Lara Exploration Ltd. Reports Encouraging Test Results for Its Itaituba Vanadium Project in Brazil
Date: Feb 27, 2019
Lara Exploration Ltd. (TSXV: LRA) (“Lara” or “the Company”), is pleased to report that it has completed an initial four hole (total of 250.65m) scout diamond drill program to determine the attitude and vertical depth extension of a number of vanadium-bearing titanium-magnetite bodies previously identified at the surface on its Itaituba Vanadium Project, in the Tapajos region of northern Brazil. Preliminary Davis tube tests run on core samples, selected for a range of magnetic susceptibility values in the host rocks of these titanium-magnetite bodies, produced magnetic concentrate recoveries from 6.6% to 42.6%, with several of these concentrate samples showing vanadium values at 1% V2O5 (maximum of 1.03% V2O5). Lara plans to systematically cut and sample the remainder of the drill core and expects to report full assays, including Davis Tube concentrate assays in Q2-2019.
The titanium-magnetite bodies intercepted in the drill holes range in thickness from 1m to 8m and appear to be part of a sheeted array of sill-like bodies with shallow westerly dips and their gabbro host rocks are highly enriched in magnetite. Previous work (see Lara press releases of April 17, 2012 and February 11, 2014) reported vanadium values in the range from 0.3% to 0.48% V2O5 associated with very anomalous titanium values ranging from 15% to 25% TiO2 in these titanium-magnetite bodies.
Samples of fresh drill core from the different magnetite-bearing gabbroic host rocks selected from the different holes were analysed by x-ray diffraction to determine the vanadium, titanium and iron contents. These samples (with individual sample lengths from 20cm to 140cm) indicated anomalous vanadium values in the 0.07% to 0.32% V205 range, iron values from 14.3 % to 56.3% Fe2O3 and titanium values from 2.08% to 24.8% TiO2.
Davis tube tests carried out on these samples obtained magnetic concentrates with individual sample magnetic fraction recoveries reported between 6.6 % and 42.6%. These concentrates were analysed to determine the deportment of vanadium in each of the concentrates. The table below shows that several of the magnetic concentrates showed vanadium values at 1% V2O5 (maximum of 1.03% V2O5). The enrichment factor from core sample to magnetic concentrate for the samples varies between 3- and 10-fold, with the highest enrichment occurring in the lower grade samples of magnetite-gabbros carrying very coarse disseminated magnetite.
