Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN) ramps up lithium hunt at Dundas project - Kalkine Media

Highlights:

• Increasing demand for lithium in global markets has attracted the interest of Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN) towards the lithium potential of its Dundas project
• The project holds two granted exploration licences, E63/2046 and E63/2048, and one under application (E63/2136), located in the Albany Fraser Orogen (AFO)
• Catalina has completed aircore drilling at Dundas, confirming the presence of pegmatites

Global economies are leaving no stone unturned to opt for sustainable development. In order to maintain the current growth rate without posing a threat to natural resources, technologies like electric vehicles (EVs) are needed to become much more mainstream. However, this requires a significant volume of lithium, the most popular raw material for EV batteries.

As per the December 2022 edition of the Australian government’s Resources and Energy Quarterly report, global demand for lithium is forecast to grow from 592,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) in 2021 to 1,091,000 tonnes by 2024.  

Amid this strong global demand scenario, several Australian companies operating in the lithium space are cranking up the pace of their exploration and development activities.

Catalina Resources Limited (ASX:CTN), a diversified mineral exploration and mine development company, has been making significant strides towards developing its Dundas project.

(Source: Company ppt, 5 October 2022) 

Dundas project – impressive historical drilling record

The project covers two granted exploration licences, E63/2046 and E63/2048, and one under application (E63/2136), located in the Albany Fraser Orogen (AFO).

As per the company, these exploration licences are interpreted to occur along the strike of the well-endowed Boulder Lefroy Fault Zone and the Zuleika Shear, which are responsible for the following characteristics:

© 2022 Kalkine Media®, Data and image source: Company ppt, 5 October 2022

Catalina believes in project tenements’ lithium potential because of the following reasons:

• Previous reconnaissance traverses of rotary air blast/air core drilling (targeting gold mineralisation) intersected pegmatites that may contain lithium. However, due to the low popularity of EV minerals during that time, the company did not opt for drill samples assaying for lithium content.
• As per the company, the project contains interpreted, reworked greenstone, which may represent the southern extension of the greenstone belt, which hosts the Buldania lithium project within the Zuleika Shear.

Latest work confirms pegmatite presence at Dundas project

Catalina completed the flora and fauna surveys in September 2022 in the southern portion of EL63/2046 and the northern portion of EL63/2048.  

Along with this, the company has also completed initial aircore drilling at the E63/2046. The drilling campaign comprised 105 air core holes for 2684m. As per the company, the program is aimed to test the identified lithium pegmatite potential and historical gold anomalies in E63/2046’s southern portion.

(Source: Company update, 27 November 2022)

The drilling campaign confirmed the presence of pegmatites, which have not been previously assayed for lithium or rare earth elements. To know more, read here

In essence, the growing popularity of lithium in global markets has drawn the interest of Catalina Resources towards the lithium potential of the Dundas project’s tenements. Along with this, encouraging results from nearby projects’ historical drilling have boosted the company's confidence in the project, leading to accelerated development activities.

Share price: The company’s shares traded at AU$0.009 apiece on 12 January 2023, and its market capitalisation stood at AU$11.14 million.