Infinity Lithium has secured a long-term land lease from local owners for the development of its San José lithium project in Spain, for a minimum of 35 years through its subsidiary, Extramadura New Energies.
According to the agreement, the leased land is already zoned industrial, located within a granted exploration permit and includes the San José lithium deposit.
The project sits near the town of Cáceres in the region of Extremadura and boasts one of Europe's leading JORC-compliant hard-rock lithium deposits, with a total indicated and inferred resource base of 111 million tonnes at 0.61 per cent lithium oxide.
Infinity plans to mine lithium ore and also refine it into lithium chemicals suitable for European battery makers. A 2021 scoping study estimated steady-state production on site, averaging 19,500 tonnes per annum of battery-grade lithium hydroxide in a 26-year period.
The company says the rights it has secured in relation to the single biggest landholding is designated for its lithium chemical conversion plant and related processing activities. The site comprises 36 hectares, or more than one third of the total proposed development area. Infinity says the acquisition cost of the lease comes to €2.1 million (AU$3.4 million).
Extramadura New Energies chief executive officer Ramón Jiménez said: "The finalisation of the land agreement is another major milestone for San José and the ongoing momentum continues in collaboration with major local stakeholders. We are pleased to have finalised the agreement to secure rights to an essential land package for the project and provide visibility and precedent as we advance to the next stages of development.”
Infinity has been working closely with local authorities and newly-elected officials to advance its lithium project, which will use renewable electricity sources to reduce its environmental impact.
San José was originally intended to be an open-pit mine. However, after consultation with regional authorities, the project has been redesigned as an underground mining operation that will lessen its impact on the surrounding region. The company says its underground deposit will be accessed through a tunnel at the beneficiation plant and will deliver no visual, audible or vibration-based effects to the people of Cáceres.
In December, the company extended a memorandum of understanding with battery manufacturer LG Energy Solutions for the supply of lithium hydroxide from San José. The expansion follows a 2021 deal that permits LG the first rights to 10,000 tonnes of product per year and grants the parties additional time to hammer out a long-term offtake agreement. The deal will mature in December this year.
Securing land for the development of San José is another positive step forward for Infinity as it looks to become an important part of the lithium supply chain in Europe.
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By Michael Philipps
