Zinnwald Lithium announces big upgrade to mineral resource

Zinnwald Lithium released an updated mineral resource estimate (MRE) for its Zinnwald lithium project in Saxony, eastern Germany, on Wednesday, showcasing significant growth and potential for optimised project economics.

The AIM-traded firm said the 2024 MRE incorporated extensive new data, including 26,911 metres of diamond core drilling across 84 holes, along with a revised geological model.

Key highlights of the resource estimate included a 445% increase in tonnes and a 243% increase in contained lithium compared to the previous 2018 MRE.

The board said the measured category alone boasted 11.3 million tonnes grading at 3,420 parts of lithium per million, or 0.736% lithium oxide, while the measured and indicated category totalled 193.5 million tonnes grading at 2,220 parts of lithium per million, or 0.478% lithium oxide.

It said the inferred category comprised 33.3 million tonnes grading at 2,140 parts of lithium per million, or 0.461% lithium oxide.

The company put the substantial increase in overall tonnage mainly down to the inclusion of a broad zone of mineralised granite and the additional drilling data.

Notably, the measured classification was applied solely to the external greisen domains due to higher metallurgical confidence, with recommendations for further metallurgical test work in the broader mineralisation zone to enhance confidence.

The dimensions of the mineralised zone, with a true thickness of about 80 metres, coupled with the demonstrated continuity of ore, supported highly efficient mining methods with minimal waste rock production.

Mineral resources were reported using a 1,100 parts of lithium per million cutoff grade and stope optimisation to constrain an RPEEE resource.

“We are delighted to be able to announce a substantial increase of our mineral resource at the Zinnwald project with a 3.4x increase in contained lithium in the measured and indicated categories,” said chief executive officer Anton du Plessis.

“This establishes the project as the second largest hard rock lithium project by both resource size and contained lithium in the EU and clearly highlights its scale and strategic importance.

“The inclusion of the mineralised granite in the resource and ultimately the mine plan will allow more efficient bulk underground mining techniques with the potential to meaningfully increase the lithium production from what was contemplated in the preliminary economic assessment published in 2022.”

At 1201 GMT, shares in Zinnwald Lithium were up 31.89% at 7.11p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.