Boadicea Resources Ltd (ASX:BOA) is buoyed by an encouraging drilling campaign at the Two Tanks lithium tenement west of Mt Ida in Western Australia with pegmatites encountered that were thicker than expected.
An 18-hole aircore program resulted in the drilling of 1,296 metres to follow up fertile pegmatites drilled in 2023 when intersected intervals contained up to 2,491ppm lithium oxide (Li2O).
The new program returned encouraging initial results supported by rock chips and the pegmatites intersected were thicker than the company’s pre-drill estimates after geochemical modelling indicated that higher lithium grades were possible closer to the margin of the Copperfield Granite.
There have been 286 samples sent to Intertek Genalysis laboratories for multi-element assay focusing on lithium mineralisation and BOA hopes that the results will confirm the observations.
“Highly encouraged”
Boadicea managing director Cath Norman said: “The drilling at Two Tanks kicked off BOA’s four-tenement drilling campaign for 2024.
“We are highly encouraged by the field results from the drilling campaign and look forward to receiving the assay results in a few weeks.”
Location of the Two Tanks tenement showing proximity to the Copperfield Granite contact which is host to the Mt Ida Lithium Project as well as the Jailbreak, Sparrow, Mt Alexander and Manta lithium discoveries.
Aircore campaign
The April 2024 aircore drilling focused on the established trends from previous drilling campaigns, combined with recently mapped pegmatite targets as well as geochemical anomalies.
Several mapped pegmatites were targeted, with the vast majority being intersected downhole at the approximate expected depths, with apparent thicknesses of up to 13 metres.
The total combined intersection width of pegmatites (as the primary logged lithology) for the program was 107 metres over 12 of the 18 holes.
This campaign also targeted geochemical anomalies identified in the 2023 geochemical sampling campaign as well as historical geochemical anomalies in areas with no surface expression of pegmatites, where potential targets may be obscured by transported overburden.
Awaiting assays
A number of substantial pegmatitic units were intersected and BOA now awaits the assay results before further drilling on the units of interest, moving along strike as well as testing at a deeper level below surface.
The rig used in this month’s drilling program has been demobilised but a number of additional pegmatitic targets remain to be tested, including several substantial outcropping units in the western portion of the Two Tanks lease.
“An exciting period”
"In the meantime, preparations are underway for drilling the Bald Hill East and Cat Camp tenements, also highly prospective for lithium. Heritage surveys are planned and drilling of these two tenements will follow,” Norman said.
"It is an exciting period for our company as we embark on this fully funded drilling program.”