The Sayona mining company is well positioned to carve out a place for itself in the battery sector. However, it must find the right partners and hope that all its projects in Abitibi-Témiscamingue and Baie-James will go ahead. Sayona CEO Guy Laliberté explains how Quebec could become a lithium champion on the continent.
According to Mr. Laliberté, Sayona, owned by the Australian Sayona Mining, holds some 100 million tonnes of lithium in measured and indicated resources in Quebec. This places the group's Quebec subsidiaries at the top of the North American pyramid.
If all goes as planned, the company could soon operate the only lithium concentrator in North America and, possibly, carry out high value-added secondary processing.
By acquiring the La Corne site in Abitibi-Témiscamingue in 2021, the mining company got its hands on a lithium mine (temporarily shut down since 2019), as well as on a lithium concentrator which is still missing some components to be operational. Sayona therefore intends to invest nearly 75 million in the short term so that everything will be operational within about a year. The site would have a capacity of 180,000 tonnes of lithium concentrates.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY SAYONA
Guy Laliberté, CEO of Sayona, wants to make Quebec a lithium nerve center in North America.
Our goal is that in the first quarter of 2023, we can operate the mine and start making lithium concentrate. Then, during a second transformation, we will see if we turn to the production of lithium carbonate or hydroxide.
Guy Laliberté, CEO of Sayona
Lithium carbonate is used in entry-level electric car batteries, but especially in small electronic or energy storage devices. More efficient electric cars use lithium hydroxide instead.
A carbonate or hydroxide production plant could cost between 100 and 300 million, estimates Guy Laliberté. If the funding is there, the demand for lithium remains and everyone agrees, such a project could see the light of day in 2025-2026, believes the entrepreneur.
The delicate subject of partners
Finding the right partners will therefore be a game-changer for the future, says the man who claims to be in contact with a dozen potential customers, ranging from battery manufacturers to car manufacturers.
Last week, Guy Laliberté was in South Korea to meet potential partners. He prefers to conceal the name of his Asian hosts. “All I can tell you is that there are several companies looking to secure their supplies,” notes the CEO.
Besides La Corne, located between Val-d'Or and Amos, Sayona has a few other mining sites in Quebec. The most advanced project is that of Authier. Located 30 km from Amos on the territory of the Abitibiwinni nation, this future open-pit lithium mine is awaiting a favorable decision from the Ministry of the Environment. This could also include review and hearings by the BAPE.
Another promising site is Moblan, in Baie-James. Being the object of an important activity of exploration, the place would offer a potential of approximately 10 million tons of lithium, according to Guy Laliberté. A feasibility study to install a concentrator there is also on the agenda.
