Wealth Minerals and Ollagüe sign agreement to jointly develop Kuska Lithium Project, Chile

Wealth Minerals Ltd. [TSXV: WML; OTCQB: WMLLF; SSE: WMLCL; FSE: EJZN] and the Quechua Indigenous Community of Ollagüe (CIQO), collectively the “parties”, have agreed to form a joint venture company to develop the Kuska Lithium Project on the territory of the Ollagüe Salar, Chile.

The agreement considers that CIQO will make their best efforts to promptly work with the Wealth team to establish a Chilean legal entity to serve as the JV, and CIQO will own a 5% free-carried interest in the JV and have the right to one of five director seats on the Board of Directors of the JV.

Both Wealth and CIQO believe this structure is the right balance to bring Kuska to production and ensure the highest standards of community participation and transparency. The parties have also discussed the JV developing new projects in the CIQO general area of interest where there may be synergies with Kuska.

The Kuska Project is located in the Ollagüe Salar, Antofogasta region, northern Chile, and is presently 100%-owned by Wealth Minerals and royalty-free. The maiden resource report published by Wealth Minerals estimates 741,000 tons Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) indicated resources grading 175 mg/L (plus 701,000 tons LCE inferred resources grading 185 mg/L) with an average indicated lithium grade of 175mg/l.

On January 4, 2024, Wealth announced the key highlights of a PEA produced by DRA Global Limited. The PEA describes the Kuska Project development towards a 20,000 metric tpa LCE output and an anticipated Life of Mine (LOM) of 20 years. The Kuska Project in the PEA estimates a Pre-Tax NPV10% of US$1.65 bn and a 33% IRR. The PEA was filed on SEDARPlus on February 16, 2024.

On September 30, 2024, the Government of Chile announced that the Strategic Council of the Lithium and Salt Flats Committee had approved a first group of six locations for the development of lithium projects in Chile, which included the Ollagüe Salar. The decision was based on all six locations having favorable conditions for the feasibility of a lithium operation. The decision of the Strategic Council means that Kuska will be prioritized to receive a special lithium operation contract (CEOL) by the State of Chile.

Henk van Alphen, CEO of Wealth Minerals, commented: “We have been working on the base of this agreement for several years and we are confident that the only way to do mining is by effectively incorporating communities into the business and project activities. We plan to continue advancing the development of Kuska, indeed to now accelerate the pace, so that we can soon build a lithium production operation at Ollagüe.”

Víctor Nina Huanca, President of the Quechua Indigenous Community of Ollagüe, said, “The association with Wealth Minerals for the Kuska project will allow the Community to be involved in the development of the project, making decisions and guiding the care and protection of the most vulnerable sectors of our territory, ensuring that everything is done with the highest standards.

“Respect for our worldview and the environment will be key to carrying out this process. We trust that we will be able to continue moving forward together for the good of Chile, the Antofagasta Region and the Community of Ollagüe. This JV initiative, the first of its kind in Chile, gives the Quechua Community of Ollagüe important leadership in the new development agenda of the indigenous peoples of Chile, in which the community acts empowered, directly managing its territory.”