news announcement here

HIGHLIGHTS
• Jujuy Pilot Plant and laboratory completed, samples for commercial distribution
being made
• 24km roads, 14 observation wells, 7 production wells installed, lined and
operational
• Detailed engineering for 1:100 scale pilot plant to be constructed at Rincon Salar
completed, tenders commenced, some components let eg buildings, earthworks
• Civil works for pilot ponds at Rincon Salar completed
• Appointed Environmental Officer to complete final environmental permit
application for plant in June 2007.
• Estimated Expenditure over next two quarters on pilot plant construction is
US$1.85m
• Project Finance Study for bankers completion expected in June 2007.
The board of directors are pleased to advise that significant progress has been achieved on a
number of fronts at the Rincon Salar project in Argentina. The detailed engineering for the
1:100 scale plant which will produce about 170 tonnes of lithium chloride and lithium
carbonate in early 2008 has been completed.
The conceptual engineering for the 17,000 tonne per annum plant has also been completed
using state of the art chemical engineering techniques. Flow diagrams and mass balances
have also been completed. A detailed budget and construction gantt chart has also been
finalised.
The major tasks currently underway with the estimated budget in brackets include:
• Construction of the pre-treatment pilot plant that also produces potash ($300K)
• Engineering Camp ($250K)
• Plant Building ($250K)
• Maintenance workshop ($180k)
• Fresh water supply installation at our 17,000 tonne plant site at Cauchari
• Fresh water supply at Rincon Salar
• Brine pumping pipeline and pumps (60K)
• Generators, boilers and pumping equipment ($100K)
• Laboratory equipment, XRF, XRD etc ($330K)
Major tasks that we will also continue to work on include the electrical design of the plant,
carbonate purification plant, potash final production (to take it to 99.75% purity) and final
environmental permits and construction permits.
The total capital cost of the project is US$106 million at a grade “C” estimate +/-30% which will
be further refined to B and A grade estimates as work progresses.
Capital Funding
To fund the project, Admiralty will be seeking approximately US$65m in project finance, and
may pre-sell 10% of the project production in advance over a number of years to attract a
further $40-$50m in sales revenue. Currently the management team are working on a
document to offer this pre-sales opportunity to interested parties. Other strategies to raise the
capital have been closely reviewed and are also under consideration. It is highly unlikely that
we will seek to raise further equity to fund the Rincon Salar project.