Galan Lithium Limited (ASX:GLN) (Galan or the Company) is thrilled to announce the commencement of its full Phase 1 pond construction at the Hombre Muerto West (HMW) lithium brine project. This significant step forward is aimed at achieving a production capacity of 5.4ktpa Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) by H1 2025.
The first fleet of earthmoving equipment has been mobilised and is actively working on-site. Additional equipment is scheduled to arrive next week, further enhancing the construction process. Alongside the pond construction, other essential infrastructure upgrades are in progress, including improvements to the camp, diesel storage, water supply, and other site services.
A pivotal milestone for the HMW Project is the construction, lining, and filling of the first evaporation pond by Q1 2024. With an expansive evaporation area of 205,000 m2, its completion is crucial for initiating the evaporation path to production during the optimal summer months.
The HMW project stands out as the highest grade lithium brine deposit in Argentina, boasting a current JORC resource of 6.6Mt LCE @ 880mg/l Li. The company is also actively engaged in third-party off-take and other strategic discussions.
Galan had previously announced the bifurcation of the HMW DFS into two distinct phases. The current Phase 1 focuses on producing a lithium chloride concentrate, in line with the recently approved production permits. The culmination of this phase will lead to the release of a Phase 2 DFS in September 2023, targeting a full 20ktpa LCE production rate.
Galan’s Managing Director, Juan Pablo (JP) Vargas de la Vega, expressed his enthusiasm: “This is the beginning of our construction journey to production. I would like to congratulate the global Galan team for their continued support to make this happen. This is also testimony to our desire to work locally with the community and contractors whilst receiving full support from the provincial government of Catamarca, Argentina.
We have come a long way since our early days, considering Galan only obtained the original Hombre Muerto assets just over 5 years ago, and with all the delays experienced during Covid-19. This feels more real than ever for everyone at Galan. We will continue to give our best focused efforts to become a new lithium producer by H1 2025.”
About us:
Galan Lithium Limited (ASX:GLN) is an ASX-listed lithium exploration and development business. Galan’s flagship assets comprise two world-class lithium brine projects, HMW and Candelas, located on the Hombre Muerto salar in Argentina, within South America’s ‘lithium triangle’. Hombre Muerto is proven to host lithium brine deposition of the highest grade and lowest impurity levels within Argentina. It is home to the established El Fenix lithium operation (Livent Corporation) and the Sal de Vida (Allkem) and Sal de Oro (POSCO) lithium projects. Galan is also exploring at Greenbushes South in Western Australia, approximately 3km south of the Tier 1 Greenbushes Lithium Mine.
Contact details:
Jane Morgan
jm@janemorganmanagement.com.au