(TheNewswire)
Vancouver, BC – TheNewswire -- February 6 th , 2024 - Recharge Resources Ltd.("Recharge" or the "Company") (CSE: RR )( OTC: RECHF) ( FRA: SL5) is pleased to announce that it hassecured drill permits for two wells in the Pocitos 1 block and threewells in the Pocitos 2 block. Negotiations are being finalised witha driller to start the initial five well campaign. Applications havebeen made to the Ministerio de Produccion yDesarrollo Sustentable? del Gobierno de Salta (Minister ofProduction and Sustainable Development) (the “MPSD” ) to drilla total of 6 wells in thePocitos 1 block of which two will be earmarkedfor production at 20-25cm diameter and a total of 4 wells in the Pocitos 2 block of which two will be production diameter. All ten wellswill be drilled in HQ and then the selected production wells will beexpanded in diameter and fitted with pumping equipment. Theremaining wells will be used to monitor aquifer levels.
The two wells for the Pocitos 1 block approved thatwere recently announced (January 2 nd , 2024) at thePocitos Lithium Brine Project (the “Project”), arelocated 10km from the Pocitos township in Salta Province, Argentina. Ancillary preparations for food and housing are currently beingarranged.
The objective of this drill program will be to upgradethe recently announced NI 43-101 Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate(“ MRE” ) by providing drill hole, porosity and permeability. Giventhe drill hole spacing, the Company’s geologists will be targetinga proven and probable category as well as collecting pre-engineeringpumping data in preparation for building a Ekosolve™ direct lithium extraction ( “DLE” ) pilot plant and follow on full scale20,000 tonne per year plant ( “TPY” ) at the project.
The recently announced MRE for the Pocitos LithiumBrine Project was prepared by WSP Australia Pty Ltd ( “WSP” ) and wasestimated at 143,000 tonnes of in-situ lithium metal, and 13,000tonnes lithium metal yield (using porosity estimates) which equates toa lithium carbonate equivalent ( “LCE” ) of 760,000 tonnes and 69,000 tonnesrespectively . The LCE iscalculated from the ratio of lithium carbonate ( “Li 2 CO 3” ) to Li metal(5.32:1). The calculations assume no process losses. In the latestpilot plant test at Ekosolve 94.9% of the lithium metal was extractedas lithium chloride and converted to battery grade lithium carbonate.
See press release dated December 20 th , 2023 here .
The geophysics and block model prepared by WSP shows asandy unit extending across Pocitos 1 that has higher porosity - referPage 14-4 NI 43-101 Report “NI 43-101 technical Report- Pocitos I and II, Salta Province,Argentina” . Our geology team is keen to drillthis area to define the magnitude of the sandy halite unit and thebrines it contains.
WSP indicated in the Report at the December 4, 2023, Li 2 CO 3 price of USD$16,573/tonne, the annual revenue is estimated at USD$338 million (fora 20,000 TPY plant). Operating costs were estimated by Ekosolve Ltd to be $2,300 - $2,750 per tonne or USD$55m at $2,700 per tonne inthe WSP NI 43-101 report.
Supply and Demand
Benchmark Minerals have confirmed in their “Trilliondollar battery” 2023 paper that there are 238 gigafactoriescurrently producing LFP and other lithium batteries requiring anestimated three million tonnesof lithium carbonate by 2030 . There are morethan 60 additional gigafactories being built to achieve a total estimated 8.9 terawatts of capacity (8,900,000,000,000 watts). Thetop 10 lithium producers in the world are currently producing a totalof 715,000 tonnes in 2023. This represents just 23% of the 2030 demandestimate.
Figure 1: View of the pad and rig atPocitos 1 in November 2022. (Pocitos)
About WSP
WSP is a leading global consultancy with expertise inhydrology and lithium brine resource estimates. WSP provides strategicadvisory, engineering, and design services to clients seekingsustainable solutions in the transportation, infrastructure,environment, building, energy, water, and mining sectors. Its 67,000trusted professionals are united by the common purpose of creatingpositive, long-lasting impacts on the communities it serves through aculture of innovation, integrity, and inclusion. In 2022, WSP reported$11.9 B (CAD) in revenue. The Corporation’s shares are listed on theToronto Stock Exchange (TSX: WSP).
Figure 2: View of the mining road to explorationwell PCT-22-01 (Pocitos I) with rig mast in background.
This is another milestone in the Company’s endeavourto build up to a 20,000-tonne Ekosolve™ direct lithium extractionplant at the Pocitos project in order to supply Richlink Capital Pty.Ltd. ( “Richlink” ) up to 20,000tonnes of lithium carbonate per year, as previously announced under aletter of intent of offtake.
