VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Exploration junior Rock Tech Lithium has confirmed high-grade lithium mineralisation on surface and at depth in the Parole Lake area of its 100%-owned Georgia Lake lithium property, in the Thunder Bay Mining District of Northwest Ontario.

“The results from the channel sampling programme completed last year, along with the assays from the recently completed drill programme, have confirmed high-grade lithium mineralisation and has given us great confidence in the robustness of the historic data,” CEO Martin Stephan said in a statement on Thursday, adding that the pegmatite remains open along strike and at depth.

Mining services provider Major Drilling completed seven drill holes totalling 1 382 m on the Parole Lake pegmatite. The campaign was designed to confirm historic results, assist in modelling the orientation of the pegmatite and provide a more robust understanding of its potential.

Previous pegmatite modelling has suggested the pegmatite was dipping to the north; however, this drill programme has confirmed the pegmatite is dipping to the south. This will increase the effectiveness of future exploration programmes on this pegmatite, the company advised.

The results from the 2016 channel programme confirmed the presence of high-grade lithium mineralisation up to 2.69% lithium oxide, including 4.22 m of 1.89% lithium oxide and 3.01 m of 1.57% lithium oxide, and provided a better understanding of the geometry of the lithium-bearing pegmatite and were an integral part of planning these drill holes.

The Parole Lake pegmatite has an historic resource estimate of 1.5-million tonnes grading 1.3% lithium oxide.

“These results, from just one of at least six known pegmatites in this particular area of the property, clearly show the growth potential of our Georgia Lake lithium property. Further exploration investments in this region are warranted to confirm historic resources and develop additional targets on underexplored lithium-bearing pegmatites," the company said.

The spodumene-bearing pegmatites of the Georgia Lake area were first discovered in 1955, and Rock Tech is currently the only exploration company in the region with a National Instrument 43-101-compliant resource estimate. The resource estimate shows an indicated resource of 3.19-million tonnes grading 1.1% lithium oxide and an inferred resource of 6.31-million tonnes grading 1% lithium oxide.

Rock Tech has completed metallurgical testing on a bulk sample demonstrating the ability to produce both a high-grade spodumene concentrate and battery-grade lithium carbonate.