Article on n FT today on namaska : Nemaska Lithium, a Canadian...

Article on n FT today on namaska : Nemaska Lithium, a Canadian lithium producer backed by Japan’s SoftBank, said it needs a further C$375M ($283m) to complete its lithium mine in Québec. Nemaska said it had reassessed the costs of its Whabouchi hard-rock lithium asset following the start of construction. “We now have a better understanding on the remaining scope of the project, estimated budget and current market conditions,” Guy Bourassa, the chief executive of Nemaska said. “The revised overall project cost reflects a more precise outlook on installation costs and other key variables to the completion of our project.” The new cost estimate highlights the difficulty of building new lithium mines to meet increased demand for the battery raw material from increased sales of electric cars. In May Nemaska raised C$1.1bn in a financing package that included a C$99.1m investment from SoftBank. It also included $350m of senior secured callable bonds and a streaming agreement with private equity fund Orion Mine Finance. The company said the extra C$375m would enable it to complete construction of the mine and meet the drawdown conditions of the debt. Mr Bourassa said construction of the mine is on time and it is working with its shareholders to “identify a variety of funding solutions.” The company aims to complete the mine construction in October, and make its first shipment of lithium-containing spodumene in December. “We are evaluating several options that would enable existing and new shareholders, and project partners to join the table,” he said. Analysts at Canaccord said they “do not doubt there are multiple parties interested in gaining access to the project’s lithium.”