- 01DLI to drill 6 Yinnetharra targets in Q4'26.
- 02Mt Ida: metallurgical test on 1-tonne composite.
- 03Yinnetharra MRE: 21.9 Mt @1% Li2O; 75ppm Ta2O5.
Delta Lithium (ASX: DLI) is preparing to drill six new reconnaissance targets at its 100%-owned Yinnetharra project while metallurgical test work advances on a one-tonne composite from the Mt Ida project in Western Australia.
Drilling at Yinnetharra is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to approvals, with lithium remaining the primary focus alongside two gold-in-soil anomalies supported by a rock-chip result of 6.83 grams per tonne and a previously reported gold intercept of two metres at 5.69g/t.
Yinnetharra hosts an MRE of 21.9 million tonnes at 1% lithium oxide (Li2O) and 75 parts per million tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5), together with an additional 17.5Mt tantalum-only resource grading 136ppm Ta2O5, while heritage surveys and approvals remain among the steps required before the Q4 campaign.
At Mt Ida, the current mineral resource estimate stands at 14.8Mt grading 1.21% Li2O, 170ppm Ta2O5, and 0.42% rubidium oxide (Rb2O), with recent drilling adding data intended to strengthen resource confidence.
Delta had $48.8 million in cash at 29 September 2026 and listed investments valued at $125m based on closing prices on the same date, providing funding support across its exploration and development work.
Yinnetharra Targets Refined
Regional mapping and surface geochemistry have refined targets across Tomahawk, Bains, Laphroaig, Jameson, Mason’s, and Cathedral, with planned drilling designed to test lithium-bearing pegmatites as well as gold anomalies identified through soil and rock-chip sampling.
At Mason’s, follow-up geochemistry around the earlier high-grade gold intercept outlined two sub-parallel gold trends, leading Delta to plan 22 drill holes that will also test nearby pegmatites carrying elevated lithium-in-soil responses.
The Cathedral prospect has returned a peak rock-chip assay of 6.83g/t gold within a broader soil anomaly, with three holes planned across the target and final positions subject to pending soil and additional rock-chip results.
“The regional lithium and gold anomalies at Yinnetharra present compelling targets for our next program of reconnaissance drilling, after having been identified through detailed mapping and geochemical sampling across the broader tenement package,” managing director James Croser said.
“The gold anomalies in particular warrant further investigation due to both containing high grade gold samples corresponding directly with the underlying soil geochemistry.”
Mt Ida Confidence Grows
Gold infill drilling by Ballard Mining (ASX: BM1) has continued to intersect lithium, tantalum, and rubidium mineralisation within the Mt Ida system.
This new data is being used to refine the existing MRE interpretation ahead of the next resource update.
Recent deep pegmatite extensions included an intercept of 9.95m at 1.4% Li2O, 117ppm Ta2O5, and 0.45% Rb2O from 648.05m, with the mineralisation intersecting interpreted extensions of hanging-wall and footwall lodes in the current model.
Metallurgical test work at the Nagrom laboratory is using a one-tonne Mt Ida core composite to confirm the proposed tantalum flowsheet and generate additional mica, spodumene, and tantalum concentrates for downstream refining studies.
Delta plans to incorporate the latest drilling into its models, continue metallurgy and downstream test work and finalise the Mt Ida scoping study as it advances development work across the project.
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