TIDMALBA
RNS Number : 7192B
Alba Mineral Resources PLC
14 June 2021
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Alba Mineral Resources plc
("Alba" or the "Company")
Amitsoq Graphite Update
Commencement of Maiden Drilling Campaign
Alba Mineral Resources plc (AIM: ALBA) is pleased to announce
the commencement of drilling operations at the Amitsoq Graphite
Project in southern Greenland.
Key Points
- Drilling operations have commenced at the Amitsoq Island
deposit, part of the Amitsoq Graphite Deposit
- Alba seeking to drill 15 holes for 1,700 metres with the aim
of declaring a maiden Mineral Resource
- Amitsoq graphite is among the highest-grade graphite projects
in the world (averaging 28.7% TGC).
- Kalaaq Discovery to also be explored further by mapping, sampling and EM survey
- Environmental baseline studies to be carried out as the foundation for a future EIA
Details
Alba subsidiary Obsidian Mining Limited ("Obsidian") has now
commenced a 15-hole, 1,700m diamond core drilling programme at the
Amitsoq Island deposit, part of the Amitsoq Graphite Project, with
the aim of establishing a maiden Mineral Resource there.
Five drill pads have been prepared at 100-200m spacing along
strike, situated on top of the steep ridge that forms the southern
tip of the island. From each pad three holes will be drilled with
varying dip to intercept the upper and lower graphite horizons at
increasing depths. The proposed hole layout aims to intercept
mineralisation over a strike length of approximately 600m.
Drilling will take place on Amitsoq island which is the location
of the highest-grade graphite (averaging 28.7% TGC) as well as
being the site of a previously producing mine.
Figure 2 in the PDF version of this RNS shows a photograph of
the southern part of Amitsoq Island facing north-west and showing
the position of the drillholes on the topography. Figure 3 in the
PDF version of this RNS is a 3D view showing the five drill fences
and the projected graphite bodies. The core will be drilled using
triple tube technology in order to minimise any potential core loss
over the graphite intersections.
Obsidian's field exploration team of geologists and assistants,
drill crew and environmental contractors are being accommodated on
a chartered vessel anchored close to the drill site for the
duration of the programme, which is expected to last for about six
weeks. Helicopter support will be provided in order to transport
equipment to site.
On 7 June 2021, Alba reported the release of an Exploration
Target for the Amitsoq Island deposit, with a range of 1.7-4.5
million tonnes (assuming a density of 2.63t/m3) and a grade range
of 24-36% Graphitic Carbon. This drilling programme is designed to
provide supporting Resource definition to the Exploration
Target.
Establishing a Mineral Resource at Amitsoq will provide the
foundation for progressing the Project to the development stage.
Assuming the Mineral Resource supports doing so, the subsequent
work will include a Scoping Study. A key part of this will be an
assessment of mining methods, logistics and infrastructure
requirements, refinement of the process flowsheet and mine waste
management.
Other Field Work
Kalaaq Exploration Programme
Aside from the Amitsoq Island drilling programme, a separate
field team will conduct a mapping and sampling programme at the
Kalaaq Discovery on the mainland portion of Obsidian's licence
area.
Graphite deposits at Kalaaq were unknown until they were
discovered during Obsidian's fieldwork in the summer of 2017. The
Kalaaq area contains multiple horizons of graphite mineralisation
that are interpreted to have been subject to complex folding.
Individual outcrops expose graphite horizons up to 9m true
thickness, however lateral continuity is harder to observe due to
surficial sediment cover. Mapping by Obsidian to date has shown
mineralised horizons occur within an area of 1.2 km along strike
(north-south) and up to 500m wide. Average grades from sampling
conducted at Kalaaq are 25.6% TGC, also among the highest of any
project in the world.
On 7 June 2021, Alba reported the release of an Exploration
Target for Kalaaq mineralisation alone of between 4.0 and 7.0
million tonnes (assuming a density of 2.63t/m3) with a grade range
of between 23-29% Graphitic Carbon.
Exploration will involve extensive mapping and sampling,
including the use of a beep mat to record electromagnetic (EM)
conductivity and magnetic susceptibility down to 3 m below surface,
through overburden. This technique was used to great effect in 2017
to identify and map the graphite occurrences.
Beep Mat traverses, mapping and systematic channel sampling of
discoveries is designed to extend the known graphite mineralised
structure significantly.
Environmental Baseline Studies
Experienced environmental consultants BioApp Greenland will be
undertaking an initial environmental baseline screening at Amitsoq
during this summer's field programme . The survey will focus on
gathering an overview of the ecological conditions in the area,
supplemented by collecting information on aquatic macro
invertebrates, water quality parameters, marine environment,
wildlife and birds in the area. The collected data will be part of
the Project's environmental baseline data package and contribute to
a future environmental impact assessment (EIA) for Amitsoq.
The BioApp team have in-depth knowledge and an extensive track
record of environmental sampling in all parts of Greenland. The
team is multidisciplinary and will cover both freshwater, marine
and terrestrial sampling.
