Core drills for Finniss’ next chapter
Core Lithium is wasting little time looking beyond the restart of its Finniss lithium operation, launching a major drilling campaign at the Blackbeard prospect and expanding its footprint around the emerging discovery.
Located about 20km from the Finniss processing plant in the Northern Territory, Blackbeard is becoming a key target in Core’s plans to grow the operation and keep it producing for longer.
“Blackbeard represents a growth opportunity for Core at Finniss and has the potential to become a significant source of future high-grade ore feed for the operation,” managing director Paul Brown said.
“With Carlton already converted to Ore Reserve and development underway at BP33, this drilling program represents the next step in our strategy to grow resources, extend mine life and unlock future expansion opportunities at Finniss.”
Carlton is expected to become Finniss’ next mining area, while BP33 is being developed as a new underground mine. If drilling continues to deliver at Blackbeard, it could become the next piece of Finniss’ growth story.
Core has also agreed to acquire the 63km² Bynoe lithium project from Charger Metals. Located within the broader Finniss project area, the tenement surrounds Blackbeard and gives the miner control of more prospective ground as it looks for additional sources of ore around the operation.
“The acquisition of the Bynoe lithium project further strengthens our position within the Bynoe pegmatite field and consolidates the landholding surrounding Blackbeard, providing additional exploration upside and greater flexibility for future development studies,” he said.
The drilling program will comprise up to 12,150m of diamond drilling aimed at delivering a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate and finding out just how big the deposit could become.
Blackbeard already hosts an exploration target of 7–10 million tonnes grading 1.5–1.7 per cent lithium oxide and shares similarities with BP33, including its size and high-grade potential.