The Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) share price looks set to end the week on a positive note.
In morning trade, the lithium miner's shares are up 3% to $14.96.
Why is the Allkem share price rising?
Investors have been buying the company's shares today after it announced a mineral resource upgrade to its James Bay Lithium Project in Canada.
According to the release, the updated mineral resource is now 110.2 Mt at 1.30% Li2O. This includes 54.3 Mt at 1.30% Li2O in the Indicated category and an additional 55.9 Mt at 1.29% Li2O in the Inferred category.
Management believes this solidifies the status of the James Bay Lithium Deposit in Québec as a tier-1 lithium pegmatite mineral resource and long-life asset.
The good news is that it may not stop there. The company notes that the maiden inferred mineral resource in the NW Sector remains open along strike and at depth with excellent growth potential.
Allkem revealed that a significant campaign of infill and extensional drilling is planned during the Canadian winter. This will test for along-strike and down-dip extensions of the pegmatite dykes beyond the area included in this mineral resource estimate.
'Amongst the best in the world'
Allkem's managing director and CEO, Martin Perez de Solay, was pleased with the news. He believes the company has one of the best assets in the world in its portfolio. The CEO said:
James Bay is now one of the largest spodumene lithium assets and clearly has the potential to grow even further as the boundaries of mineralisation are tested through an additional drilling program commencing later in the year.
The size and grade of this resource is amongst the best in the world and will underpin Allkem plans for future production and processing of lithium in Québec.
The Allkem share price is now up 20% over the last 12 months.
