Chariot highlights 32 drill-ready targets at US lithium play

Chariot Corporation has zeroed in on a compelling series of drilling targets, kicked up from its successful surface sampling program at the company’s Resurgent lithium project, straddling the Oregon-Nevada border in the United States.

The company is poised for a potential blockbuster discovery, with Resurgent situated on the eastern half of the renowned McDermitt Caldera stretching across the two states. 

Resurgent is immediately northeast of the Lithium Americas’ groundbreaking Thacker Pass development, which hosts the US’s largest lithium deposit of more than 66 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent. It is also smack-bang next door to Lithium Americas’ 21.5-million-tonne McDermitt lithium carbonate equivalent project, abutting the deposit to the north.

Chariot has unveiled an impressive 32 high-priority drill targets at Resurgent and will shortly launch into the drilling campaign at the Resurgent North prospect.

It is planning for a low-disturbance maiden drilling program to assess the grade continuity and thickness of the lithium-bearing sediments identified at the site. A set of core samples will be obtained and metallurgically tested.

The upcoming program will prioritise its targeted areas. Chariot has chosen to first hammer into its West Resurgent North prospect, followed by Central Resurgent and then its East Resurgent target.

The phase one program’s priority will be a 15-hole set at West Resurgent North to determine the extent to which Lithium Americas’ neighbouring McDermitt deposit extends into Chariot’s ground.

Chariot has a 79.4 per cent stake in Resurgent and, through its US subsidiary, has submitted applications to the Bureaus of Land Management in Oregon and Nevada for drilling permits to enable the company to kick into its planned program. 

Surface sampling at Resurgent returned widespread mineralisation, with multiple samples exceeding 1000 parts per million (ppm) lithium and highlighting grades up to 3865ppm in rock chip samples.

The sampling confirmed widespread high-grade lithium in claystone formations akin to Thacker Pass and McDermitt, which combine for a whopping 87mt LCE.

Chariot Corporation executive chairman and managing director Shanthar Pathmanathan said: “We held our ground through the recent ‘lithium winter’ while many peers disappeared and now Chariot is prepared for the next growth cycle. With the US Government pushing to secure domestic critical minerals, our strategic Resurgent project - adjacent to Lithium Americas’ Thacker Pass with 32 drilling targets and surface grades of up to 3865 ppm lithium - positions us for a potentially transformational lithium discovery.” 

The company can visualise exciting times ahead should it be able to prove up an economic resource at its Resurgent project. The US Department of Energy bolstered its ‘seize the day’ approach to in-demand critical minerals with a $2.26 billion (A$3.42 billion) loan to Thacker Pass, including an initial agreement for a US$435 million drawdown, and it will also acquire a 5 per cent equity stake in Lithium Americas and its Thacker Pass joint venture with General Motors.

General Motors last year stumped up US$945 million in funding for Thacker Pass, nabbing a 38 per cent stake in the project and executing a 20-year offtake agreement for its contained critical metal.

It all points to endless possibilities for Chariot should its Resurgent project deliver the goods.

Lithium pricing has had a resurgence of sorts lately, climbing off the canvas in the past few months to now sit at a slightly more respectable US$9114 per tonne for battery-grade lithium carbonate, according to the Shanghai Metals Market website.

Chariot also holds the hard-rock lithium Black Mountain project and six additional exploration licences in Wyoming, including the Copper Mountain project.

Management recently grabbed a 67 per cent stake in a portfolio of four hard-rock lithium assets in the African country of Nigeria. It expects to complete the acquisition later this year.

The company also revealed yesterday that it has opted to pursue a dual listing on the US OTCQB Venture Market. The move is sure to boost its profile of the company and its heavily weighted US-focused portfolio in the world’s biggest capital market, and should open doors to North America’s growing interest in the valuable critical minerals market.

Chariot’s Resurgent just might turn out to be somewhat of a blazing comet, orbiting the gravitational pull of Thacker Pass’s successful project. With 32 targets ready to drill, US Government backing for critical minerals, and geology that screams discovery, Chariot shareholders may find themselves on an unforgettable trajectory.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au