Red Mountain orders fast-track assaying of new Mustang lithium drill results
Red Mountain Mining (ASX: RMX) has ordered fast-tracking of assay results from its newly completed Phase 2 reverse circulation (RC) drilling campaign at the 100% owned Mustang lithium project in Nevada, USA.
Due to the expected acceleration of turnaround times, assay results from the 11 holes drilled in this program are expected to arrive in around 3 to 4 weeks.
Red Mountain has now successfully and safely completed the initial drilling program on time and budget at Mustang after it was granted Bureau of Land Management Nevada approval in early October.
Nevada-based drilling company Alloy Drilling LLC undertook the drilling of the 11 holes which targeted a maximum depth of 150m per hole to test lithium bearing clay horizons.
Highly prospective location
The Mustang lithium project is located around 9 km south of Belmont Resources’ Kibby Lake project and 40 km east of American Lithium’s TLC deposit.
In July 2023, Red Mountain successfully completed a maiden RC program at Mustang which provided confirmation of a lithium discovery made in initial surface sampling in February 2023.
In that July drilling program, the company identified significant, thick high-grade lithium claystone in 8 out of 10 drill holes, with 7 holes intersecting high-grade lithium from or near surface.
Growing project footprint
Following its early exploration success, the company staked an additional 88 mining claims north of the Mustang project in early August.
The company also elected to commence a preliminary metallurgical test program on several core samples.
The metallurgical program was designed as a proof of concept that lithium can be extracted from collected drill samples through the use of sulphuric acid as a metallurgical process.
In late September Red Mountain revealed it had obtained excellent lithium metallurgical recoveries of up to 88% from samples achieved using kinetic leach test work with sulphuric acid.
Red Mountain’s chairman, Troy Flannery, said the company was highly encouraged by results to date and is now looking to further optimise results on a wider range of samples with the aim of reducing acid consumption while increasing the lithium recovery.
Building Nevada land ownership
Earlier this month, Red Mountain staked a total of 199 mining claims in the north-east region of Nevada.
At what is now known as the Magante project, Red Mountain is targeting Thacker Pass or Clayton Valley type lithium clay deposits.
The project is located just 8km from Surge Battery Metals’ initial discovery at its Nevada North Lithium Project (NNLP).
Surge confirmed a major lithium discovery at Nevada North in October 2022 when it intersected a wide mineralised zone of high-grade lithium bearing clays with hits of between 1,790 parts per million to a high of 4,500 parts per million lithium.
More recently drilling by Surge returned multiple zones of high lithium values, with amounts ranging up to 8,070 parts per million as the company has accelerated its drilling work to successfully extend the known strike length of the deposit out to 3,500 metres.
A comprehensive sampling program is currently being prepared for the Magante project, which is set to commence in the near future.