Almost all modern mines started with rock chips, PLS, LTR, AZS...

Almost all modern mines started with rock chips, PLS, LTR, AZS etc come to mind.

Part of collecting rock chips is that it gets geologists on the ground having a look around at the terrain, type of rock etc.

Identifying what else could be there, like lithium.

Rock chips identify where to drill, they have a large area to explore, taking rock chips provides the best places to drill, reducing the chance of drilling dusters. (holes with no minerals).

Rock chips identify if there are minerals near surface, which can significantly increase the value of the resource by reducing costs of exploration and later mining.