Eye on Lithium: Mandrake increases its Utah lithium landholding by 31pc

Mandrake increases acreage by 31% in Paradox Basin region of Utah
Lithium Energy kicks off study into lithium carbonate in Argentina
Atlantic begins auger drilling at the Ewoyaa lithium project in Ghana

All your ASX lithium news for Monday, March 20

Lithium explorer Mandrake Resources (ASX:MAN) has increased its Bureau of Land Management (BLM) acreage by 31%, securing a total of 62,745 acres (approximately 254 km2) of lithium brine prospective ground in the Paradox Basin in Utah, USA.

“A JORC-compliant Exploration Target is expected in Q2 2023, which will assist in communicating to the market the scale of the Utah Lithium Project,” MD James Allchurch said.

“In parallel with this, preparations are advanced for field activities to commence in the short term.”

The Paradox Basin includes nearby operators such as lithium developer Anson Resources (ASX:ASN), which has a mineral resource of over 1Mt of lithium carbonate equivalent at an average grade of 124mg/L, as well as the biggest potash producer in the US, Intrepid Potash.

Not to mention, ASX lithium developer Galan Lithium (ASX:GLN) has invested $1.5 million for a 5% stake in Mandrake and will be involved in the project on an ongoing basis in a technical advisory capacity.

Here’s how ASX lithium stocks were tracking today:

