Bradda Head Lithium (AIM:BHL), the North America-focused lithium development company, said its second phase of surface sampling at the Whistlejacket Lithium Project has returned grades of up to 4.24% lithium oxide (Li₂O).
The project is held under an Option to Joint Venture agreement with Kennecott Exploration Company, and the new results will help refine drill targets ahead of the company's planned 2026 drilling programme.
Of 190 rock samples analysed, 29 returned grades above 0.50% Li₂O, including 15 above 1.50% Li₂O.
All 190 samples showed iron content below 1.0%, a favourable trait for downstream processing.
The sampling also flagged five prospective areas outside the current permitted 2026 drilling zone, four tied to earlier Kennecott exploration work and one newly identified by Bradda Head's own team, a steeply dipping pegmatite roughly 8 metres wide at surface with fresh spodumene mineralisation.
Elevated tantalum, niobium, caesium and rubidium readings, including up to 5,659 parts per million rubidium, point to rare-element enrichment consistent with the lithium-caesium-tantalum pegmatite system at Whistlejacket.
Whistlejacket has already seen 19 diamond drill holes from Kennecott's prior exploration, including 51.0 metres at 1.11% Li₂O and 19.47 metres at 1.66% Li₂O.
A further 43 surface rock samples are undergoing laboratory analysis, with results expected to support target refinement ahead of and during the 2026 exploration programme.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Surface sampling at Whistlejacket returned lithium oxide grades up to 4.24%, with 29 of 190 samples exceeding 0.50% Li₂O and 15 above 1.50% Li₂O—results that sharpen drill targets ahead of the 2026 programme. The grades compare favourably to Kennecott's prior drilling (51.0 metres at 1.11% Li₂O, 19.47 metres at 1.66% Li₂O), and the discovery of five new prospective areas, including a steeply dipping pegmatite with fresh spodumene, expands the exploration footprint beyond the current permitted drilling zone.
High-grade surface hits and rare-element enrichment (rubidium up to 5,659 ppm) validate the pegmatite system and reduce drill-target risk ahead of the planned 2026 programme, supporting the case for hard-rock lithium development at Whistlejacket. The discovery of additional prospective zones outside the current permitted area may extend the project's resource potential, though conversion to mineral resource requires drilling confirmation.
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