Global Lithium begins ASX journey

Established in 2018, Global Lithium joined the ASX on May 6, following a string of advancements at Marble Bar.

The Pilbara-focussed lithium explorer has already completed three drilling programs at the project and uncovered its maiden mineral resources of 10.5 million tonnes at 1 per cent lithium oxide, with the deposit remaining open along strike and depth.

“To go from an exploration project to a new lithium discovery, to a mineral resource within 12 months was quite an ambitious target but a very exciting outcome for the company,” Global Lithium managing director Jamie Wright told Australian Mining.

The Marble Bar project is near Pilbara Minerals’ Pilgangoora lithium project, and Albermarle and Mineral Resources’ Wodgina lithium project.

According to Wright, the mineralisation discovered at Marble Bar’s Archer deposit is similar to both Pilgangoora and Wodgina.

“We’ve discovered hard rock lithium in the form of spodumene-bearing pegmatites at surface at the Marble Bar lithium project,” he said. “Those words are deliberate but very appropriate.

“A spodumene lithium mineralisation in a pegmatite, hosted within a greenstone matrix with granite contact is similar to what we see at Pilgangoora and Wodgina – two very large projects to the west of us.”

With a limited amount of lithium mining companies on the ASX, Global Lithium has set out to capitalise on the growing demand of lithium for electric vehicles (EVs).

“There are only a handful of lithium opportunities on ASX,” Wright said.

“For investors who want exposure to one of the largest industrial revolution scale events the world has ever seen in terms of the combustion engine to the battery.”

Fitch Solutions has anticipated that lithium prices will see a recovery from EV demand.

“Our autos team currently forecasts the global EV fleet to average 23.6 per cent year-over-year growth between 2021-2030, reaching 83.6 million EVs on roads worldwide by 2030 compared with 10.3 million in 2020,” Fitch Solutions stated.

“As such, we expect global lithium supply to wane in the coming years, as demand consistently rises, placing upwards pressure on prices.

“Within this context, significant investment in lithium developments will prove necessary in order to prevent a supply deficit within the decade.”

Global Lithium is aggressively moving towards the further development of Marble Bar.

“We have a really busy year ahead of us,” Wright said.

“From here we’re running an RC (reverse circulation) drilling program. The focus of that program is on a mix of in-field and step-out exploration.

“Then, we’ll launch into a diamond drilling program sometime in the middle of the year to get access to core for metallurgical testing at archer and we’ll look to come back with a third program later in the year once we’ve digested all of that information.

“With a tailwind, we’ll look towards a resource update before the end of the year.”

Wright said Global Lithium’s commitment to Marble Bar is driven by its belief in the potential of the project.

“It’s really driven by the belief that everyone has in the future of not only the company, but of the lithium market and the project itself,” he said.

“Without that belief and supportive attitude and ‘can do’ attitude we have, there’s no way we could have achieved what we have achieved so far. It also sets up to keep that momentum going forward.”