Frontier drills 322 metres of 1.6% lithium oxide in Spark pegmatite

Marilyn Scales | February 1, 2022 | 10:55 am News Canada Lithium 
The PAK deposit has a high-grade zone consisting of 657,000 tonnes at 3.59% lithium oxide. Credit: Frontier Lithium.

Frontier Lithium (TSXV: FL; OTC: LITOF) continues to drill excellent results at its PAK lithium project, 165 km north of Red Lake, Ont. At the Spark deposit, surface hole PL-053-21 was collared in pegmatite and intersected 322.5 metres averaging 1.6% lithium oxide. The hole also returned two intersections of just over 2% lithium oxide. One was 80.5 metres long, beginning at 11.5 metres, and the other was 26 metres, beginning at 270 metres. Frontier says this lithium zone has a horizontal width of 200 metres.

Hole PL-GDN-08-21 was also collared in pegmatite. It intersected 94.5 metres grading 1.7 lithium oxide, including three tantalum-enriched intersections: 14 metres at 2.8% lithium oxide and 498 ppm tantalum pentoxide; 10 metres at 0.94% lithium oxide, 244 ppm tantalum pentoxide and 0.55% rubidium oxide; and 3 metres at 618 ppm tantalum pentoxide. This mineralized zone is estimated to have a horizontal width of 225 metres, assuming the Spark pegmatite has a west-southwest trend.

These results were part of the tenth phase of drilling at  PAK. The work was done last fall to obtain results that can be included in a prefeasibility study for the project.

Frontier has made four discoveries at its PAK property. Resources have been estimated for the PAK and Spark deposits. Together they host measured and indicated resources of 10.5 million tonnes grading 1.8% lithium oxide and inferred resources of 18.5 million tonnes at 1.5% lithium oxide. The PAK and Spark deposits are located 2.3 km apart.

The preliminary economic assessment prepared a year ago outlined an initial capex of US$685 million to create a mine with a life of 26 years. Annual production would be 23,174 tonnes of lithium hydroxide. Revenue over the life of the project would be US$8.5 billion.

The PEA has an after-tax net present value (with an 8% discount rate) of US$974.6 million, and the after-tax internal rate of return would be 21%.

Frontier says there is considerable upside to the project, thanks to another two spodumene-bearing deposits it has discovered – Bolt (located between PAK and Spark) and Pennock (located 30 km northwest of PAK and within the project claims).

More information is available at www.FrontierLithium.com.

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