- Initial pump tests from AAL Cauchari drilling average
678mg/litre
- Three drill rigs now testing for extensions to existing
NI43-101 resource (December
2016)1
- Senior technical appointments enhance capability
BRISBANE, Australia,
Sept. 19, 2017 /CNW/ -- Orocobre
Limited (ORE: ASX, ORL: TSX) (Orocobre) today received notice from
35% owned joint venture partner Advantage Lithium (TSXV: AAL,
Advantage) of initial test results from its flagship lithium
property, located in the Cauchari Salar of Jujuy province in
NW Argentina.
Initial results from the first set of composite brine samples
from hole CAU10 in the SE sector of Cauchari (see hole location in
Figure 1 below) have returned an average lithium grade of 678
milligrams per liter (mg/l) with sample results ranging from 585 to
724 mg/l lithium2 and excellent Mg/Li ratios
averaging 2.1:1. Further results from this hole will be available
in coming weeks.
Hole CAU10 is part of a two phase program totaling 17 holes
which will lead to a scoping study. Three drill rigs are now
engaged on this program with work currently progressing on CAU07
and CAU09.
Orocobre Managing Director and CEO, Richard Seville said: "The execution of this
program over winter is a testament to the dedication and competence
of the Advantage team. Pleasingly, these initial results
demonstrate good brine concentrations and chemistry similar to that
at Olaroz."
Advantage Lithium is increasing its interest in the project from
the current 50% to 75% through the expenditure of US$5m or by completing a Feasibility Study.
Orocobre holds the remaining interest.
The Cauchari project lies approximately 20 kilometres south of
Orocobre's producing Olaroz Lithium facility.
Senior Technical Appointments
Advantage Lithium also strengthened its' technical capability
with the addition of Andy Robbs as
Technical Advisor and Frits Reidel
as a consulting Independent Qualified Person. Andy has held
significant technical and management roles with companies such as
BHP Billiton and AMC Consulting. Andy was VP South America and
Project Director for Enirgi Group Corporation where he had
responsibility for over 200 Operational and Project staff and was
instrumental in the completion of the NI43-101 compliant Definitive
Feasibility Study for the Rincon lithium brine project located in
Salta.
Fritz and his team at FloSolutions have vast experience in brine
resource evaluation, salt-lake exploration, hydrogeology, drilling
methods, well construction, and testing gained from working on
numerous projects such as Olaroz, Cauchari (Lithium Americas) and
Maricunga.
Please see the attached release from Advantage Lithium for
further details.
For more
information please contact:
|
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Richard
Seville
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Andrew
Barber
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Managing
Director
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Investor Relations
Manager
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T: +61 7 3871
3985
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T: +61 7 3871
3985
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M:+61 419 916
338
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M: +61 418 783
701
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E:
rseville@orocobre.com
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E:
abarber@orocobre.com
|
About Orocobre Limited
Orocobre Limited (Orocobre) is a dynamic global lithium
carbonate supplier and an established producer of boron.
Orocobre is dual listed on the Australia and Toronto Stock Exchanges (ASX:
ORE), (TSE: ORL). Orocobre's operations include its Olaroz Lithium
Facility in Northern Argentina,
Borax Argentina, an established Argentine boron minerals and
refined chemicals producer and a 35% interest in Advantage
Lithium.
For further information, please visit www.orocobre.com.
Original Advantage Lithium release follows:
Advantage Lithium Reports Initial Pump Test
Averaging 678 mg/litre From Cauchari JV Project
Senior Technical Appointments
Announced
Vancouver, British Columbia,
September 19, 2017 – Advantage
Lithium Corp. (the "Company" or "Advantage Lithium") (TSX
Venture: AAL) (OTCQX: AVLIF) is pleased to announce further
positive progress with its Cauchari JV drilling program where three
drill rigs are now expanding the depth and lateral extent of the
existing NI43-101 mineral resource dated December 20163.
Initial results from the first set of composite brine samples
from hole CAU10 in the SE sector (see hole location in Figure 2
below) have returned an average lithium grade of 678 milligrams per
liter (mg/l) with sample results ranging from 585 to 724 mg/l
lithium4 and excellent Mg/Li ratios averaging 2.1/1
These initial 17 samples were collected as part of a preliminary
pumping test conducted on the hole; a second set of samples from
this hole are due later this month. Systematic double-packer
sampling of individual filter sections will proceed shortly over
the total 340m depth of the developed well.
Meanwhile, the second rotary drill rig has completed hole CAU09
also in the SE sector approximately 2.5km from CAU10. Filter and
casing sections along with gravel pack have been installed to the
400m depth limit of the hole. Cleaning and development are underway
prior to a preliminary pumping test and sampling scheduled for the
next few days.
The third drill rig, a diamond drill machine, is currently set
up on hole CAU07 in the NW sector of the property where a rotary
pre-collar to 130m was completed as planned in May 2017.
CAU07 will be cored at HQ diameter to a planned target depth of
400m, to provide sample for porosity and other aquifer
measurements. Brine samples will be collected using a packer or
bailer system at intervals down the hole.
Said President & CEO Mr. David
Sidoo: "We are pleased to have completed the first holes
of the program, working on site during the difficult winter period.
The initial assay results from CAU10 are most encouraging and we
look forward over the next few weeks to more results from the
systematic sampling of CAU10 and the other holes in the
program."
Drilling Progress:
- Rotary hole CAU10 has been developed and constructed with
filter sections to 340m depth. Samples collected during a
preliminary pump test returned an average Li grade of 678 mg/l;
further results from this pump test will be available later this
week. The results from this well are consistent with the
lithological sequence intersected in the halite (salt) core of the
Cauchari salar. Initial packer test results are expected in
October. The rig has now mobilised further south to CAU08.
