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LONDON (Alliance News) - Savannah Resources PLC said Wednesday there has been a "significant" increase in the indicated and inferred mineral resource estimates at the Mina do Barroso lithium project in Portugal.
There is a 52% increase in overall mineral resource for Mina do Barroso, which now stands at 14 metric tonnes at 1.1% lithium oxide. Savannah believe Mina do Barroso to be "western Europe's largest spodumene mineral resource".
Shares in Savannah were up 13% to 6.34 pence each Wednesday.
Resources were defined from three deposits and the latest expansion marks about an 87% increase in the total mineral resource estimate at Grandao to 10.3 metric tonnes at 1.1% lithium oxide, containing around 111,600 tonnes of lithium oxide.
About 70% of the Grandao deposit is now reported in the higher confidence indicated classification, with an increase in lithium oxide grade of about 6% compared to the February 2018 estimate.
Savannah say there is "significant upside" at the mine and further mineral resource estimates are expected in 2018. The energy metals miner said there is "excellent potential" for new discoveries of additional lithium bearing pegmatite bodies.
Chief Executive David Archer said: "Mina do Barroso is shaping up as a major new European mineral discovery. With the strong growth prospects for lithium ion batteries for electric vehicles and for electricity storage from the grid this is a critical time to be bringing a project of Mina do Barroso's scale, grade and location, on stream.
"We believe that Mina do Barroso has the potential to be a key piece of Europe's emerging lithium value chain that could help support the shift by European car manufacturers to the production of Electric Vehicles."