Swell Zone is expected to contribute to positive future mining economics.
Significantly, much of the Swell Zone mineralisation sits outside the current inferred MRE for Mavis Lake and presents as an immediate opportunity for resource growth at the site.
The latest assays found that a number of drill holes have continued to intersect a “lower zone” of high-grade mineralisation, with one standout intercept of 20.7 metres at 1.44% lithium oxide.
Mr Cheeseman said that notably this Lower Zone was not identified in the maiden mineral resource estimate and presents as another immediate opportunity for resource growth.
Critical Resources is currently focusing its drilling activities at Mavis Lake on resource growth.
It is preparing to test multiple targets at and adjacent to the Mavis Lake main zone with additional target development underway at the northern prospects of the project area.
It is also conducting multiple project development workstreams in parallel with resource drilling and exploration including baseline environmental studies, community consultation, design and engineering works.
Earlier this month Critical Resources confirmed it is deploying multiple exploration techniques to refine future drill targets surrounding the large spodumene-bearing outcrops in the new northern prospects at Gullwing and Tot.
The company recently completed sizeable mobile metal ion (MMI) soils program with 1,356 soil samples collected proximal to the outcropping Tot pegmatite.
In late October Critical Resources commenced an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-borne magnetometry survey.
Critical Resources has also incorporated LiDAR survey and orthometric imagery and the captured data is now being assessed to assess further exploration opportunities.