Code	Company	Price	% Today	Market Cap
RMX	Red Mount Min Ltd	0.004	33%	$6,815,553
AOU	Auroch Minerals Ltd	0.058	26%	$19,680,876
PAT	Patriot Lithium	0.295	23%	$14,553,000
ADV	Ardiden Ltd	0.007	17%	$16,130,012
ENT	Enterprise Metals	0.009	13%	$5,640,646
LSR	Lodestar Minerals	0.005	11%	$7,822,968
LPD	Lepidico Ltd	0.012	9%	$84,015,489
INR	Ioneer Ltd	0.2875	8%	$556,059,641
CAI	Calidus Resources	0.2325	8%	$94,503,431
ZEO	Zeotech Limited	0.063	5%	$98,442,340
GW1	Greenwing Resources	0.225	5%	$31,875,656
BNR	Bulletin Res Ltd	0.094	4%	$26,423,199
ARN	Aldoro Resources	0.24	4%	$25,969,833
LRS	Latin Resources Ltd	0.12	4%	$253,190,316
TMB	Tambourahmetals	0.1	4%	$3,954,489
TUL	Tulla Resources	0.25	4%	$51,083,628
WC8	Wildcat Resources	0.029	4%	$18,536,636
LIS	Lisenergylimited	0.2275	3%	$36,501,121
JRL	Jindalee Resources	2.48	3%	$137,709,518
AUN	Aurumin	0.031	3%	$5,362,746
LLO	Lion One Metals Ltd	0.95	3%	$11,048,246
GSM	Golden State Mining	0.035	3%	$3,978,483
CHR	Charger Metals	0.265	2%	$11,365,736
TON	Triton Min Ltd	0.0315	2%	$42,866,309
SCN	Scorpion Minerals	0.065	2%	$22,125,196
ESS	Essential Metals Ltd	0.485	1%	$128,432,013
A11	Atlantic Lithium	0.4875	1%	$293,784,705
AML	Aeon Metals Ltd.	0.025	0%	$27,410,016
AVZ	AVZ Minerals Ltd	0.78	0%	$2,752,409,203
LPI	Lithium Pwr Int Ltd	0.27	0%	$169,856,341
QPM	Queensland Pacific	0.105	0%	$183,366,532
TKL	Traka Resources	0.006	0%	$4,336,647
PAM	Pan Asia Metals	0.35	0%	$54,286,957
AX8	Accelerate Resources	0.023	0%	$8,684,840
AM7	Arcadia Minerals	0.215	0%	$10,040,047
AS2	Askarimetalslimited	0.5	0%	$24,748,765
EMS	Eastern Metals	0.062	0%	$2,421,994
FG1	Flynngold	0.083	0%	$8,538,504
FRS	Forrestaniaresources	0.097	0%	$5,906,456
LRV	Larvottoresources	0.15	0%	$10,088,208
MMC	Mitremining	0.23	0%	$8,276,573
RAG	Ragnar Metals Ltd	0.014	0%	$5,308,588
CTN	Catalina Resources	0.005	0%	$6,192,434
TEM	Tempest Minerals	0.023	0%	$11,649,566
EMC	Everest Metals Corp	0.075	0%	$7,982,483
WML	Woomera Mining Ltd	0.012	0%	$11,473,935
AZL	Arizona Lithium Ltd	0.046	0%	$112,355,213
KGD	Kula Gold Limited	0.019	0%	$6,863,026
QXR	Qx Resources Limited	0.03	0%	$26,905,870
AZI	Altamin Limited	0.076	0%	$29,770,473
KAI	Kairos Minerals Ltd	0.017	0%	$33,389,589
AVW	Avira Resources Ltd	0.002	0%	$4,267,580
A8G	Australasian Metals	0.145	0%	$5,969,722
SRZ	Stellar Resources	0.01	0%	$10,046,309
NWM	Norwest Minerals	0.033	0%	$7,329,544
VKA	Viking Mines Ltd	0.01	0%	$10,252,584
IPT	Impact Minerals	0.008	0%	$19,850,964
SRI	Sipa Resources Ltd	0.024	0%	$5,475,795
VMC	Venus Metals Cor Ltd	0.14	0%	$24,931,016
G88	Golden Mile Res Ltd	0.016	0%	$3,273,436
RIO	Rio Tinto Limited	114.8	0%	$42,615,621,367
THR	Thor Energy PLC	0.005	0%	$7,390,564
CZL	Cons Zinc Ltd	0.018	0%	$8,682,441
MXR	Maximus Resources	0.033	0%	$10,528,840
DRE	Dreadnought Resources Ltd	0.064	0%	$210,798,606
MM1	Midasmineralsltd	0.15	0%	$8,569,765
WMC	Wiluna Mining Corp	0.205	0%	$74,238,031
ALY	Alchemy Resource Ltd	0.015	0%	$17,671,144
TYX	Tyranna Res Ltd	0.02	0%	$48,128,507
DAF	Discovery Alaska Ltd	0.03	0%	$6,727,041
IR1	Irismetals	1.16	0%	$74,506,800
DAL	Dalaroometalsltd	0.06	0%	$1,792,500
NMT	Neometals Ltd	0.575	-1%	$320,589,882
NVA	Nova Minerals Ltd	0.45	-1%	$95,954,848
ASN	Anson Resources Ltd	0.2125	-1%	$262,054,273
WES	Wesfarmers Limited	48.41	-1%	$55,667,688,340
OCN	Oceanalithiumlimited	0.335	-1%	$12,776,010
MNS	Magnis Energy Tech	0.31	-2%	$305,654,417
CY5	Cygnus Metals Ltd	0.245	-2%	$45,968,553
MTM	Mtmongerresources	0.1025	-2%	$7,429,826
PGD	Peregrine Gold	0.405	-2%	$16,267,801
EMH	European Metals Hldg	0.605	-2%	$78,118,395
ZNC	Zenith Minerals Ltd	0.2	-2%	$72,099,739
RAS	Ragusa Minerals Ltd	0.08	-2%	$11,693,100
LEL	Lithenergy	0.59	-2%	$36,390,750
MLS	Metals Australia	0.038	-3%	$23,674,411
IGO	IGO Limited	11.875	-3%	$9,238,667,319
LIT	Lithium Australia	0.035	-3%	$43,962,900
LKE	Lake Resources	0.505	-3%	$738,371,246
PNN	Power Minerals Ltd	0.335	-3%	$24,924,816
EUR	European Lithium Ltd	0.066	-3%	$101,268,264
CXO	Core Lithium	0.815	-3%	$1,558,214,107
IMI	Infinitymining	0.16	-3%	$12,618,923
AKE	Allkem Limited	10.21	-3%	$6,714,539,646
MIN	Mineral Resources.	77.715	-3%	$15,470,518,135
SGQ	St George Min Ltd	0.058	-3%	$50,243,133
SYA	Sayona Mining Ltd	0.2125	-3%	$1,951,328,164
AAJ	Aruma Resources Ltd	0.055	-4%	$8,946,806
KZR	Kalamazoo Resources	0.135	-4%	$20,974,712
VUL	Vulcan Energy	5.77	-4%	$859,177,453
PLS	Pilbara Min Ltd	3.53	-4%	$11,002,709,615
GLN	Galan Lithium Ltd	0.985	-4%	$314,588,290
LLL	Leolithiumlimited	0.445	-4%	$458,795,464
INF	Infinity Lithium	0.105	-5%	$50,885,130
MQR	Marquee Resource Ltd	0.021	-5%	$7,198,565
PLL	Piedmont Lithium Inc	0.785	-5%	$357,042,675
CRR	Critical Resources	0.037	-5%	$62,195,440
LRD	Lordresourceslimited	0.185	-5%	$6,491,964
RGL	Riversgold	0.016	-6%	$16,072,951
LNR	Lanthanein Resources	0.016	-6%	$19,066,785
VSR	Voltaic Strategic	0.016	-6%	$5,224,104
GL1	Globallith	1.195	-6%	$270,730,035
STM	Sunstone Metals Ltd	0.03	-6%	$83,854,285
GT1	Greentechnology	0.6	-6%	$122,072,572
KTA	Krakatoa Resources	0.028	-7%	$10,341,298
RDT	Red Dirt Metals Ltd	0.335	-7%	$160,166,696
TKM	Trek Metals Ltd	0.064	-7%	$25,112,211
DTM	Dart Mining NL	0.038	-7%	$6,380,443
BMM	Balkanminingandmin	0.25	-7%	$12,088,444
LTR	Liontown Resources	1.5275	-7%	$3,627,450,144
MRR	Minrex Resources Ltd	0.023	-8%	$27,121,688
EFE	Eastern Resources	0.011	-8%	$14,903,358
WR1	Winsome Resources	1.4	-9%	$249,530,076
LLI	Loyal Lithium Ltd	0.25	-9%	$16,359,750
WCN	White Cliff Min Ltd	0.009	-10%	$7,840,544
M2R	Miramar	0.045	-10%	$3,534,087
XTC	Xantippe Res Ltd	0.0045	-10%	$52,900,498
1MC	Morella Corporation	0.008	-11%	$54,887,224
EPM	Eclipse Metals	0.015	-12%	$34,477,016
EVR	Ev Resources Ltd	0.013	-13%	$14,039,761
PSC	Prospect Res Ltd	0.15	-14%	$80,895,406
BYH	Bryah Resources Ltd	0.018	-14%	$5,906,323
AGY	Argosy Minerals Ltd	0.47	-15%	$779,446,161
FTL	Firetail Resources	0.105	-19%	$8,450,000
AOA	Ausmon Resorces	0.004	-20%	$4,846,447
CMD	Cassius Mining Ltd	0.024	-27%	$13,480,266
RLC	Reedy Lagoon Corp.	0.005	-29%	$3,967,037

