Ongoing SP Discussion, page-800

Extremadura New Energies respects the ruling of the Administrative Litigation Court No. 1 of Cáceres and initiates proceedings to obtain the necessary new mining permitsExtremadura New Energies respects, although it does not share, the decision of Administrative Court No. 1 of Cáceres, which confirms the denial of the Investigation Permit in the Valdeflórez site. And the company continues to maintain that the proposed actions did not constitute extraction or exploitation of raw materials, but were mere actions of study and research of the subsoil not affected by limitations in the General Urban Planning Plan of Cáceres.In any case, and while the legal services of the company analyze the grounds of the appeal that could be filed against this judgment in higher instances, to defend the legal rights that correspond to it, the company recalls that on the basis of the report prepared by said legal services and as it has been publicly recognized by the administration, the Direct Concession of the deposit can be requested through the Exploration Permits requested coming decades, as contemplated by the Mines Law.In this sense, the extraction model designed by Extremadura New Energies has developed a new project that responds to all the concerns raised. Thus, a 100% underground extraction area is planned without any impact on the surface and with a single access mouth located next to a lithium processing plant that will be unique in Europe and that will place Cáceres at the heart of the new industrial ecosystem that is being generated around lithium.Extremadura New Energies, a company with its registered and tax headquarters in Cáceres, proposes an environmentally sustainable initiative that sets a goal of zero emissions and zero discharge, in which natural gas fuel is replaced by green hydrogen, water from the wastewater treatment plant is used, the plant is supplied with 100% renewable electricity and a fleet of vehicles and electrical equipment is used.An initial investment of more than 600 million is estimated, as well as the generation of 1,500 jobs during the 2 years of construction and more than 700 during the 27 years of operation.