Castle Minerals Limited (ASX: CDT) has successfully completed a 30-hole, 2,290m RC drilling programme at the Kambale Graphite project, Ghana.
The drilling was designed primarily to better define the high-grade zones intercepted in the previous round of drilling and to facilitate a maiden JORC 2012 Mineral Resource estimate scheduled for delivery around end-Q1 2023, subject to timing of receipt of assay results. The program was fast tracked with Castle’s geological team and contracted drilling crew working through the Christmas period.
A prior 52 hole, 5,353m RC drill programme had extended the deposit’s foot print to 2.5km north-south over a combined width of up to 0.5km with several holes intercepting thick, multiple graphitic zones such as 14m at 8.1% TGC from 47m and 45m at 11.2% TGC from 66m in 22CKRC052.
An independently estimated JORC 2012 Exploration Target of 16.82 million tonnes to 50.46 million tonnes at a grade between 6.74%TGC and 10.40%TGC (Total Graphitic Carbon) was subsequently reported in late November 2022.
“It’s been a very busy Christmas and a great start to 2023 with the completion at the Kambale Graphite Project in Ghana of a 30-hole, 2,290m RC drilling programme and the arrival this week in Perth of 300kg of diamond drill core samples for Phase 2 metallurgical test work that will commence in coming days,” Managing Director, Stephen Stone, said.
“Our Ghana team and drilling contractor have worked through the Christmas period to ensure we remain on schedule to tick several important Project milestones this March Quarter including to confirm if we can produce a commercial grade concentrate that can then be evaluated for possible use in the manufacture of electric vehicle battery anodes.”
“It’s going to be a very interesting year for the Project underpinned by the many forecasts for a looming graphite supply deficit on the back of the predicted increase in worldwide sales of electric vehicles and stationary power storage units.
“With Castle also having interests in several other active battery metals projects, base metals and gold projects shareholders can look forward to a busy and exciting 2023.”
The Exploration Target was limited to a vertical depth of 100m below surface and highlights that Kambale may have the scale, grade and other attributes to justify its continued evaluation as a possible producer of a commercially acceptable fine flake graphite concentrate.
In addition, ~300kg of half core samples from a four-hole 365m diamond drilling programme have just arrived in Perth. These will be used for Phase 2 metallurgical test work to assess the amenability of the graphitic schist to produce a fine flake graphite concentrate as a base for EV battery anode manufacture.
The test work, which will commence in coming days at the facility of Metallurgy Pty Ltd, Perth, will comprise a series of beneficiation, flotation and grinding cycles on composited core aimed at producing a quantity of as near-to commercial grade fine flake graphite concentrate as possible.
The Phase 2 concentrate produced in Perth will then be assessed by a specialist European metallurgical laboratory for its ability to be upgraded and processed (micronised, purified, spheronised and coated) into a battery-grade fine flake concentrate for possible application in electric vehicle battery anode manufacture.
The diamond drill core has been obtained from four locations to provide a broad representation of the graphitic schist material and its variability, especially below the weathering profile.
Subject to the success of the test work, the Mineral Resource estimate and other related studies and commercial factors, a development Scoping Study will be considered for Q2 2023.
For further information please visit: https://www.castleminerals.com/