A total of 26 stocks were in the green, 45 were flat and 65 were red.

Who has news out today?

LITHIUM ENERGY (ASX:LEL)

LEL has engaged project management and engineering consultancy Hatch to undertake a study for the production of lithium carbonate in Argentina.

The scoping study will include an engineering study to determine the optimal processing methodology for Solaroz lithium brines and, as part of this work, Hatch will undertake a trade-off study to develop alternative flowsheet configurations.

This will comprise a conventional brine evaporation pond process design, as implemented by Solaroz neighbours, including Allkem (ASX:AKE), the owners of the Olaroz Lithium Facility, and NYSE-listed Lithium Americas Corporation of the Cauchari-Olaroz Project.

The company says direct lithium extraction (DLE) will also be considered, which consists of several chemical processes to replace the need of large evaporation ponds.

ATLANTIC LITHIUM (ASX:A11)

The company has commenced auger drilling at the Ewoyaa lithium project in Ghana.

Approximately 20,000m of auger drilling is planned over a five-month period to test multiple targets identified within the project area and broader Portfolio.

Auger drilling has now commenced at the Assan target in the north of the project area, with four auger rigs active to test for and define pegmatite footprints.

Concurrently, a 10,000m resource infill and extensional reverse circulation (RC) and diamond core (DD) drilling will be undertaken, along with a passive seismic geophysics survey to test for potential concealed pegmatite targets within the immediate Ewoyaa Mineral Resource Estimate.

PATRIOT LITHIUM (ASX:PAT)

The company has extended its Canadian lithium portfolio, adding 830km2 to the previous 334km2 through the staking of additional lithium prospective land, including four new Projects – Pak East, Dryden, Bull and Sydney.

The new projects are located in proven and emerging lithium districts in Ontario, and the company has also extended its existing Gorman and Forest projects.

Patriot plans to undertake a systematic evaluation of all data across the new project areas with field work expected to commence as soon as the weather allows and the team can access the ground.

LOYAL LITHIUM (ASX:LLI)

LLI says a 19.2km Magnetotelluric Survey (MT) across 5 traverses at the Scotty Lithium Project in Nevada, USA has implied a 3.6km2 sedimentary basin beneath the strong lithium-boron soils assay results recorded by Loyal in September 2022.

The MT results also indicate further potential to the south and north of the project MD Adam Ritchie says.

“Further, the work conducted on the adjacent property gives us additional confidence, as Nevada Lithium’s 2022 drilling campaign reported exceptional lithium-boron results, and their recent testwork has successfully produced battery grade lithium carbonate from core samples,” he said.

“If mineralised, the Target 2 sedimentary basin would indicate a significant quantity of lithium sediments. The implied basin geometry could also support traditional mining methods.”

AUROCH MINERALS (ASX:AOU)

Auroch has stumbled upon, and confirmed, an LCT-pegmatite discovery at the Kangaroo Hills Lithium Project in Western Australia after hitting spodumene bearing pegmatites in four drill holes.

One of the holes intersected a 35m thick pegmatite and has since been marked for priority analysis.

The assay returned a speccy intersection of 29m at 1.36% Li2O from 38m with the shallow vertical depth highlighting the potential for a large-scale shallow lithium rich pegmatite.

“This is particularly significant for the Goldfields area of Western Australia,” AOU technical director Robin Cox said.

“The wide and rich intercept in KHRC011 remains open and the company looks forward to getting back on the ground to commence follow up drilling.”