Century Lithium Provides Update on Angel Island and Lithium Extraction Facility
Century Lithium Corp. (TSXV: LCE) (OTCQX: CYDVF) (Frankfurt: C1Z) (“Century Lithium” or “the Company”) is pleased to provide an update on its wholly owned Angel Island project near Silver Peak, Nevada, USA and associated Lithium Extraction Facility (“Pilot Plant”) in Amargosa Valley Nevada. The Company has completed the successful implementation of process improvements at its Pilot Plant. These changes were developed in collaboration with Amalgamated Research, LLC (“ARi”) of Twin Falls, Idaho, a research and development company specializing in industrial implementation of process technologies. Century Lithium is now shifting the focus at its Pilot Plant from research and development to demonstration.
“The initial results from ARi are very encouraging, indicating greater efficiency can be achieved that could result in positive reductions in the estimated capital and operating costs at Angel Island,” said Century Lithium President and CEO, Bill Willoughby. “Century Lithium remains committed to delivering value to our shareholders through Angel Island, one of the few advanced lithium projects in the United States. We are optimistic about the long-term fundamentals of the lithium market and the strategic importance of Angel Island to the future mineral supply in the United States.”
Project Update
The processing testing program (“Program”) implemented ARi’s proprietary adsorption-based technology for Direct Lithium Extraction (“DLE”) and was accomplished in conjunction with ARi’s Twin Falls testing facilities and Century Lithium’s Pilot Plant. The results of the Program are positive and further validate the efficiency of Century Lithium’s extraction technology. The Program augmented Century Lithium’s DLE system with the addition of ARi equipment and expertise. Early results indicate Century Lithium can eliminate the recycle loops within its DLE and lithium carbonate areas, while increasing eluate grades. The Company believes this will result in a substantial reduction in estimated capital and operating costs at Angel Island.
The decision to shift the focus at the Pilot Plant to demonstration mode is two-fold; it will allow the Company to focus on providing dedicated testing to prospective strategic partners or potential end-users and reduce the ongoing operating costs of the Pilot Plant. Current Pilot Plant operations will continue to convert a backlog of lithium solutions, which were made prior to the commissioning of the on-site lithium carbonate process at the Pilot Plant, into battery-grade lithium carbonate.
Moving Forward
The Company recently announced a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with Orica Specialty Mining Chemicals (see news release). The non-binding MOU outlines the intent of Century Lithium and Orica to formalize a multiyear offtake agreement for Orica to purchase sodium hydroxide from Angel Island. The favorable outlook for the sodium hydroxide by-product contributes significantly to Century Lithium’s low-cost lithium carbonate production model.
Ongoing engineering is focused on mining, and the leaching, filtration, DLE, and lithium carbonate processing areas. The Company continues to compile all data generated at the Pilot Plant. The data will be used in engineering models and to run analytical tests on full-scale construction designs focused on further reducing the estimated capital and operating costs for producing lithium carbonate at Angel Island.
Century Lithium remains focused on seeking strategic partnerships with potential end-users and market participants interested in securing a domestic supply of battery-grade lithium carbonate. The Company continues to move forward with permitting work to ensure that our future operations at Angel Island will align with both regulatory requirements and Century Lithium’s environmental and social stewardship goals.
Qualified Person
Todd Fayram, MMSA-QP and Senior Vice President, Metallurgy of Century Lithium is the qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has approved the technical information in this release.
ABOUT Ari
Amalgamated Research LLC (ARi) is a supplier of chromatography, adsorption, and ion exchange technology and equipment specialized in commercializing innovative technology at large industrial scale. ARi has developed a cost-effective and streamlined solution for adsorption-based direct lithium extraction that maximizes plant profitability while minimizing upfront capital cost. ARi’s patented fluid distribution and mixing technology de-risks scale-up allowing separation processes to be reliably scaled from pilot plant data up to industrial vessels exceeding 20-ft in diameter, with no degradation in equipment performance. ARi provides a full spectrum of customer support services, from proof of concept through to industrial-scale installation. Comprehensive analytical services and a wide range of pilot equipment are available on-site to support process development and scale-up. Please visit arifractal.net for more information.
ABOUT CENTURY LITHIUM CORP.
Century Lithium Corp. is an advanced stage lithium company, focused on developing its wholly owned Angel Island project in Esmeralda County, Nevada, which hosts one of the largest sedimentary lithium deposits in the United States. The Company has utilized its patent-pending process for chloride leaching combined with direct lithium extraction to make high purity lithium carbonate product samples from Angel Island lithium-bearing claystone on-site at its Pilot Plant in Amargosa Valley, Nevada.
Angel Island is one of the few advanced lithium projects in development in the United States to provide an end-to-end process to produce battery quality lithium carbonate for the growing electric vehicle and battery storage market. Angel Island is currently in the permitting stage for a three-phase feasibility-level production plan expected to yield an average of 34,000 tonnes per year of lithium carbonate over a 40-year mine-life.
Century Lithium trades on both the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “LCE” and the OTCQX under the symbol “CYDVF”; and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol “C1Z”.
To learn more, please visit centurylithium.com
ON BEHALF OF CENTURY LITHIUM CORP.
WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY, PhD., PE
President & Chief Executive Officer
For further information, please contact:
Spiros Cacos | Vice President, Investor Relations
Direct: +1 604 764 1851
Toll Free: 1 800 567 8181
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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will be taken”, “occur” or “be achieved” and similar expressions suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook.
Forward-looking statements relate to any matters that are not historical facts and statements of our beliefs, intentions and expectations about developments, results and events which will or may occur in the future, without limitation, statements with respect to the potential development and value of the Project and benefits associated therewith, statements with respect to the expected project economics for the Project, such as estimates of life of mine, lithium prices, production and recoveries, capital and operating costs, IRR, NPV and cash flows, any projections outlined in the Feasibility Study in respect of the Project, the permitting status of the Project and the Company’s future development plans.
These and other forward-looking statements and information are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the ability of the Company to control or predict, that may cause their actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied thereby, and are developed based on assumptions about such risks, uncertainties and other factors set out herein. These risks include those described under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’s most recent annual information form and its other public filings, copies of which can be under the Company’s profile at www.sedarplus.com. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update-forward-looking information except as required by applicable law. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place reliance on forward-looking statements or information. Furthermore, Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.