Galan Lithium is moving ever closer to commercialisation and becoming Argentina’s next lithium producer. The company reported it has now received critical government permits that allow it to commence building Stage 1 of its pilot plant and new camp accommodation at its flagship Hombre Muerto West, or “HMW” lithium brine project in South America’s prolific ‘Lithium Triangle’.
The Perth-based, ASX-listed company has been making solid progress at its 100 per cent owned HMW project, reporting in its September quarterly that it has completed the first of its small-scale evaporation ponds which is allowing it to measure evaporation rates. The evaporation rates are crucial for the feasibility study that is due to be completed later this year.
According to the company, drilling required for pumping tests has also been completed which will assist in building hydrogeological models required to build reserve estimates for the project.
With the company’s coffers buoyed by a freshly minted A$50 million courtesy of a recent institutional and professional investor placement, Galan said it is now well funded to commence further drilling activities at HMW to establish well fields for production along with undertaking drilling to convert existing resources to reserves.
Galan Lithium Managing Director, Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega said: “These permits were critical path items for the robustness of the HMW feasibility study and the pace at which it now moves forward. Galan wishes to extend its heartfelt thanks to the Minister and the Government for the grant of the permits in these trying times. Our company is entering an exciting new phase as we cement the development phase of our flagship project in Argentina”.
Galan’s tenure is located within the world-class Salar del Hombre Muerto, home to Livent Corporation’s operating El Fenix project and Galaxy Resources and POSCP’s developing Sal de Vida project. The Hombre Muerto district is proven to host the highest-grade lithium with the lowest impurity levels in Argentina according to the company.
Interestingly, over 58 per cent of the world’s known identified lithium resources are contained within the prolific Lithium Triangle in the vast salt flats, or “salars”, that cover northern Argentina, Chile and southern Bolivia.
Hombre Muerto West hosts an indicated resource of about 2.26 million tonnes of lithium carbonate-equivalent from lithium-bearing brine material grading 946 milligrams per litre lithium.
A recent scoping study and pre-economic assessment for HMW laid out a potential mine life of more than 40 years based on existing resources, with only 60 per cent of the existing resource considered. The net present value before tax for the project topped the US$1 billion mark with a payback period of just 4.3 years for a proposed 20,000 tonne per annum lithium carbonate equivalent operation
Galan’s second strategic project in the prolific Hombre Muerto district is Candelas where the company is undertaking a scoping study based on encouraging brine concentrate modelling that will be finalised later this year. The project area takes in an existing lithium brine resource of about 685,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent grading 672 milligrams per litre lithium.
With a pocket full of cash and critical permits in place to commence the Stage 1 pilot development, Galan looks set to accelerate the development of its strategic lithium projects in Argentina at a time when the lithium price is enjoying its time in the sun.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
By Matt Birney
