Bradda Head gets conditional permission to drill at Eureka

North America-focussed developer Bradda Head Lithium has received conditional permission to begin a drilling programme at its Eureka project in Nevada, it announced on Wednesday.

The AIM-traded firm said the permission was for a 23-hole drilling programme at Eureka, pending a 30-day bond payment adjudication.

Previous surface sampling by Bradda Head geologists identified grades of up to 550 parts of lithium per billion at Eureka, with the new drilling designed to test the potential for a shallow clay project at surface, similar to iots other clay assets at Wikieup and Basin in Arizona.

Previous geophysics surveys, carried out by Zonge Engineering and Terravision Exploration, demonstrated the potential presence of both brine and clay deposits at Eureka.

Bradda Head noted that Eureka’s location is “not far” from Tesla's ‘Gigafactory’ electric vehicle plant and Albemarle's existing Silver Peak lithium mine - the only lithium mine currently operating in the United States.

Surveys also showed geothermal potential at Eureka, which could be used to lower the carbon footprint of lithium production, the company claimed.

Drilling at Eureka could begin once the bond payment was adjudicated, with Bradda Head posting the necessary payment of $7,870 as required by the Bureau of Land Management on 11 March.

Exploration permits should be issued within 30 days of bonding fees being received.

“The receipt of conditional drilling permissions represents the next stage of our exploration at Eureka and is yet another sign that Bradda Head is continuing to fast-track efforts to unlock the value of its assets,” said chief executive officer Charles FitzRoy.

“Having contracted widely respected Zonge Engineering and Terravision Exploration to carry out geophysics surveys, we are now moving to the next phase of exploration at Eureka, to test the potential for a clay project as well as brine.

“Eureka has additional benefits in that it has demonstrated considerable geothermal potential - a key point, as it could enable us to lower our carbon footprint and running costs for lithium extraction from Eureka, mirroring Bradda's vision and strategy.”

At 1350 GMT, shares in Bradda Head Lithium were up 1.85% at 15.63p.