Lithium Related News, page-2612

A vote of confidence from a potential competitor.

PAM puts itself in the midst of Thailand 4.0
https://www.miningnews.net/resource...6/pam-puts-itself-in-the-midst-of-thailand-40
… "We're the only serious lithium explorer in SE Asia right now. We've hit 100m-thick zones of lepidolite-rich pegmatite dyke swarms that look really interesting. We are aiming, as phase-one targets at our projects, to generate a resource of around five million tonnes which, because all of our drilling is at or near surface, we think can convert pretty much 1:1 to reserves.”

"That, based on what we see there, is small bickies. But if you look at what [fellow lepidolite-lithium developer] Lepidico is doing, this looks like a pretty good path to follow [into production]."

ASX-listed Lepidico, which has a current market value around A$90 million, having got to circa-$120 million this year, put out a DFS in May last year on a 6-7Mt (c0.5% Li, plus high-value by-products) reserve and 350,000tpa mine and plant at Karibib in Namibia, producing about 4,900tpa of lithium hydroxide and by-products at highly competitive capex and opex levels that would help it generate attractive free cash flow rates post ramp-up.

Lock points out the DFS FCF projections for a small phase-one venture - "on reasonable lithium hydroxide pricing" estimates - match up well with forecast FCF levels for much bigger lithium producers in countries such as Australia and Argentina.

"The key is that because it's such a low-cost project from a capex and opex perspective it [Karibib] will produce good cashflow. Instead of shipping a [spodumene] concentrate … they [aim to] produce a high-level battery-grade product that will get parked in the market.

"So it's a good model for starters - small footprint, small project, high profitability. And we think because of our geography and also our grades we can be even more competitive [than Lepidico]. Time, and ultimately a DFS, will tell."