Auroch’s Kangaroo Hills leaps to the fore with standout LCT pegmatite hit

Auroch’s drilling has proved beyond a doubt that its Kangaroo Hills project in Western Australia’s Goldfields region hosts significant lithium-caesium-tantalum pegmatites.

All four reverse circulation holes in the first batch of assay results it received from the laboratory intersected spodumene-bearing LCT pegmatites with KHRC011 – the eastern most hole in the program – being the standout with a 29m intersection grading 1.36% Li2O from a down-hole depth of 38m.

Where it gets interesting for Auroch Minerals (ASX:AOU) is that KHRC011 was a late addition to the drill program after in-field observations led its geology team to believe there was potential for a shallow pegmatite present further east of the planned drill holes

For this hole to return a mineralised intercept at such a shallow depth is a big point in favour of Kangaroo Hills hosting a large-scale, shallow lithium-rich pegmatite, which currently remains open to the east, north and south.

The company adds that while drill hole data remains limited, the pegmatites are interpreted to be relatively flat lying, which will make predictive targeting that much easier.

Auroch ASX AOU Assays — Location of drill results received to date. Pic: Supplied (AOU)

Technical Director Robin Cox said the number of mineralised holes confirms the potential of Kangaroo Hills with added confidence coming from the presence of spodumene in the drill holes and surface mineralisation.

“This is a very significant discovery for the Company. It is a credit to Robin and his technical team that we have managed to go from an initial discovery in November last year to a potentially company-defining discovery in such a short period of time,” Executive Chairman Mike Edwards added.

“The capital raise we completed late last year allowed us to hit the ground running in January with drill campaigns at both KHLP and in Nevada.

“We are fully funded for the planned follow up program at KHLP and we look forward to updating the market further when more results are received.”

All mineralised pegmatites have been confirmed to host spodumene as determined by a hand-held Raman Spectrometer, while XRD results have confirmed spodumene in mineralised surface samples.

Upcoming work

While Auroch is currently awaiting results from the remaining 10 holes it drilled under the Phase 1 program, the results from KHRC011 warrant immediate follow-up.

As such, the company is planning a combined RC and diamond drilling program to step out and test the extent of the LCT pegmatite.

Drilling is expected to commence in the coming 1-2 weeks once planning and ground preparation work is complete.

The company’s target generative geophysical review will also run in tandem to the Phase 2 drill program and it is expected that priority targets will be tested following completion of the review.

This article was developed in collaboration with Auroch Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.