Nova Minerals Ltd.: Maiden Lithium Resource for Thompson Brothers and Exploration Target

Melbourne - The directors of Nova Minerals Ltd. (Nova or Company) (ASX:NVA) (FRA:QM3) are pleased to announce a maiden inferred lithium mineral resource for the Thompson Brothers Project in central Manitoba, Canada.

Highlights

- Maiden Inferred Resource for Nova of 6.3 Mt @ 1.38% Li2O containing 86,940 tonnes of Li2O using a 0.6% Li2O reporting cut-off.

- Remaining exploration target of 3 to 7Mt @ between 1.3 and 1.5% Li2O in the immediate area of the resource.

- Resource entirely from a single high grade lithium bearing pegmatite dyke partially outcropping at surface.

- Maiden Resource covers well under 5% of the project area.

- Resource confirms and extends upon a historic resource of 4.3Mt @ 1.3% Li2O and still remains open at depth and along strike both north and south of the drilled area.

The lithium resource is comprised entirely from one pegmatite dyke as defined by the 2017/2018 drill programs with approximately 4,800 metres drilled during that period. This main dyke is close to additional lithium bearing mineralisation that is as yet undefined and does not comprise part of the existing resource. The resource remains open at depth and along strike in both the north and south directions which will be among targets for the next phase of drilling. Figures 1 and 2 (see link below) show a cross section of the estimate against drill holes and an oblique picture of the deposit representing continuity of mineralisation. Figure 3 (see link below) is a geological plan showing the area covered by mining claims and the portion containing the resource.

Estimation was conducted only within the mineralised pegmatite with internal and external waste excluded as identified by hard boundaries. Interpretation occurred on a 2 dimensional sectional basis then combined to form a 3 dimensional volume model of the in-situ pegmatite dyke. No waste material in the host country rock was estimated.

The resource was estimated using Micromine software with an inverse distance squared interpolation method due to insufficient data available to suit variography and kriging.

The resultant resource is classified entirely as inferred in accordance with the JORC Code, 2012 Edition when taking into consideration, data density, deposit geometry, likely extensions and possible interpretation alternatives.

NVA Managing Director, Mr. Avi Kimelman said:

"This high-grade maiden resource has surpassed our initial expectation on grade and tonnes with a relatively small amount of cash spent to date. The resource represents an important milestone and indicates the potential scale of the project with the resource on well under 5% of the project area. With further exploration planned we are optimistic that this initial resource will be just the beginning, and that Nova through its subsidiary is well-positioned to develop a world-class lithium mine in Canada."

Geology and Interpretation

The dyke in the Thompson Brothers Project has been modelled as an intrusion into a pebble metaconglomerate / greywacke group of host sediments. The dyke has been interpreted as sub vertical, dipping between 2.5deg - 8.5deg towards 130deg azimuth. The strike of the body has minor variations around a general trend azimuth of 040deg and an interpreted plunge of 5deg to the north based on visual trends seen from the assays. The dyke carries both mineralised and unmineralised pegmatite as identified by the presence of spodume as the lithium bearing mineral. Only the lithium bearing pegmatite has been modelled in this instance which extends for a total length of 1,012m ranging in true thickness from a maximum of 18m to a minimum of 1.8m however, mineralisation has not been closed off either at depth or to the north or south of the drilled area.

The dyke is generally orientated between 20deg and 40deg offset from the apparent foliation in the surrounding country rock and there is outcropping evidence of additional mineralised and unmineralised pegmatite in the area that is yet to be defined in terms of size and or orientation.

Drilling

All holes were drilled with diamond providing NQ sized core. The total number of meters drilled during the 2017/2018 program was 4804.92m from 24 holes with a maximum depth of 371m. Holes were drilled at varying angles to allow multiple intersections and multiple holes to be drilled from single drill locations to minimise earthworks and clearing.

