Lifezone reports strong results at Kabanga nickel project ahead of feasibility

Recently listed Lifezone Metals (NYSE: LZM), which is 17% held by mega-miner BHP (NYSE: BHP; LSE: BHP; ASX: BHP), has reported high-grade results from its completed infill drilling program at its Kabanga nickel project in northwest Tanzania.

Hole KL22-10 in the Tembo zone cut 41 metres grading 2.07% nickel, 0.39% copper, and 0.16% cobalt, including 16.4 metres at 2.77% nickel, 0.45% copper, and 0.23% cobalt, Lifezone said in a news release Thursday.

Another highlight, Hole KL22-12 cut 39.6 metres at 2.04% nickel, 0.37% copper, and 0.13% cobalt, including 19.9 metres at 2.83% nickel, 0.44% copper, and 0.19% cobalt.

A third notable intersection — hole KL21-01 — cut 29.7 metres at 1.94% nickel, 0.29% copper, and 0.16% cobalt, including 17.0 metres at 2.42% nickel, 0.38% copper, and 0.21% cobalt.

The drill results come almost two months after Lifezone began trading on the NYSE, following the business combination between Lifezone Holdings and special purpose acquisition company GoGreen Investments.

The deal brought in $86.6 million, including about $70.2 million from private investment and the receipt of roughly $16.4 million of cash from GoGreen’s trust account, net of redemptions.

Those proceeds are in addition to investments in 2022 by BHP of $90 million into privately-held Kabanga Nickel, owner of the Kabanga project, which acquired the project in 2019, and of $10 million into Lifezone Ltd., both of which are subsidiaries of the company. Lifezone Limited holds 83% of Kabanga Nickel and BHP holds 17%.

Drill program details

The infill and extensional program was part of more than 35 km of drilling across 82 holes, conducted between 2021 and July at Kabanga’s Tembo, North and Safari zones, in support of an upcoming resource estimate and feasibility study.

“Even after years of exploration and [more than] 620 km of drilling to date, the Kabanga orebody continues to showcase its quality differential with world-class nickel grades,” said Lifezone CEO Chris Showalter. “The most recent infill drilling at the Tembo zone ensures we can progress towards an updated mineral resource estimate, which is crucial for the definitive feasibility study and ultimately support the mine plan.”

Exploration at Kabanga stretches back to the late 1970s. Following a 10-year moratorium on foreign company exploration, Sutton Resources explored the site under joint ventures from 1988 to 1999. Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) took over exploration after it purchased Sutton and conducted more drilling and through JVs with Glencore (LSE: GLEN). Various studies, including a prefeasibility were completed between 2005 and 2008, and about 586 km of diamond drilling had been done by the end of 2014.

Today, Lifezone Metals holds 84% of the project through its subsidiary Kabanga Nickel and BHP, to form operating entity Tembo Nickel, together with the Tanzanian government, which holds 16%.

Adjacent to Tembo at the North zone, infill drilling has continued since late June, with 6,626 metres across three holes completed and seven underway as of Aug. 18.

Highlights from the North zone include hole KN22-03, which cut 52 metres grading 2.37% nickel, 0.25% copper, and 0.14% cobalt, including 39.8 metres at 3.03% nickel, 0.32% copper, and 0.18% cobalt.

Hole KN22-01A intersected 27.7 metres at 2.56% nickel, 0.32% copper, and 0.22% cobalt.

Drilling in the North zone is expected to finish by mid-September, when a new program will focus on an untested zone between Tembo North and Safari. Drilling in the two zones shows the shallow mineralization trend is open along strike, Lifezone said.

A February 2023 technical report shows Kabanga hosts measured and indicated resources of about 26 million tonnes, grading 2.6% nickel, 0.35% copper and 0.20% cobalt. Inferred resources total 14.6 million tonnes grading 2.57% nickel, 0.34% copper and 0.18% cobalt. Contained metal totals about 1.4 billion lb. nickel, 202 million lb. copper, and 113 million lb. cobalt in the measured and indicated categories; and 826 million lb. nickel, 109 million lb. copper and 58 million lb. cobalt in the inferred category.

Lifezone shares were down 0.7% to US$13.75 ($19.02) on Thursday morning in New York, valuing the company at $1.1 billion. Its shares traded between US$8.32 and US$19.92 over the past two months.