Centrex Metals (ASX:CXM) has begun maiden resource drilling at its Oxley potash project in Western Australia with an aim to establish a high-value potassium nitrate fertiliser operation.
The drilling will focus on a 3-kilometre portion of a 32-kilometres-long outcropping ultrapotassic lava flow and is expected to underpin a Scoping Study for the proposed operation.
Previous exploration drilling and rock chip sampling across the target area has shown combined interval thicknesses of up to 72 metres, weighted average combined interval grades of up to 10.1% K@O and individual sample grades up to 14.9% K2O.
The program is expected to be completed within 2015.
Process testwork to date has been successful fin demonstrating an ability to extract potassium at high rates from the lava flow.
The site is considered to be favourable for a bulk development, with simple and shallow open-cut mining potential, existing bulk port nearby via sealed roads or rail and cheap gas on the project doorstep.
Potassium nitrate is a much higher value fertiliser than regular potassium chloride, which is what is most commonly referred to as potash.
Vertically integrated production of this high-quality product is increasingly demanded by the horticulture sector around the globe.
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Centrex Metals nears potash resource definition at Oxley
Last updated: 12:00 30 Oct 2015 AEDT, First published: 11:00 30 Oct 2015 AEDT