Youanmi region shows similarities to other emerging WA lithium centres

The Youanmi lithium-vanadium project boasts many of the attributes of Western Australia’s other emerging lithium centres, according to battery stock Lithium Australia.

Lithium Australia (ASX:LIT) has an option to buy the early stage project — 450km north east of Perth — which hosts abundant lithium pegmatites and vanadium-rich magnetite, according to the company.

Previous exploration revealed lithium-bearing rock 3km long and at least 200m wide, and rock sampling confirmed lithium grades up to 4.2 per cent.

The typical grades of a hard rock lithium mine range between 0.9 and 1.6 per cent.

Furthermore, an unexplained magnetic low beneath the main area of pegmatite dykes suggests the possibility of a larger pegmatite (the primary source of lithium) mass beneath.

The lithium mineral inspected so far is lepidolite, but Lithium Australia believes that spodumene could also occur in the area.

Spodumene is the main lithium bearing mineral mined from most hard rock lithium mines around the world.

The Youanmi tenements in Western Australia.

“While the area has been a focus of past multi-metal exploration, its lithium potential has largely been ignored – but there has been a significant amount of drilling of the vanadium horizons,” Lithium Australia boss Adrian Griffin said.

“The lithium mineralisation style is ideally suited to SiLeach processing and may be a feed source for Lithium Australia’s Generation 3 pilot plant.”

Lithium Australia plans to be the first integrated Australian battery stock to do everything from mining lithium through to making and recycling batteries.

The company’s SiLeach process converts mine waste to lithium chemicals, before its VSPC solution turns lithium chemicals into high quality lithium-ion battery cathode materials.