Prospect Resources Limited (Prospect) says it commenced Phase 2 drilling at the Omaruru Lithium Project in Namibia alongside Osino Resources Corp, in line with their earn-in agreement for a 50% stake in the project.
According to the agreement, if Prospect completes Phase 2 of the earn-in agreement, it will earn an additional 10% interest in the project.
Prospect CEO and Managing Director Sam Hosack said the completion of Phase 2 drilling is also expected to see the company advance its next earn-in stage at Omaruru, which will result in Prospect’s ownership stake in Omaruru increasing to 51%.
This comes after in September 2023 Prospect completed Phase 1 of the earn-in agreement for the Project and earned a 40% interest by completing a series of exploration activities, including drilling, sampling, and geophysical surveys.
Osino will retain a 50% interest in the project, unless it is unable to fund its share of the project, in which case it will be carried as a 15% interest holder until the completion of a definitive feasibility study (DFS).
Hosack said the Phase 2 drilling programme is designed to target prospective geochemical anomalies at Karlsbrunn SE, Karlsbrunn NE and Bergers Central, which were identified in field programmes conducted through CY2023.
He added that the programme was initially scheduled to commence late in Q4 2023, but delayed until early January, owing to no rotary air-blast (RAB) rig availability before that time.
“The current programme will include further targeting of the root zone feeder system identified on the northeast flank of Karlsbrunn Main, which previously returned 35m @ 0.85% Li2O from the surface,” said Hosack.
The CEO noted that the Phase 2 drilling is planned to consist of a combination of 70 RAB and RC drill holes for a total of approximately 4,250 metres drilled.
Results from this programme are expected to further define the geometry, depth and strike extent of key lithium-mineralised pegmatites.
“The outcomes are also expected to inform the generation of a more detailed and deeper RC drilling programme, which is targeted at a potential JORC reportable lithium Mineral Resource estimate during H1 CY2024,” he said.
This comes as Prospect anticipates that Phase 2 drilling will take approximately six weeks to complete.
The first assays are expected to be returned before the end of January. The Omaruru Lithium Project, comprising the EPL 5533 tenement, is centred on the village of Wilhelmstal, east of Karibib in Namibia and covers 158 square kilometres.
The tenement is located near several advanced mining projects, including Osino Resources’ Twin Hills Gold Project (recently acquired by Dundee Precious Metals Inc. and Lepidico’s Karibib Lithium Project.
EPL 5533 contains 60 visible outcropping LCT pegmatites, with historical artisanal workings for gemstones common throughout the tenement and considerable prospective for the identification of further lithium-enriched deposits occurring below cover in the region.
Prospect currently holds a 40% interest in Omaruru via its equivalent shareholding in Richwing Exploration (Pty) Ltd (Richwing), which is 60%-owned by Osino Resources Corp. (OSI.TSXV).
Prospect is currently earning a further 11% interest in Richwing (and thus Omaruru) via a Phase 2 investment of US$0.56 million over 12 months.
