Pursuit Minerals has recorded its highest lithium brine assay at Rio Grande Sur, with a deep packer sample returning 809mg/L from the Mito tenement in Argentina. More than 20 additional samples from the completed hole remain pending, while drilling has moved to DDH-4.
- 809mg/L lithium assay from 399.2m to 404.0m
- Highest grade recorded by Pursuit at Rio Grande Sur
- Deep sample was 2.7 times the shallower result
- More than 20 DDH-3 assays remain pending
- Drilling has moved to DDH-4
Deep Mito sample delivers Pursuit’s strongest lithium result
A single deep brine sample has given Pursuit Minerals Ltd (ASX:PUR) its strongest lithium result yet at the Rio Grande Sur Lithium Project, with an assay of 809mg/L from a 4.8-metre packer interval at 399.2m to 404.0m. The result came from Drill Hole 3 at the Mito tenement in the northern portion of Argentina’s Rio Grande Salar.
The result is notable within the company’s exploration program because it was substantially higher than the 298.4mg/L assay returned from a shallower interval between 156.2m and 161.0m. Pursuit said the deeper sample contained about 2.7 times as much lithium, equivalent to a 171% increase between the two tested intervals.
More than 20 brine samples are still to come
DDH-3 has been completed to approximately 560m, ending in mineralisation, according to the release. More than 20 positive packer tests were completed across the brine-bearing sequence, including intervals below the 809mg/L sample and extending to about 550m.
Only two of those samples have produced laboratory assays so far. The outstanding results therefore matter more than the headline number alone: they will help establish whether the high lithium concentration persists through the deeper sequence, or instead reflects a more localised interval. The company has not claimed that the result represents a new Mineral Resource or demonstrated economic viability.
DDH-4 keeps the exploration program moving
The drill rig has now mobilised to DDH-4, continuing the current program across the northern Rio Grande Salar. Pursuit said the remaining DDH-3 assays will be assessed alongside geological and hydrogeological data to refine its understanding of lithium grade, distribution and continuity at Mito.
Pursuit Managing Director and CEO Aaron Revelle described the 809mg/L result as “exceptional” and said the deeper brine system could support additional scale and higher grade within the project. Those comments are based on an early exploration result from one selected interval; the next test is whether the pending assays show continuity, useful aquifer thickness and conditions that can support sustained brine recovery.
Bottom Line?
The 809mg/L assay improves the exploration case at Mito, but the pending depth profile and future pumping work will determine whether an isolated high-grade result can translate into a larger, recoverable resource.
Questions in the middle?
- Do the pending samples confirm that high lithium grades continue below 400m?
- How laterally continuous and hydrogeologically productive is the high-grade brine zone?
- Will future pumping tests demonstrate sustainable abstraction rates and support an updated Mineral Resource?