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- Castle Minerals (CDT) is looking to revisit its Kambale graphite project in Ghana as the global graphite market shows a more promising outlook
- In the wake of higher forecasted graphite prices and increased demand, the explorer has elected to reassess the potential of the resource and has commenced bulk sampling
- Castle has not conducted any significant technical works on the project since attaining a JORC inferred mineral resource in 2012
- Infill and step-out drills are hoped to confirm the existing resource and gain a better understanding of the graphite distribution and characteristics within the deposit for Castle
- Investors appear to have responded somewhat favourably to the announcement, with Castle Minerals shares up 12.5 per cent, trading at 0.9 cents
Castle Minerals (CDT) is looking to revisit its Kambale graphite project in Ghana as the global graphite market shows a more promising outlook.
Citing firm prices and a positive graphite market outlook, the explorer has commenced bulk sampling at the resource to provide material for test works, which are set to commence in the near-term.
The reassessment is also underpinned by graphite’s use in the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries, which are gaining traction for their use in electric vehicles, consumer electronics and other electricity storage applications.
Based on two rounds of drilling over 1.25 kilometres strike, Castle landed a JORC 2004 maiden inferred mineral resource covering of 14.4 million tonnes at 7.2 per cent graphitic carbon for 1.03 million tonnes contained graphite for the project.
However, the mineral resource estimate is currently not compliant with the most recent Australian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resource and Ore Reserves.
The third phase of drilling extended mineralisation to a total strike of two kilometres, which Castle says mapping and geophysics show considerable scope to extend the deposit as drilling had only tested a small section of the host area.
Castle has not conducted any significant technical works on the project since attaining the JORC inferred mineral resource in 2012.
It is hoped infill and step-out drilling will allow Castle to confirm the existing inferred mineral resource and better understand graphite distribution and characteristics within the deposit.
Castle Managing Director Stephen Stone said changing market conditions warranted a reappraisal of the project.
“The Kambale graphite project in northern Ghana is a sleeper asset within Castle which now warrants a reappraisal given the relatively strong present and positive long term outlook for graphite concentrate prices,” he explained.
Investors appear to have responded somewhat favourably to the announcement, with Castle Minerals shares up 12.5 per cent, trading at 0.9 cents at 1:17 pm AEDT.
