VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Explorer American Lithium has discovered, through its quality assurance and quality control processes, that recent assay results provided by a third party on samples from the Fish Lake property, in Nevada, were flawed and should not be relied upon.

Florin Analytical Services of Reno, conducted multi-element assays by inductively-coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) except for lithium. Based on discussions with Florin, lithium was assayed by atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) as the assayer at Florin felt the AAS method would produce a slightly more accurate result for lithium, American Lithium said on Thursday.

However, sampling on the Fish Lake North Playa exploration target crossed over a historic sample line that had been reported by other publicly listed exploration companies. The company's qualified person (QP), Michael Collins, observed that the new samples were reporting significantly higher values than the historic samples and requested a small number of these samples be sent to a second laboratory for analysis to confirm or refute the new assay values.

These check assays were materially lower than the original Florin assay values, which triggered a second request by the QP for further check assays on the entire sample set that the six samples were derived from, to gather a more statistically meaningful set of check assays.

"While we are disappointed to uncover errors in the laboratory process, we are relieved that the checks the company and the QP put in place were able to catch the errors in the early stages of the project. To date, the results reported have only included the company's near-surface brine samples. In January, we intend to resume our deep drilling programme," commented COO Michael Kobler.

American Lithium engaged ALS Minerals to have the assay samples prepped at its facilities in Reno; and the check assays performed at ALS laboratories in North Vancouver, British Columbia, using ICP-AES.

The ICP-AES method was chosen because of concerns that the AAS method may be biased by the high salt concentration in brine samples. While this work has not yet been completed, the company has been advised that, from the outset, Florin had been simultaneously assaying for lithium by ICP-AES on all submitted samples and that these assay values, although not sighted by the company or the QP, are materially lower than the reported AAS assays.

American Lithium said neither it nor the company's QP were aware that Florin had assayed the samples of lithium by ICP-AES and, hence, that there were significantly different values that had not been reported. The company advised that the 2016 assays reported to date from the Fish Lake lithium project should not be relied on.

It will engage ALS to have all sample splits reassayed at ALS laboratories and will report the updated assay results as soon as they are available. Under the company's check assay protocols, and for consistency, ALS will use the ICP-AES assay technique for these sample splits.

The TSX-V-listed firm, which recently consolidated a massive land position in the prospective and lithium-rich Clayton Valley district, said Monday it had received approval for its revised drilling permit to drill five wells at the Fish Lake Valley lithium exploration project. The company also announced that it had now received the required permitting to drill up to six wells on its Clayton Valley property.