Mark Austin, Alba's Chief Operating Officer, commented:
"This is an exciting time for Alba as we move onto the drilling
of one of the world's highest grade graphite deposits. The testwork
from our extensive field sampling has shown that the target value
for the LOI content of 99.9%, and the typical specification for
spherical graphite of 99.95%, are both capable of being achieved
which qualifies this graphite as battery grade and suitable for the
EV market. These results, together with the Exploration Target of
1.7 and 4.5 million tonnes for the Amitsoq Island deposit alone,
with a grade range of between 24-36% Graphitic Carbon, gives us
great confidence in the project's fundamentals."
"The first objective arising out of our drilling programme will
be to declare a maiden JORC-compliant Mineral Resource at the
Amitsoq Island deposit. Ultimately, our goal is to prove up
sufficient tonnes to be able to move to the feasibility study stage
as soon as possible thereafter."
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of the UK Market Abuse Regulation and the Directors of the Company
are responsible for the release of this announcement.
Forward Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements relating
to expected or anticipated future events and anticipated results
that are forward-looking in nature and, as a result, are subject to
certain risks and uncertainties, such as general economic, market
and business conditions, competition for qualified staff, the
regulatory process and actions, technical issues, new legislation,
uncertainties resulting from potential delays or changes in plans,
uncertainties resulting from working in a new political
jurisdiction, uncertainties regarding the results of exploration,
uncertainties regarding the timing and granting of prospecting
rights, uncertainties regarding the timing and granting of
regulatory and other third party consents and approvals,
uncertainties regarding the Company's or any third party's ability
to execute and implement future plans, and the occurrence of
unexpected events.
Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing,
uncertainties also exist in connection with the ongoing Coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic which may result in further lockdown measures
and restrictions being imposed by Governments and other competent
regulatory bodies and agencies from time to time in response to the
pandemic, which measures and restrictions may prevent or inhibit
the Company from executing its work activities according to the
timelines set out in this announcement or indeed from executing its
work activities at all. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic may
also affect the Company's ability to execute its work activities
due to personnel and contractors testing positive for COVID-19 or
otherwise being required to self-isolate from time to time.
Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided
herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and
uncertainties and other factors.
Competent Person Declaration
The information in this release that relates to Exploration
Results has been reviewed by Mr Mark Austin. Mr Austin is a member
of SACNASP (Reg. No. 400235/06), Fellow of The Geological Society
and Fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa. He has a
B.Sc. Honours in Geology with 38 years' experience.
Mark Austin has sufficient experience that is relevant to the
style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and
to the activity being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person
as defined in the 2012 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for
Reporting of Exploration targets, Exploration Results, Mineral
Resources and Ore Reserves', also known as the JORC Code. The JORC
code is a national reporting organisation that is aligned with
CRIRSCO. Mr Austin consents to the inclusion in the announcement of
the matters based on his information in the form and context in
which they appear.
Glossary
Electromagnetic (or EM) survey : a geophysical survey method
which measures the electromagnetic properties of rocks.
Graphitic : of, relating to, resembling, or having the structure
of graphite.
Graphitic Carbon or Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC) : Carbon may be
present in rocks in various forms including organic carbon,
carbonates or graphitic carbon. Carbon in rocks may be reported as
fixed or total carbon (i.e. organic carbon + carbon in carbonate
minerals + carbon as graphite) or as graphitic carbon or total
graphitic carbon (or TGC) (i.e. total carbon - (organic + carbonate
carbon)).
LOI : Loss on ignition (LOI) is a test used in inorganic
analytical chemistry and soil science, particularly in the analysis
of minerals and the chemical makeup of soil. It consists of
strongly heating ("igniting") a sample of the material at a
specified temperature, allowing volatile substances to escape,
until its mass ceases to change.
Overburden : material that lies above an area (the orebody) that
lends itself to economical exploitation.
Spherical graphite : used as the anode in lithium-ion batteries.
Natural flake graphite is first purified and shaped into small
spheres, at which point the material is referred to a High Purity
Spherical Graphite ("HPSG"). After shaping, the natural flake
graphite is purified by chemical leaching to remove impurities and
raise the carbon content to above 99.95% C.
Strike or Strike Length : The direction and length of a
geological feature (for example, a vein or rock formation) measured
on a horizontal surface.
For further information, please contact:
Alba Mineral Resources plc
George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman +44 20 3950 0725
Cairn Financial Advisers LLP (Nomad)
James Caithie / Liam Murray +44 20 7213 0880
ETX Capital (Broker)
Thomas Smith +44 20 7392 1494
Alba's Project and Investment Portfolio
Project (commodity) Location Ownership
Mining Projects
Amitsoq (graphite) Greenland 90%
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Clogau (gold) Wales 90%
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Gwynfynydd (gold) Wales 100%
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Inglefield (copper, cobalt,
gold) Greenland 100%
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Limerick (zinc-lead) Ireland 100%
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Melville Bay (iron ore) Greenland 51%
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TBS (ilmenite) Greenland 100%
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Oil & Gas Investments
Brockham (oil) England 5%
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Horse Hill (oil) England 11.765%
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