Charger Metals has restarted diamond drilling and added an RC rig to a 10,000m campaign at its Lake Johnston lithium project in Western Australia. The programme targets extensions and infill at the 10.6Mt Medcalf resource while testing whether the conceptual Medcalf West target can be converted into a mineral resource.
- Two rigs now drilling at Medcalf
- 10,000m programme targets resource growth and geological confidence
- Medcalf resource stands at 10.6Mt at 1.0% Li2O
- Medcalf West target estimated at 3-5Mt at 1.0%-1.4% Li2O
- Programme funded by $3.75 million cash from Bynoe sale
Charger Metals NL (ASX:CHR) has put a second drill rig into the field at its Lake Johnston Lithium Project, turning a 10,000m exploration campaign into a two-rig push across the Medcalf area. Diamond drilling has recommenced and reverse circulation drilling began just over a week ago, with the work aimed at expanding and increasing confidence in the company’s existing lithium inventory.
Two-Rig Programme Targets Medcalf Growth
The campaign will test extensions and provide further infill drilling at the 10.6 million tonne Medcalf Inferred Mineral Resource, which grades 1.0% Li2O and 107 parts per million tantalum pentoxide. Charger says the programme will effectively double the metres drilled at Medcalf and generate additional diamond core for metallurgical and geotechnical testing.
The second target is Medcalf West, where Charger has defined a 3-5Mt Exploration Target grading between 1.0% and 1.4% Li2O. That estimate is conceptual rather than a mineral resource: the company cautions that there has not been enough exploration to establish a resource and that further drilling may not do so.
Scoping Study Moves Into View
Charger’s board has committed to a scoping study on Lake Johnston following the June resource upgrade. The company says Medcalf’s current resource is based predominantly on a relatively dense 40m by 80m drilling grid, incorporating 10,936m of drilling, and puts the cost of that work, including study costs, at $32 per contained tonne of Li2O.
The programme is funded by the completed sale of the Bynoe Lithium Project to Core Lithium’s wholly owned subsidiary. Charger received $3.752 million in cash on 17 July 2026, giving it funding to focus on Lake Johnston rather than seeking immediate capital for this phase of work.
For shareholders, the announcement marks a shift from resource definition towards testing whether Medcalf can support a credible development case. It does not yet provide new assays, a revised resource or economic results. The next useful evidence will come from drilling outcomes, metallurgical and geotechnical work, and the scoping study itself, particularly whether Medcalf West adds a resource-scale extension rather than remaining an exploration concept.
Bottom Line?
Charger now has the rigs and funding to test its Lake Johnston thesis, but the investment case still depends on drilling converting potential into a larger, technically credible and economically assessable resource.
Questions in the middle?
- Will drilling extend the 10.6Mt Medcalf resource beyond its current footprint?
- Can Medcalf West’s conceptual 3-5Mt target be converted into a JORC-compliant mineral resource?
- Will metallurgical, geotechnical and scoping-study results support a viable development pathway?