en.Wedoany.com Reported - Abasca Resources (TSXV: ABA) has nearly doubled the resource estimate for its Loki flake graphite deposit in northern Saskatchewan and upgraded the resource classification as it advances a preliminary economic assessment (PEA). The updated resource estimate indicates an indicated resource of 6.99 million tonnes grading 8.27% graphitic carbon, containing 580,000 tonnes of metal, and an inferred resource of 15.83 million tonnes grading 6.93% graphitic carbon, containing 1.1 million tonnes of graphite. In comparison, the initial resource released in April last year was solely an inferred resource of 11.3 million tonnes grading 7.65% graphitic carbon, containing 860,000 tonnes of battery metal.

Brian McEwan, Vice President of Exploration and Development, stated in a press release that by increasing the tonnage of the Loki deposit while converting most of the initial inferred resource to indicated resource, a more solid foundation is provided for the ongoing PEA. He noted that the company's roadmap to rapidly advance toward production remains strictly on schedule. Abasca Resources' share price rose by 2 Canadian cents this year, trading at 9.5 Canadian cents on the Toronto market Tuesday morning, giving the company a market capitalization of C$13.5 million. The stock's 52-week trading range is between 4 Canadian cents and 12 Canadian cents.

Compared to more advanced North American graphite projects, the Loki deposit remains modest in scale, such as Nouveau Monde Graphite's (NMG, NOU) Matawinie project in Quebec, with controlled and measured resources of 130.3 million tonnes, and Graphite One's (GPH, GPHOF) Graphite Creek project in Alaska, with proven and probable reserves of 71.2 million tonnes. However, the Loki deposit's relatively high grade, proximity to existing infrastructure, and growing indicated resource may help it stand out in the PEA, which Abasca plans to complete within months. The company is pursuing an aggressive development timeline, with a pre-feasibility study planned for late 2026, while environmental baseline work and other technical studies are progressing in parallel. The project is envisioned as an open-pit mine, located near Highway 914, approximately 570 kilometers north of Saskatoon and 15 kilometers south of Cameco's (CCO, CCJ) Key Lake mill.

The company also reported drilling results from the nearby Thor graphite zone, which runs parallel to the Loki deposit and may represent a second mineralized trend. Drilling highlights include: hole KLS-26-112 intersected 74.75 meters grading 5.13% graphitic carbon at a depth of 117 meters; hole KLS-26-113 intersected 89 meters grading 4.28% at 99 meters; hole KLS-26-114 intersected 101.8 meters grading 4.31% at 66.7 meters; and hole KLS-26-115 intersected 114 meters grading 3.91% at 139 meters. The company stated that these results are not included in the updated resource estimate but indicate further exploration potential. McEwan said that the up-dip continuity of mineralization observed in KLS-25-072 gives the company confidence to continue exploration along strike while prioritizing work to accelerate the Loki deposit. The prospectivity of the Thor zone provides another opportunity for Abasca.