Britons enter lithium in Portugal
In less than a year it is the second multinational to enter Portugal in search of lithium for use in batteries in the zone of Barroso, after the Australian Dakota Minerals.
Britons enter lithium in Portugal
Bloomberg
Save Print
Paulo Zacarias Gomes Paulo Zacarias Gomes
[email protected]
May 25, 2017 at 1:55 PM
London-based mining company Savannah has become the latest operator to enter lithium prospecting in Portugal, the metal ore used in the manufacture of batteries used in automotive and domestic electrification.
The company announced on Thursday 25 May that it will acquire a 75% majority stake in Slipstream Investments, the company that holds the rights to exploit quartz, feldspar and lithium at Barroso Mine, in the municipality of Boticas, Trás- Os-Montes.
According to a statement posted on the company's website, there is an area of 542.12 hectares (5.42 square kilometers), in addition to four areas where licenses still need to be obtained and totaling over 1,018 kilometers. Barroso, Serra d'Arga, Barca d'Arga and Tâmega.
The mine will already have an approved mining plan in addition to the environmental impact study and license valid for 30 years from the date of concession, until 2036. And it will be "one of the most advanced lithium development projects in Europe with the greatest potential to quickly pass To the production stage. "
Multinational companies in Barroso
In less than a year it is the second multinational to enter Portugal in search of lithium for use in batteries in the zone of Barroso, after the Australian Dakota Minerals. According to data from the Directorate General for Energy and Geology, quoted by Público this week, the inferred resource for the Barroso / Alvão region is 14 million tonnes of ore with an average content of 1% lithium.
"Savannah Resources Plc is preparing to become a substantial lithium producer for batteries with the purchase of an asset close to the production phase in Portugal ... We believe that prospecting at the Barroso Mine can transform European industry Lithium or the electric vehicle industry, by becoming the first producer of quality lithium batteries in Europe, "reads the statement.
The report also notes that the lithium content identified in the drillings already performed (more than 6% lithium oxide) indicates the high possibility of producing clean concentrate of that mineral. By the end of 2018, the company hopes to make the decision to move to production.
Business can exceed 6 million euros
If the viability of extraction - namely the potential of 7.5 million tonnes of ore with a lithium oxide content of not less than 1% - is proven, the three stages of payment to the seller will lead to a figure of 10, 1 million Australian dollars (6,72 million euros at the current quotation), between cash payments (2.66 million euros) and in shares (60 million new shares, valued at around 4 million euros).
The first transaction has already led Savannah to pay A $ 1 million (around € 665,000 at the current rate), in addition to the issuance of 20 million new shares. Values are not advanced for future exploration investments.
On March 14 of this year, the Diário da República reported that Imerys Ceramics Portugal had transmitted its contractual position at Mina do Barroso to Slipstream Resources Portugal Unipessoal, Lda, based in Braga and of Australian origin. Previously developed works on the site predicted the use of minerals in the production of ceramics (where lithium helps lower the melting point of pastes, reducing energy expenditure) and not in the battery market.
Portugal after Mozambique, Oman and Finland
Savannah has, in addition to the operation now purchased in Portugal, ongoing projects in Mozambique (in Mutamba, in consortium with Rio Tinto, for the exploration of heavy sands and extraction of metals such as ilmenite, rútilo and zircon), in Oman Gold and copper) and Finland, where it develops two lithium prospecting projects.
The largest shareholder of the company is Al Marjan, with 29.9% of the capital. Savannah is listed in London at AIM, where according to Bloomberg it has a market capitalization of 30.2 million pounds. In Thursday's session, the shares remain unchanged at 5.875 pence, in three-month highs, after yesterday they rose 4.44%.
According to Público, last year the Directorate General of Energy and Geology received 30 applications for the right to prospect and research lithium, representing a total of 3.8 million euros of investment in an area of 2,500 square kilometers.
