Core Lithium [ASX:CXO] shared news of drilling results gathered last year and how the results will factor into the company’s future goals.
Core explained it has been able to boost its Finniss Project resource size by 62%, providing access to 30.6 million tonnes at a grade of 1.31% lithium oxide.
Even with the good news, the lithium miner’s stock barely rose 1%, and it continued trading at around 92 cents per share.
In the past month, CXO has increased by 10% in value, although it has been trading at a 33% disadvantage in the last full year.
Lithium stocks are having a more challenging time than a year ago — however, Anson Resources [ASX:ASN] and Liontown Resources [ASX:LTR] seem to be keeping lithium alive:
Source: tradingview.com
Core talks Finniss resources boost
Core Lithium today provided an updated report on its lithium resources at Finniss, the company’s 100%-owned lithium operation set up near Darwin in the Northern Territory.
The results came from drilling and analysis that was completed in 2022, with the drilling program completed at its known prospects and the Bynoe Pegmatite field, the largest program undertaken by the group to date.
Core was happy to share the news that its total Finniss Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) increased by 62% to 30.6 million tonnes at a quality rating of 1.31% lithium oxide.
Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource estimates also increased by 46% to 19.4 million tonnes at 1.37% lithium oxide.
The lithium miner said there have been significant increases to its known deposits, and new ones, all of which have been accounted for in the updated MRE.
The Bynoe Pegmatite Field (Bynoe) itself is located 15km south of Darwin, and it extends up to 70km in length and 15km in width.
Bynoe consists of up to 100 known pegmatites, which vary considerably in size (from a few metres wide and tens of metres long to tens of metres wide and hundreds of metres long).
These results show potential for mine life extension at Finniss, and work is now underway to complete an updated Ore Reserve Estimate.
Core Lithium commenced drilling for 2023 at Finniss and aims to deliver significant increases to the total Mineral Resource.
The company has allocated $25 million to the 2023 program — nearly double the budget allocated for 2022.
Gareth Manderson, Core’s CEO said:
‘This significant increase to the Finniss Mineral Resource is a fantastic outcome for Core and our shareholders. The 2022 drilling campaign was the largest in Core’s history, and these outstanding results are a credit to the exploration team.
‘Through the targeted and systematic drilling of known and emerging deposits, the Company has further highlighted the prospectivity of our landholding in the Bynoe Pegmatite field and the strong potential for life of mine extensions at the Finniss Lithium Operation.
‘Our exploration team returns to Finniss in 2023 with a pipeline of new and existing deposits. The success of the 2022 exploration program is a strong endorsement of our near-doubled 2023 exploration budget as we target growth at the Finniss Lithium Operation.’
A boom for drillers
Lithium is only one part of a universe that is chock-full of potential.
It’s part of a wider industry making massive bull market-like gains in the face of recession, interest rates and wider market sentiment.
To put it bluntly, drillers are booming.
More booms are marked to happen for every single metal on the periodic table.
Aussie mining is at its best right now, but if so many of them topped 2022, can they really do it again in 2023?
Our experts definitely seem to think so. But how do you tell which ones?
You may need a little help from our commodities expert James Cooper.
James has spent time out in the field and brings the inside-industry knowledge to you here at Fat Tail Investment Research.
Let’s start with six ASX mining stocks that are heading to top the charts.
Regards,
Mahlia Stewart,
For The Daily Reckoning
