There’s a lot of crap down the cheap end of the bourse. There are also some absolute gems that, with a little polishing, could shine.

“It’s much easier to get a 10,000 bagger if you start with a sub $2m market cap, than if you start with a $200m market cap,” legendary investor Rick Rule says.  Too right.

Today we’re focussing on sub $15m resources explorers with exposure to lithium — a thematic which has re-emerged with a vengeance in 2021.

Could one of these 10 bargain barrel stocks be the next Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS), Liontown (ASX:LTR), or Vulcan Energy (ASX:VUL)?

 

REEDY LAGOON (ASX:RLC)

The gold-iron ore focused explorer has two Nevada lithium brine projects in its back pocket: Alkali Lake North and Clayton Valley.

Reedy had said these lithium brine projects were on hold “until technology enables production without evaporation”.

Which there is – it’s called Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE), and all the cool kids are doing it.

In early September, the company staked additional lithium ground in Nevada after raising $1.1m from a placement.

 

ARCADIA MINERALS (ASX:AM7)

This explorer already has cash in the bank, having recently listed in a $6.4m IPO.

Arcadia owns a couple of lithium projects in Namibia called ‘Swanson’ (hard rock) and ‘Bitterwasser’ (lithium-in-brines).

A drilling program at the advanced Swanson project is now underway. An initial JORC resource – based on historical drilling — could be released shortly.

 

TAMBOURAH METALS (ASX:TMB)

In September, this recent listing applied for tenure over the ‘Russian jack’ tin-tantalum-lithium project in the Pilbara.

Recent field work also identified potentially lithium outcrops within the company’s neighbouring ‘Tambourah’ gold project.

 

AUSTRALASIAN GOLD (ASX:A8G)

This newly listed explorer is also hedging bets by chasing gold (not hot), copper (hot) and lithium (scorching hot) simultaneously.

A8G kicked off exploration activities on Sunday at the ‘Mt Peake’ lithium project in the North Territory – right next door to developer Core Lithium’s (ASX:CXO) ‘Anningie’ and ‘Barrow Creek’ projects.

$700m market cap Core is expected to be Australia’s next lithium producer.

 

MARQUEE RESOURCES (ASX:MQR)

Marquee has two potential lithium projects – ‘West Spargoville’ in WA, and ‘Clayton Valley’ in the US.

West Spargoville – 25km from the Mt Marion lithium mine — was originally acquired for its gold and nickel prospectivity, but lithium is just so hot right now.

“Our geological team have discovered multiple new lithium prospects on the West Spargoville project and we have managed to extend our option over the project for a further 12 months, allowing us plenty of time to fully test these high priority targets in an exciting lithium district,” executive chairman, Charles Thomas said August 31.

The company is “imminently” undertaking a surface mapping and sampling program.

 

TEMPEST MINERALS (ASX:TEM)

Gold focussed Tempest also has three WA lithium projects in its back pocket – ‘Windarling’, ‘Rocky Hill’ and ‘Caranning’.

 

LODESTAR MINERALS (ASX:LSR)

This industrious junior — which has its hands full with the Nepean nickel project JV with Auroch Minerals (ASX:AOU), plus zinc-lead and gold exploration targets – recently picked up ground prospective for lithium.

“There is little record of any historic exploration over the greenstone or monzogranite contact and the tenement has potential for gold, nickel and LCT pegmatites,” the company said July 30.

“First-pass regional geochemical sampling is planned on grant of the tenement.”

 

SIPA RESOURCES (ASX:SRI)

The explorer is targeting gold and lithium deposits at the ‘Warralong’ project in the Pilbara.

It is almost completely untested by previous exploration, the company says.

Sipa recently completed its first drilling program, with more to follow.

 

METALS AUSTRALIA (ASX:MLS)

The company is looking to dust off its ‘Manindi’ lithium project, located in the Murchison District of WA.

“Given the recent renewed interest in the lithium and battery metals sector, the Company is currently evaluating previous RC and diamond drilling results to define further extensions of the lithium bearing pegmatites under cover as well as potential for in-fill drilling of the lithium mineralised pegmatites, which are still open down-dip and along strike,” Metals Australia said April 30.

 

GOLDEN STATE MINING (ASX:GSM)

Pilbara explorer Golden State has generated four lithium targets at the ‘Yule’ project.

A drilling program is due to kick off in October, subject to “completion of a heritage survey and drill rig availability”, the company says.