Last checked at 7 Jun 2022 07:00
07 June 2022
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd
("Bradda Head", "Bradda", "BHL" or the "Company")
Stage 2 Metallurgical Proof-of-Concept Testwork Commences
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd (AIM:BHL, OTCQB:BHLIF), the North America-focused lithium development group, is pleased to announce that it has commenced the second stage of metallurgical testwork at Basin East ("BE"), working towards producing a final battery quality lithium product, and associated economic co-products. Results of the work are expected in H2 2022.
Highlights:
· The Company, which already has 305kt Lithium Carbonate equivalent (LCE) compliant JORC resource and an exploration target of up to 6Mt LCE at its Basin Project as identified by the Independent Consultant SRK, is now moving to produce larger quantities of lithium pregnant leach solution ("PLS") from its BE clay in Arizona. The PLS will then be used to test Bradda's proposed flow sheet to produce lithium end chemicals as well as co-products which will potentially help to enhance the projects economics.
· The Company has agreed terms with Resource Development Inc. (RDi) to carry out the work, which will take roughly 3 months to complete this phase.
· RDi will sample 150kg of lithium clay from BE with a view to producing lithium sulphate in a PLS. Bradda will then proceed to the production of lithium hydroxide or lithium carbonate from the PLS, depending on the processing route decided by Bradda.
· Bradda Head is looking into maximising future revenue from its Basin project ("Basin") by looking into how to extract economic quantities of co-products, which will help to reduce the overall operating cost at its Basin Project.
· Once successful, the process will be optimised to apply the technology designed by Bradda on the PLS produced by this metallurgical testwork.
· Results from this programme are due in H2 2022, and if the proposed drill programmes at Basin provide a suitable increase in resource size (see PR dated 05/05/2022), then Bradda will incorporate both into a PEA for 2023 (contractor not assigned), which would outline the route forward for Basin and demonstrate the projects economics.
Having received positive results from the first stage of metallurgical testwork in January 2022 (See PR dated 12/01/2022), Bradda Head has commenced the second stage of metallurgical testwork at its BE asset, and has awarded the contract to carry out the work to well-known industry experts RDi.
Based on recent concept tests, Bradda Head is proposing to carry out bulk tests on 150 kg of Li clay from Basin East to beneficiate it, then leach it, to generate enough lithium sulphate PLS to proceed further with impurity purification steps and then, once the Company is happy with the process, to proceed to production of lithium hydroxide or lithium carbonate.
Charles FitzRoy, CEO of Bradda Head Lithium, commented:
"The commencement of this test-work is another key milestone towards becoming a producer of LCE to the US market. We are delighted to be using RDi, which is extremely well-respected in its field, to be carrying out the work, and are confident of its expertise to produce high quality PLS from our Basin East sample.
"Bradda has a 44-hole programme planned at its Basin Project in 2022, and the results from the programmes will potentially form a larger resource at the end of the year which, when combined with the metallurgical work, will feed into a PEA study for 2023, which will help demonstrate the economics around the Basin Project.
"Lithium clay projects are more flexible in the lithium chemical they produce, and we have the opportunity to produce either lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide, depending on the market."
Background
In 2021 Bradda Head carried out the initial concept tests recently at SGS Lakefield Canada on its Lithium mineralised clay from its Basin East claim.
SGS successfully beneficiated Li in the Bradda Head Li clay by 26% using Cyclone Classification. The beneficiated Li clay was leached in sulfuric acid at atmospheric pressure and 90 C which led to extraction of Li to >98%.
Contact:
Bradda Head Lithium Limited | +44 (0) 1624 639 396 |
Charlie FitzRoy, CEO Denham Eke, Finance Director | |
Beaumont Cornish (Nomad) James Biddle/Roland Cornish | +44 20 7220 1666 |
Peterhouse (Joint Broker) | +44 207 469 0930 |
Charles Goodfellow Duncan Vasey Lucy Williams | |
Shard Capital (Joint Broker) | +44 207 186 9927 |
Damon Heath Isabella Pierre | |
Red Cloud (North American Broker) | +1 416 803 3562 |
Joe Fars | |
Tavistock (PR) | + 44 20 7920 3150 |
Nick Elwes Adam Baynes | braddahead@tavistock.co.uk |
Notes to Editors
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd. is a North America-focused lithium development group. The Company currently has interests in a variety of projects, the most advanced of which are in Central and Western Arizona: The Basin Project (Basin East Project, and the Basin West Project) and the Wikieup Project.
The Basin East Project has an Indicated Mineral Resource of 17.6Mt at an average grade of 912ppm Li and 3.4%K for a total of 86kt LCE and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 57.6Mt at an average grade of 717ppm Li and 3.3%K for a total of 220kt LCE. In the rest of the Basin Project SRK has estimated an Exploration Target of between 300 and 1,300Mt of material grading between 600 and 850ppm Li which is equivalent to a range of between 1 and 6Mt LCE.
The Group intends to continue to develop its three phase one projects in Arizona, whilst endeavouring to unlock value at its other prospective pegmatite and brine assets in Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.
All of Bradda Head's licences are held on a 100% equity basis and are in close proximity to the required infrastructure.
Bradda Head is quoted on the AIM of the London Stock Exchange with the ticker of BHL and on the US OTCQB market with a ticker of BHLIF.