Titanium Sands preparing resource update at Sri Lankan mineral sands project
Posted on April 2nd, 2019
Courtesy Proactive Investors Australia
Results and details of analyses will be released in June 2019.
The Mannar deposit is on a sand island in the dry northwest of Sri Lanka
Titanium Sands Ltd (ASX:TSL) is preparing to upgrade resources at the Mannar Island Heavy Mineral Sands Project in northwest Sri Lanka incorporating results from resource infill and extension drilling.
A further 802 drill holes have been completed in the ongoing resource infill program.
The latest drilling has reduced the nominal resource pattern down to 200 metres by 50 metres from 400 metres by 50 metres over 90% of the resource envelope.
53.08 million tonne resource
Mannar Island hosts an inferred resource of 53.08 million tonnes at 6.66% THM, which includes 3.21% ilmenite, 0.59% leucoxene, 0.14% rutile and 0.15% zircon.
The company expects that the infill drilling will upgrade the resource and resource extension drilling will add to the total.
Further drilling is planned to begin in June targeting potential resource extensions with the resource update expected in July-August.
Dominated by ilmenite and leucoxene
Mannar’s heavy mineral assemblage is dominated by ilmenite and higher value leucoxene with even higher value rutile and zircon also present in minor concentrations.
The heavy mineral deposit is on a 25-kilometre-long by 5-kilometre-wide sand island.
New rig acquired
A reverse circulation/aircore drilling rig has been acquired by the company and is being modified to an optimal configuration for the Mannar Island project.
This rig and a full suite of spares and drilling equipment is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka in mid-May.
The rig will supplement the shallow drilling being carried out by the company’s local shell auger teams.
It is small enough to be tractor mounted enabling it to efficiently traverse the sands of Mannar Island. It has depth and penetration capabilities well in excess of what local conditions require.
A local drilling team will be trained by an experienced mineral sands driller over the course of this year’s drilling programs.