Sampling

Core was logged by professional consulting geologists and sampled on a geological basis. Sample lengths were typically 1m intervals but some samples were as small as 0.14m or as large as 1.75m. Core was halved with a diamond saw and placed into plastic sample bags for delivery to SRC Geoanalytical Laboratories in Saskatoon, Canada for sample preparation and analysis. QA/QC sampling consisted of the regular insertion of blanks, reject duplicates, and Certified Reference Standards within each 20 sample batch.

Sample Analysis

Core samples were crushed to better than 70% -2mm and a 1kg split was pulverized to better than 85% passing 75micronsm. All samples were analysed using SRC procedure code ICP1 using total and partial digestions and ICP analysis. SRC uses Internal QA/QC procedures to monitor the accuracy and precision of their work.

Estimation Methodology

Estimation was conducted in Micromine software with parent cell dimensions of 1m across strike, 25m along strike and 5m vertically to account for the vertically dipping narrow mineralisation geometry and the sparse data availability nominally around 110m vertically between intercepts and 100m horizontally along strike. Sub-celling was used along the deposit margins to honor the interpreted wireframes. Deposit orientations were measured manually on screen and assigned within the estimation parameters.

Samples were composited to 1m length weighted intervals with any residual added to the end of the intersection. No high grade cuts were deemed necessary due to the lack of any significant outliers although a 0.5% Li2O grade was used as a minimum basis for interpretation.

Li2O was estimated using an orientated inverse distance squared method along with discretisation of 2x2x2 to avoid overly localised estimates. The model was interpolated with a single mineralisation domain but conducted systematically due minor variation in structural orientations within the dyke. The primary search ellipse radius used 120m along strike, 2m across strike and 120m vertically oriented to the azimuth, dip and plunge of the respective structural orientations identified. A secondary search of 240m x 8m x 240m was used to fill any remaining empty cells after the primary search.

A density factor of 2.75t/m3 was used for reporting of tonnes based on documented averages for pegmatite globally and a recent resource report from FAR Resources for their Zoro Lithium project located approximately 3km west of the Thompson Brothers project.

Both statistical and visual validation methods were conducted prior to final reporting.

Cut-off Grades

A cut-off grade of 0.6% Li2O was used for resource reporting. This was a natural cutoff with less than 1% of cells containing grades less than the cut-off.

Classification

The resource is classified entirely as inferred in accordance with the JORC Code, 2012 Edition when taking into consideration, data density, deposit geometry, likely extensions and possible interpretation alternatives.

Other Modifying Factors

A preliminary metallurgical test was conducted to determine possible concentrate grade recoverable from the Thompson Brothers deposit. The test returned a concentrate grade of 6.37% Li2O from a composite sample of 1.4% Li2O indicating the potential to make a commercial product from the Thompson Brothers pegmatite. No engineering studies have been conducted however, given the sub vertical nature of the deposit, underground mining is anticipated to be the method of extraction.

Next Steps

The Company's strategy is to develop the project in a staged approach, including:

- Adding additional tonnage through further walk up drilling;

- Converting the inferred mineral resources to measured and indicated through further drilling;

- Converting the mineral resources to reserves;

- Exploring for extensions to the existing mineral resources and other potential mineralisation within the tenement package;

- Fast track metallurgical and feasibility studies.

To view tables and figures, please visit:
http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/N7D02036

About Nova Minerals Ltd:

Nova Minerals Ltd. (ASX:NVA) (FRA:QM3) is an ASX-listed minerals explorer focused on lithium, gold and mineral exploration in Canada, Alaska and Australia.

The company plans to create shareholder value through two-pronged strategy:

- Capitalise on the growing demand for energy storage and the resulting demand for lithium, cobalt and nickel by fast-tracking exploration and development activities in our North American assets with particular focus on our flagship lithium project and prospective Chip-Loy Nickel Cobalt Sulphides project.

- Diversification by gaining exposure to base and precious metals through our farm-in JV at our district scale Estelle gold copper silver project and our Northern Australian gold exploration assets.



Contact:

Nova Minerals Ltd.
P: +61-3-9614-0600
F: +61-3-9614-0550
novaminerals.com.au