Jadar Acquires Lithium, Tin & Tantalum Assets in East Pilbara
Highlights:
- Jadar has entered into an agreement to acquire the Shaw River Project in the East Pilbara.
- Project contains technology metals - Lithium, Tin and Tantalum pegmatites.
- Strategically located within an 80km radius of three major Lithium developments, the Wodgina Lithium Mine, the Pilgangoora Lithium Mine and the Marble Bar Lithium Project.
- Lithium heavily used in battery technology, whilst Tin and Tantalum are heavily used in the electronics and automotive industries.
- Complements existing Lithium assets located in Austria (in collaboration with EUR) and Serbia (22% interest in BMM)
Jadar Resources Limited (ASX:JDR) (“Jadar”, the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 80% of the Shaw River Project in the East Pilbara region of Western Australia from Calatos Pty Ltd. The acquisition strategically expands Jadar’s portfolio of mining assets to service the battery technology and high growth electronics sectors. Acquisition consideration totals a $50,000 cash payment and $400,000 worth of Jadar ordinary shares at $0.03 per share.
The Shaw River Project, located 220km from Port Hedland and 70km from Marble Bar, comprises an exploration license application comprising 22 blocks. The area has a strong history with successful mining of alluvial tin and tantalum as part of the Shaw River Tin Field and demonstrated potential for lithium and rare earth minerals.
The exploration licence application was lodged in January this year. Jadar does not foresee any impediment to the granting of the licence by early 2022 and is assessing priority targets for immediate exploration once the licence is granted.
The Shaw River Project complements Jadar’s existing lithium assets located in Austria which are being collaboratively developed with European Lithium Limited (ASX:EUR), and Jadar’s 22% interest in Balkan Mining and Minerals (ASX:BMM), the holder of Serbian lithium assets.
Figure 1 - Location of Shaw River Project showing main lithium projects and known tin-tantalum-lithium occurrences (red dots).
Jadar Resources’ Executive Director Adrian Paul commented:
“We are excited to add an additional Tin, Tantalum and Lithium asset to our portfolio as Jadar continues to focus on technology metals. The Pilbara hosts several significant lithium mines and has quickly become a very tightly held location. We are looking forward to commencing field exploration in the tenement area, which remains significantly underexplored.”
Shaw River Project History
The Shaw River Tin Field was mined intermittently, predominantly by alluvial and eluvial methods, between 1893 and 1975 producing 6,584.62 tonnes of tin concentrate and a recorded 548 tonnes of tantalite concentrates containing 20.2 tonnes of Ta2O5 (Blockley, 1980)[i].
Geology of the tenement is dominated by the Cooglegong Monzogranite of the Split Rock Supersuite (2890-2830 Ma) intruded by the northeast-southwest trending razor-backed ridge known as the Black Range Dolerite (2772Ma). Swarms of simple and complex <10 cm and up to 3 metre thick pegmatites are associated with the Cooglegong Monzogranite and cut across the banding of the adjacent gneissic rocks. The pegmatites, when associated with rare metal mineralisation, have an aplite composition with accessory spessartine, green muscovite, cassiterite, zinnwaldite, lepidolite, fluorite, tantalite and magnetite.
The alluvial and eluvial tin-tantalum deposits were derived from the pegmatite veins. Apart from cassiterite the concentrates obtained from the Shaw River tin field contain yttrotantalite, tanteuxenite, mangano-columbite, gadolinite and monazite.
The area has previously been explored for tantalum and REEs during the 1990’s. In the Eleys Creek area during 1994, Mount Edon Gold Mines conducted an exploration program for tin, tantalum and REEs including an alluvial bulk sampling program with the aim of testing for both alluvial and primary mineralisation. Although anomalous results were returned from bulk samples, the company ceased exploration due to low commodity prices.
The historic focus has been for tin-tantalum potential. A WA Geological Survey report by Blockley (1980)1 described the pegmatites of the Shaw River area as being similar to those at Moolyella, 50km to the northeast, which are noted to contain the lithium minerals zinnwaldite and lepidolite. Due to the number of historic proven occurrences of highly fractionated LCD pegmatites at Shaw River, it is expected that lithium mineralisation will be discerned once focused lithium exploration is commenced.
Figure 2 - Shaw River Project geology and known tin-tantalum-lithium occurrences
Acquisition Terms
Jadar has entered into an agreement with private mining company Calatos Pty Ltd to acquire 80% of the Shaw River Project, comprising an exploration licence application of 22 blocks, in return for a $50,000 cash payment on signing of the agreement and 13,333,333 Shares in Jadar Resources Limited at an issue price of $0.03 per share ($400,000) on completion. Shares are to be issued under the Company’s existing Listing Rule 7.1 placement capacity.
Completion is subject to:
- 30-day due diligence period and Jadar being satisfied with the results of the due diligence;
- The parties obtaining all required regulatory and shareholder approvals (if required), including the requirements of the ASX Listing Rules and the applicable provisions of the Corporations Act; and
- The Parties having obtained all third-party consents necessary to give effect to the transfer of the exploration licence application on terms acceptable to Jadar (acting reasonably), including any consent of the Minister or delegate under the Mineral Titles Act.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Luke Martino
Non-Executive Chairman
Tel: +61 8 6489 0600
Adrian Paul
Executive Director
Tel: +61 8 6489 0600
This ASX announcement was authorised for release by the Board of Jadar Resources Limited.
Forward Looking Statement
Forward Looking Statements regarding Jadar´s plans with respect to its mineral properties and programs are forward-looking statements. There can be nо assurance that Jadar’s plans for development of its mineral properties will proceed as currently еxpected. Therе can also be no assurance that Jadar will be able to confirm the presence of additional mineral resources, that any mineralisation will prove to be economic or that a mine will successfully be developed on any of Jadar’s mineral properties. The performance of Jadar may be influenced by a number of factors which are outside the control of the Company and its Directors, staff, and contractors. These statements include, but are not limited to statements regarding future production, resources or reserves and exploration results. All of such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of the company, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: (i) those relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits and conclusions of economic evaluations, (ii) risks relating to possible variations in reserves, grade, planned mining dilution and ore loss, or recovery rates and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, (iii) the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies, (iv) risks related to commodity price and foreign exchange rate fluctuations, (v) risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms or delays in obtaining governmental approvals or in the completion of development or construction activities, and (vi) other risks and uncertainties related to the company’s prospects, properties and business strategy. Our audience is cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements that speak only as of the date hereof, and we do not undertake any obligation to revise and disseminate forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof, or to reflect the occurrence of or non-occurrence of any events.
Competent Person’s Statement
The information in this announcement that relates to the Shaw River Project, is based on information compiled by Mr Erik Norum who is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists. Mr Norum is contracted to Jadar. Mr Norum has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the “Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves”. Mr Norum consents to the inclusion in this announcement of the matters based on information in the form and context in which it appears.
[i] Blockley, J.G., 1980. The Tin Deposits of Western Australia. Bulletin 12, Geological Survey Western Australia.
