Yes of course, confirming the contained resource is just part of...

Yes of course, confirming the contained resource is just part of it.
Still need the rest of the ingredients and approvals following the confirmation works....and after all that funding.

But if we are producing 2,000tpa or even already ramped up to 12,000tpa, raising capital should be easier.

Agree that higher production rate with shorter LOM could actually be preferable.
Who knows what the landscape will be in 10years? Technology moves on.
A breakthrough in energy storage technology or lithium extraction technology can change the landscape and the risk of this increases with a longer time horizon.
Also the more valuable this market becomes the higher the incentive.

But in the meantime