Buxton Resources' mission to supply battery anode concentrate material from its Graphite Bull project in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia has gained momentum following the discovery of several new zones of high-grade graphite in recent drilling.
The company says significant graphite core zones are visible in the first hole of the new campaign as its confidence grows in its prospects for significant resource growth. In addition, earthworks at surface have exposed high-graphitic zones similar to the high-grade TGC (Total Graphite Carbon) discoveries discovered last year.
Buxton has strategically positioned its first hole to drill below last year's RC hole, targeting the depth of the first hole which returned an outstanding shallow hit of 33m at 18.7% TGC from 11m depth. The second hole, approximately 600m east of the first hole, will penetrate the mineralized zone to a similar depth.
The drill is currently at a depth of 456.8 m (with plans to reach a depth of 650 to 750 m) and is penetrating the target zone which is rich in graphite mineralization as identified by electromagnetic (EM) panels.
Visual graphite estimates from geological logging of 32.31 m of graphite material drilled to date have returned grades in excess of 5% TGC. In particular, a 55 m section drilled between 269 m and 324 m – but not yet logged – has also returned a visual grade estimate in excess of 5%.
The zone is located 275 m down dip and southwest of the shallow intersections encountered during last year's drilling program.
Interestingly, ongoing earthworks have also exposed several high-grade graphite zones at surface, approximately 280 m directly above the 55 m deep graphite zone intersected in the current drilling program. This raises the tantalizing possibility that a new level of mineralization above the existing resource may extend from surface to a depth of 325 m.
Our exploration and appraisal drilling continues to deliver new high-grade graphite intersections at Graphite Bull. These visible results highlight numerous growth opportunities and the increasing potential of the project as a long-term producer of battery anode concentrate material.
Initial results from the diamond drilling program have highlighted three significant growth opportunities: open pit mining potential in zones along strike of the existing resource, underground mining prospects below the current resource requiring higher cut-off grades, and shallow, parallel hanging wall zones ideal for open pit mining.
It is early days, but once the data is collected and analyzed for quality and information on impurities or deleterious material, Buxton will have a better overall picture of what could potentially be a significant moment for the Company. With the newly defined graphite zones outside of Buxton's current inferred resource of 4 million tonnes at 16.2% TGC, there are significant expansion opportunities.
Graphite Bull, located 200km east of Carnarvon in the Gascoyne region, has been in Buxton's hands for more than a decade, but its growing prospectivity could mean it now gets a little more attention.
It was only when demand for lithium-ion batteries, which are critically dependent on graphite – their largest component – increased that Buxton restarted its efforts on site. It was a lesson in how to maintain quality assets until the turnaround. Since then, management has been conducting metallurgical testing and refining processes to develop a final product of activated anode material to increase both confidence in its resource and its size.
Graphite Bull is proving to be a treasure trove of high-grade graphite and has significant new intersections suggesting much greater resource potential than previously thought.
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