Last checked at 31 Jan 2022 07:00
31 January 2022
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd
("Bradda Head", "Bradda", or the "Company")
Progress of Wikieup Sonic Drilling Programme
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd. (AIM: BHL, OTCQB: BHLIF), the North America-focused lithium development group, announces that its halfway through its sonic drilling programme at its Wikieup asset in Central Arizona.
Highlights:
· Drilling contractor Boart Longyear has so far drilled 14 holes (1,520 metres) out of a planned total of 28 holes (2,560 metres).
· After completion of this programme at Wikieup, Bradda will have drilled on roughly 7km2 of its ground, which is c.15% of the Company's 47km2 of sedimentary claims in Arizona.
· The drilling rate at Wikieup has been going c.3x faster than the 2021 Basin East programme (see RNS dated 17/11/2021) at a rate of 31m per 12-hour shift on average compared to the 2021 BE programme at 11m per 12-hour shift. The programme at Wikieup is also 3x larger than the Basin East 2021 programme.
· Boart Longyear's sonic drilling process is an environmentally sensitive option, using far less water and producing far less waste than traditional techniques.
· The maiden resource from Wikiuep is on track to be released in Q2 2022, and SRK are this week visiting Wikieup and Basin to complete technical verification of the work that is being carried out. The Basin resource update is expected this quarter, with final assays received in January 2022 (see RNS dated 26/01/2022)
Charles FitzRoy, CEO of Bradda Head, commented:
"We are delighted with the progress of the larger Wikieup drilling programme, which so far has shown to be more time-efficient than the Basin East programme, despite unavoidable staff shortages caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. This also reinforces our confidence in the work of Boart Longyear and the Bradda Head operations team on the ground in Arizona.
"The maiden resource from Wikieup is due in Q2 and will add to our growing resource numbers. The resource update from Basin East is due in Q1, and we expect the upgrade to be significantly larger than the current JORC resource of 185kt of LCE.
"2022 has started very strongly for Bradda Head and we have a lot more to come including; resource update from Basin East in Q1, Wikieup maiden resource Q2, San Domingo drilling results in Q3, permitting and drilling at all our other sedimentary claims in Q2-Q4 and initial drill programmes at Wilson and Eureka in H2. It's going to be a big resource growth year for BHL."
Further Background
Boart Longyear has extensive experience using sonic rigs and drilling in clay and in the United States. Sonic rigs are more environmentally sensitive compared to diamond rigs because they use less water, produce less waste and have superior recovery compared to reverse core (RC) drilling.
Bradda Head began the current Wikieup drilling programme in Q4 2021 following the receipt of permission from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and is focussing on three areas at Wikieup (https://www.braddaheadltd.com/media/image-library/wikieup-2021-drilling-programme/) where its geologists have identified highly prospective areas with the potential for lithium mineralised clay, similar to what is found at Arizona Lithium's Big Sandy project. Surface sampling has identified grades up to 1,750pm Li on its Wikieup project claims and Bradda Head recently expanded its landholding at Wikieup from 12.9km2 to 29.3km2 due its geologists' confidence in the prospectivity of the area. Bradda Head is now the largest landholder on the belt and is conducting a geophysical programme at all of its sedimentary assets over the next few months, which will help in planning of future drill programmes and add to its geological model of the Wikieup-Basin Lithium district.
For further information please visit the Company's website: www.braddaheadltd.com
Contact:
Bradda Head Lithium Limited | +44 (0) 1624 639 396 |
Charlie FitzRoy, CEO Denham Eke, Finance Director |
|
|
|
Beaumont Cornish (Nomad) James Biddle/Roland Cornish | +44 20 7220 1666 |
|
|
Peterhouse (Joint Broker) | +44 207 469 0930 |
Charles Goodfellow Duncan Vasey Lucy Williams |
|
|
|
Shard Capital (Joint Broker) | +44 207 186 9927 |
Damon Heath Isabella Pierre |
|
|
|
Red Cloud (North American Broker) | +1 416 803 3562 |
Joe Fars |
|
|
|
Tavistock (PR) | + 44 20 7920 3150 |
Nick Elwes Oliver Lamb Adam Baynes | braddahead@tavistock.co.uk |
Notes to Editors
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd. is a North America-focused lithium development group. The Company currently has interests in a variety of projects, the most advanced of which are in Central and Western Arizona: The Basin Project (Basin East Project, and the Basin West Project) and the Wikieup Project.
The Basin East Project has an estimated an Inferred Mineral Resource (JORC) of 42.6 Mt of lithium bearing clays at an average grade of 818 ppm of lithium for 185,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). The Basin East Project also has additional exploration potential for extensions to the current model of between 50,000 to 300,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent.
The Group intends to continue to develop its three phase one projects in Arizona, whilst endeavouring to unlock value at its other prospective pegmatite and brine assets in Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.
All of Bradda Head's licences are held on a 100% equity basis and are in close proximity to the required infrastructure.
Bradda Head is quoted on the AIM of the London Stock Exchange with the ticker of BHL and on the US OTCQB market with a ticker of BHLIF.