Askari Metals Limited has started its Phase I RC drilling program on Exclusive Prospecting Licence 8535, which forms a part of the Uis Lithium Project located in Namibia.
The project comprises EPL 7345 and EPL 8535 and covers an area of 308.12km2 in a highly mineralised, spodumene rich pegmatite belt with a history of prior production and exploration success.
According to the latest announcement, the drilling program commenced on 12 February 2023, with the company having completed six holes already. EPL 8535 is situated less than 17km from the town of Uis and adjacent to the operating Uis Mine, owned by London-listed Andrada Mining Limited. The project holds exceptional potential, as identified by the due diligence sample results and the very high number of pegmatites exposed at the surface, ranging from a few meters in width to more than 50m wide.
Askari’s VP-Exploration & Geology, Johan Lambrechts said, “This inaugural phase of drilling on EPL 8535 will culminate in the Company completing more than 100 drill holes on our Namibian projects in less than five months, and this statistic will be compounded when the second phase of drilling starts on EPL 7345 in a few weeks’ time. We aim to continue with this methodology for the foreseeable future, with the mapping programs leading to new and additional drill targets to be tested.”
The first phase of drilling on EPL 8535 according to the company, aims to test several high-grade lithium targets identified by the due diligence work completed by the company.
A second RC drill rig according to Askari, will commence the Phase II drilling program on EPL 7345 in the next few weeks, and after the completion of the mapping program on EPL 7345.
The mining industry experts are closely monitoring the progress of the drilling program, as the Uis Lithium Project has the potential to become one of the leading lithium producers globally.
According to the latest figures, the price of lithium is steadily increasing, currently trading at US$8,200 per tonne, up from US$6,100 per tonne in January 2022. The demand for lithium is expected to grow further due to the rising demand for electric vehicles, renewable energy storage, and other emerging technologies.
