LONDON (ShareCast) - (ShareCast News) - West Africa-focussed mineral exploration and development company Kodal Minerals announced the results of the recently-completed trenching campaign and update on high-grade rock chip samples returned from the ongoing exploration programme at the Bougouni Lithium Project in Southern Mali on Tuesday.
The AIM-traded firm also announced the commencement of reverse circulation drilling at the project with drilling planned to target extensions to the "excellent results" returned previously from the Ngoualana prospect as well as complete reconnaissance testing of those new priority targets.

High grade intersections in the report included 27m at 1.38% Li2O in trench MDTR005 at the Sogola-Baoule prospect, 10m at 1.67% Li2O in trench MDTR002 at the Filon B prospect, and 6m at 1.61% Li2O in trench KLTR007 at the Orchard prospect.

The board said the Sogola-Baoule prospect outlined an extensive outcropping spodumene rich pegmatite vein with a current strike length exceeding 200m.

It said the trenching programme consisted of 14 trenches for 862m, and five trenches were not sampled due to extreme weathering.

High-grade rock chips of up to 2.52% Li2O were returned from pegmatite samples at the newly defined Boumou prospect, and trenching confirmed extensions of pegmatite, however highly weathered rock was not sampled.

Reverse circulation drilling had commenced at the Sogola-Baoule prospect to outline the extent of high-grade mineralisation.

The drilling would then target the Ngoualana prospect where previous drilling confirmed wide, high grade mineralisation up to 28m at 1.84% Li2O, and the drilling would then target strike extensions, test depth continuity and define the high grade mineralised zones

"We have achieved consistently positive results from trenching and rock-chip sampling at our Bougouni Lithium Project, further highlighting the significant prospectivity of this asset," said Kodal CEO Bernard Aylward.

"Drilling has now commenced at the high-grade Sogola-Baoule prospect and, once completed, as part of our accelerated development schedule, drilling will commence immediately thereafter at the priority Ngoualana prospect."

Aylward said the ongoing exploration programme is designed to support the company's strategy of developing a mining hub at Bougouni based on multiple high-grade lithium pegmatite veins within the project area.

"The recent investment by Singapore based Suay Chin International, as announced on 10 March, underscores the potential of the project, and the due diligence review has commenced to support completion of the Stage 2 placement of up to £4.3m.

"We continue to work closely with Suay Chin to ensure that the review is completed satisfactorily in the short timeframe allowed.

"We expect to maintain a very busy exploration campaign with drilling and metallurgical test work."

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