- Rotary hole CAU09 was completed on September 5th to the 400m target depth at a
diameter of 12". The initial pilot hole was subsequently reamed out
to accommodate installation of 8" filter/casing sections in the
upper section of the hole. Preliminary pump and sampling tests will
begin shortly with initial results expected this month. This will
be followed by systematic double-packer sampling of individual
filter sections. Packer sample results are expected in
October.
- A diamond drill (DDH) rig was mobilised to site on August 25th, initially collaring 12m cemented
surface casings on exploration holes in the SE sector.
- The DDH rig has now moved on to hole CAU07 in the NW sector of
the property where drill core is being collected from sediments
below the Archibarca alluvial fan, a key target of the Cauchari JV
exploration program. An initial double-packer sample was taken at a
depth of ~180m, with additional sampling as the hole advances.
Packer sampling results are expected in October.
- All five rotary holes in the work program are expected to be
completed and sampled before year-end 2017 along with approximately
5 of the up to 12 diamond drill holes designed as monitoring and/or
exploration holes. Drilling of the remaining exploration holes will
continue in 2018.
Senior Appointments
The Company is also pleased to welcome senior additions to the
Company's technical team as follows:
- Mr. Andy Robb joins as Technical
Adviser, Projects. Andy brings significant senior technical and
management depth to the Cauchari JV. In addition to senior roles
with BHP Billiton and AMC Consulting, during the period 2013-16
Andy was VP South America and Project Director for Enirgi Group
Corporation. In this role Andy had responsibility for over 200
Operational and Project staff and was instrumental in the
completion of the NI43-101 compliant Definitive Feasibility Study
for the Rincon lithium brine project located in Salta. Following
his leadership/supervision of successful exploration campaigns
(drilling and pump testing) over the study period 2013 to 2015,
Measured and Indicated resources increased significantly to 3.5 Mt
LCE (plus Inferred resource to 4.8 Mt LCE) for the project
with 50,000tpa LCE nameplate capacity. As we move into 2018, Andy
will play a key role in advancing our project through the scoping
study and future engineering phases of development.
- Mr. Frits Reidel, principal of
the consulting firm FloSolutions, has been commissioned to provide
on-going assistance to the Company as its Independent QP to ensure
industry best practice related to drilling, testing, sampling and
related QA/QC procedures on the current AAL exploration program
which will lead to an updated mineral resource estimate in early
2018. Based in Santiago, Chile,
Frits and his team have vast experience in brine resource
evaluation including the practicalities of salt-lake exploration,
hydrogeology, drilling methods, well construction, and testing
gained from working on numerous projects (for examples, Olaroz,
Cauchari [Lithium Americas], and Maricunga) in the Lithium Triangle
of Argentina and Chile since 1992. Frits Reidel is a Qualified Person and
independent of AAL as defined under NI43-101.
President & CEO Mr. David
Sidoo said "With the addition of Andy and Frits to our
current team we have added senior expertise with demonstrated
success in developing large-scale lithium projects. We welcome Andy
and Frits to the Advantage Lithium team, where we look forward to
working together to develop the Cauchari lithium project. This
project in the heart of the lithium triangle is located between the
producing Olaroz lithium plant and the pre-development lithium
project of Lithium America and has excellent potential to be
developed in association with Orocobre or independently."
The technical information in this news release has been reviewed
and approved on behalf of the Company by Murray Brooker, MAIG, RPGEO, a "Qualified
Person" as defined in NI 43-101.
About Advantage Lithium Corp.
Advantage Lithium Corp. is a resource company specializing in
the strategic acquisition, exploration and development of lithium
properties and is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The common shares
of the Company are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V: AAL),
and the Company is also traded on the OTCQX Best Market in the U.S.
(OTCQX: AVLIF). The Company has acquired a 100% interest in five
projects in Argentina and up to a
75% interest in a sixth, called Cauchari. Cauchari is located just
20 km south of Orocobre's flagship Olaroz Lithium Facility.
Further information about the Company can be found at
www.advantagelithium.com.
ADVANTAGE LITHIUM CORP.
Per:
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"David
Sidoo"
|
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|
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David Sidoo,
President
|
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Tel:
604.343.3760 | Fax: 604.683.1585
|
|
Email:
info@advantagelithium.com
|
Cautionary Statement:
Certain information contained in this press release constitutes
"forward-looking information", within the meaning of Canadian
legislation. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "is
expected", "intends", or "has the potential to". Forward
looking statements contained in this press release may include
statements regarding the future operating or financial performance
of Advantage that involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties
which may not prove to be accurate. Actual results and outcomes may
differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in these
forward-looking statements. Such statements are qualified in their
entirety by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future
expectations. The forward-looking statements included in this press
release are made as of the date of this press release and the
Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise
any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly
required by applicable securities legislation.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
--------------
1 Inferred resource estimated at 230 million cubic
metres of brine at 380 mg/l Li and 3,700 mg/l K representing in
situ contained content of 470,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate
equivalent (LCE) and 1.62 million tonnes of potash (KCL). Source:
Independent Technical Report, Murray
Brooker et. al, December
2016.
2 Assaying completed at Alex Stewart Laboratories in
Jujuy city, Argentina under strict
QA/QC protocols.
3 Inferred resource estimated at 230 million cubic
metres of brine at 380 mg/l Li and 3,700 mg/l K representing in
situ contained content of 470,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate
equivalent (LCE) and 1.62 million tonnes of potash (KCL). Source:
Independent Technical Report, Murray
Brooker et. al, December
2016.
4 Assaying completed at Alex Stewart Laboratories in
Jujuy city, Argentina under strict
QA/QC protocols.
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SOURCE Orocobre Limited