Azure Minerals Ltd (ASX:AZS, OTC:AZRMF) has kicked off reverse circulation (RC) drilling as part of a 40,000-metre drilling campaign at the Andover Lithium Project in the West Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The company has deployed two RC rigs, while two diamond drill rigs continue operations, having completed 20 holes totalling 7,332.6 metres to date, "rapidly increasing" its drilling capability in the region.
Assay results from the first diamond holes are expected to be released in mid-June from the project, which is 60% held by Azure and 40% by Creasy Group.
Drilling is currently testing the full 1,500 metres of strike length of the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatite.
High-priority lithium targets
Azure managing director Tony Rovira said: “Following receipt of the environmental and heritage clearances which allow us to access several high-priority lithium targets, we have moved rapidly to increase our drilling capability at the Andover Project.
“Along with the two diamond core rigs that have been operating on site since early March, we’ve now added two RC rigs to our lithium-focused drilling campaign and it’s likely that additional drill rigs will be mobilised within the next month to further accelerate the program towards resource definition.
“To date, we’re very encouraged by the visual indications in the drill core from the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatites, so for the time being the rigs will continue at these locations.
“However, I expect to start drilling other high-priority pegmatite targets at Andover in the near future when additional drill rigs arrive on site.”
The preliminary visual inspection of the drill core from the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatites suggests promising outcomes.
Azure is planning to drill at other high-priority pegmatite targets at Andover as more drill rigs become available.
Drill program
The two newly arrived RC rigs have initiated drilling operations along the 1,500 metres strike length of the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatites.
In line with its strategy, Azure anticipates the mobilisation of one or two additional RC rigs within the next month, subject to availability, to expedite the step-out drilling and investigate the full extent of the AP0011, AP0012 and other pegmatites.
Meanwhile, the two diamond core rigs stationed at the site have moved to the newly approved regions to examine the 1,500 metres strike length of the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatites.
Earlier diamond drilling resulted in the intersection of significant widths of pegmatites in most holes, confirming the along-strike and down-dip extensions of the outcropping pegmatites that yielded high lithium grades in Azure’s earlier surface sampling operations.
Next steps
Looking ahead, Azure intends to probe several high-priority lithium targets across the pegmatite swarm in the central and eastern areas of the Andover project.
The company's goal is to operate five to six drill rigs on-site for rapid testing and delineation of potential lithium resources.
Priority will be given to drilling in the AP0009-AP0014 sub-region, containing multiple pegmatites that extend over a strike length exceeding 1,500 metres.
Azure's geologists have reported visual identification of abundant spodumene, a lithium-bearing mineral, in the AP0011 and AP0012 pegmatites, in both the outcrop and the drill core extracted from the current diamond drilling program.