Figure 3: showsthe location of the Project, and the road access to the project fromSalta including the projects proximity to the Rincon project,originally explored and developed by Recharge’s COO and QP PhillipThomas which was later sold to Rio Tinto for $825 Million
David Greenway, President, and CEO commented, “I amdelighted with our drill permit progress and the recently announcedinferred mineral resource estimate of 760,000 tonnes LCE prepared byWSP geologists, hydrogeologists, and project engineers. I am thrilledto now have drill permits in hand to continue developing this projectboth to reclassify the resource to proven and probable but also as apre-engineering step in preparation for a pilot plant and thecompany’s ultimate goal of producing 20,000 tonnes per year at thePocitos lithium brine project.”
About Pocitos Lithium BrineProject
The Pocitos Project is located approximately 10 km fromthe township of Pocitos where there is gas, electricity, andaccommodation. The Pocitos Project is approximately 1,332 hectares andis accessible by road. Collective exploration totals over US$2.0million developing the project, including surface sampling, trenching,TEM and MT geophysics and drilling three wells that had outstandingbrine flow results. Locations for immediate follow up drilling havealready been designed and identified for upcoming exploration. Lithium values of 169 ppm from drill hole 3 packer test assayed fromlaboratory analysis conducted by Alex Stewart were recorded during theproject’s December 2022 drill campaigns. A double packer samplingsystem in HQ Diamond drill holes were drilled to a depth of up to 409metres. The flow of brine was observed to continue for more than fivehours. All holes had exceptional brine flow rates.
Ekosolve Ltd produced lithium carbonate at a purity of99.89%, where extraction of the lithium from the brines was above 94% i.e. 159 ppm of lithium would have been recovered from 169ppm.
The company has published a NI 43-101 compliantInferred Mineral Resource Estimate ( MRE ) for the PocitosLithium Brine Project which has been estimated at 143,000 tonnes ofin-situ lithium metal, and 13,000 tonnes lithium metal yield (usingporosity estimates) which equates to a lithium carbonate equivalent(“LCE”) of 760,000 tonnes and 69,000 tonnesrespectively . The LCE iscalculated from the ratio of lithium carbonate (Li 2 CO 3 ) to Li metal (5.32:1). The calculations assume no processlosses. See press release dated December 20 th ,2023 .
The full NI 43-101 Report dated December 18, 2023, andentitled “Technical Report For The Pocitos 1 and II, Salta Province,Argentina” , can be found on SEDAR+under the Company’s issuer profile at www.sedarplus.com .
Figure 4. Pocitos Lithium ClaimMap
Qualified Person
Phillip Thomas, BSc Geol, MBusM, FAusIMM, MAIG, MAIMVA,(CMV), a Qualified Person as defined under NI 43-101 regulations, hasreviewed the technical information that forms the basis for portionsof this news release, and has approved the disclosure herein. Mr.Thomas has joined the Company in the capacity of COO and Director on21 November 2023. He is a shareholder.
About Recharge Resources
Recharge Resources is a Canadian mineral explorationcompany focused on exploring and developing the production ofhigh-value battery metals to create green, renewable energy to meetthe demands of the advancing electric vehicle and fuel cell vehiclemarket.
All Stakeholders are encouraged to follow the Companyon its social media profiles on , , and Instagram .
On Behalf of the Board ofDirectors
“David Greenway”
David Greenway, CEO
For further information, pleasecontact:
Recharge Resources Ltd.
Joel Warawa
Phone: 778-588-5473
E-Mail: info@recharge-resources.com
Website: recharge-resources.com
Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor itsRegulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policiesof the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy ofthis release.
Disclaimer for Forward-LookingInformation
Certain statements in this releaseare forward-looking statements, which reflect the expectations ofmanagement regarding Recharge’s intention to continue to identifypotential transactions and make certain corporate changes andapplications. Forward looking statements consist of statements thatare not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs,plans, expectations, or intentions regarding the future. Suchstatements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may causeactual results, performance, or developments to differ materially fromthose contained in the statements. No assurance can be given that anyof the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occuror, if they do occur, what benefits Recharge will obtain from them.These forward-looking statements reflect managements’ current viewsand are based on certain expectations, estimates and assumptions whichmay prove to be incorrect. A number of risks and uncertainties couldcause actual results to differ materially from those expressed orimplied by the forward-looking statements, including Recharge’sresults of exploration or review of properties that Recharge doesacquire. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date ofthis news release and Recharge assumes no obligation to update theseforward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actualresults differed from those projected in the forward-lookingstatements, except in accordance with applicable securitieslaws.
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