The explosion in demand for electric vehicles has triggered a significant profit opportunity in the lithium exploration space. 2022 saw lithium prices soar. And continued high demand and limited supplies will mean higher prices in the months ahead. With just one producing lithium mine in North America, the race is on to bring new production online as quickly as possible. That’s all positive news for companies such as Usha Resources Ltd. (TSXV: USHA) (OTCQB: USHAF), Livent Corporation (NYSE: LTHM), Lithium Americas (NYSE: LAC) (TSX: LAC), Albemarle (NYSE: ALB), and Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL).
In addition, according to Market.US, The lithium market had a value of $5.2 billion in 2022, and it is projected to increase by approximately $12.0 billion from 2023 to 2032, with a CAGR of 8.9%. “This market is expected to record the highest CAGR among other markets. The rising number of electric vehicles and the electrification of vehicles is resulting in the rising demand for Lithium-ion Batteries and thus eventually driving the growth of the market globally.”
Look at Usha Resources Ltd. (TSXV: USHA) (OTCQB: USHAF), For Example
Usha Resources Ltd., a North American mineral acquisition and exploration company focused on the development of drill-ready lithium and other battery and precious metal projects, is pleased to provide an update on its on-going catalysts for growth and a recap of the Company’s progress in 2022.
Highlights
- Working capital of approximately $3.1 million.
- 220% growth in market capitalization since the start of 2022 to just under $15 million with significant future exploration work to come.
- Upcoming 20% “Share Dividend” via the Spin-Out of the Nicobat Nickel Project with an Ex-Distribution Date of April 21, 2023.
- Roadmap for the Jackpot Lake Lithium Brine Project in Nevada, where the Company recently announced the highest drill results ever and is presently undertaking a fully permitted and financed maiden drill program with the goal of delivering a 43-101 resource estimate.
- Roadmap for the White Willow and Nym Lake Lithium Pegmatite Projects in Ontario, the first of the Company’s planned acquisitions in the hard-rock space, where almost 200 pegmatites are present and a confirmed fertile lithium-cesium-tantalum (“LCT”) system exists that has coarse mineralization observed seen elsewhere only in one other locality within the province: the North Aubrey pegmatite at Green Technology Metals (GT1) Seymour Lake Project where GT1 has identified a 9.9 Mt resource at 1.04% Li2O.
Dear Shareholders,
The start of 2023 has been a very exciting and transformative period for Usha given the expedited nature of advancing Usha into a lithium-focused company.
While this period has been a difficult time for many explorers in the commodities space, we have successfully navigated this turbulent time, growing our company by almost 220% to its market capitalization of just under 15 million, with several significant acquisitions that have resulted in the Company you see today.
We are excited and energized by the promise this year holds for our Company. We enter 2023 with strong marketplace tailwinds in the battery metals sector, prudent financial and operational management, and conservatively valued assets in highly ranked mining jurisdictions with excellent potential for out-sized success in 2023 and beyond.
A primary goal of ours this year is complete our maiden resource estimate for the Jackpot Lake Lithium Brine project, a significant catalyst that would result in Usha joining a select few companies that are on the path to providing domestic supply of a critical element in the United States.
We are very excited to unlock the value of our portfolio and become a significant leader in the lithium space as the world continues its transition to a low carbon future and we look forward to continuing to build our company through acquisition, exploration and high-impact execution in the coming year to drive future growth.
Sincerely, Deepak Varshney, CEO
Significant highlights from the past 12 months:
Strong Balance Sheet
Successful closing of $5,895,401 across two financings, both of which were heavily oversubscribed: $2,895,401 at $0.30 and $3,000,000 at $0.325. With a working capital of just over $3.1 million, the company has a strong balance sheet and is fully funded to execute at each of its projects.
Strategic Acquisitions
Acquisition of the Jackpot Lake Lithium Brine Project in Nevada, USA (“Jackpot Lake”), including the recent exercise to obtain 100% of the project following the success of its on-going maiden drill program where it recently announced the highest grades ever at the history of the project. Initially comprised of 2,800 acres, the Company has recently expanded its control to 8,714 acres, increasing the footprint to just over 35 km2. As the primary strategic landowner within the Dry Lake Basin, the Company is in a strong position to advance the Jackpot Lake project.
Acquisition of the White Willow and Nym Lake Lithium Pegmatite Projects in Ontario, Canada. The first of Usha's planned expansion into the hard-rock pegmatite space, White Willow is an advanced grassroots asset that is host to a fertile lithium-cesium-tantalum system that contains coarse-grained tantalite crystallization only found in one other locale in Ontario: The North Aubrey pegmatite at Green Technology Metals' (GT1) Seymour Lake project, where GT1 has identified a 9.9-million-tonne resource at 1.04 per cent Li2O.
Nym Lake is the Company’s second pegmatite acquisition and is host to at least 119 pegmatites that are on trend with the system identified at White Willow, giving the Company almost 200 pegmatites to explore that may be related to the identified LCT-system.
Progress on the Upcoming 20% “Share Dividend” via the Spin-Out of the Nicobat Nickel Project:
With an upcoming Ex-Distribution Date of April 21, 2023, the Company will have successfully provided another avenue of value creation through the spin-out of its Nicobat Nickel Project whereby shareholders will receive one (1) common share of FMI with respect to every five (5) USHA shares held at the end of the “Due Bill Period” on April 20, 2023, inclusive.
Catalysts for growth
Completion of a 43-101 Maiden Resource Estimate at the Jackpot Lake Lithium Brine Project
The Company is presently drilling the second hole of its maiden drill program at Jackpot Lake with the goal of defining a 43-101 resource.
The drilling so far has been a success, providing support that the Dry Lake Basin is a similar setting to that of Albemarle’s Silver Peak Nevada Lithium Mine, the only producing lithium mine in North America. The Company’s target is relatively unique within Nevada as it has a shallower basin which has resulted in favourable geology being present at more accessible depths than elsewhere in the state.
Notably, the Company recently reported the highest lithium grades ever at the project, with analytical results from JP22-02 returning as high as 820 ppm and averaging 334 ppm Li in thirty samples collected from shallow surface soils (<500 ft), thereby confirming that the soils at the Project are highly enriched in lithium. These results are over four times the reported historical average and compare very favourably to the reported average of 100 ppm for the Esmeralda Formation, one of the potential sources of the lithium enrichment for the brines present at Albemarle’s Silver Peak Mine.
Similar stratigraphy has been encountered in both drill holes advanced to date, including the presence of significant evaporitic crystallization, indicative of a brine-forming environment, and higher-porosity sand and conglomerate. Identifying these similarities is a key finding that continues to support that Dry Lake, within which Jackpot is hosted, is a similar geologic setting to that of Clayton Valley.
The identification of the sand and conglomerate zone in particular is very important as per the Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) completed by Pure Energy Minerals for their Clayton Valley project, their sand and conglomerate zone was identified to contain a large volume of brine with superior grades, and per the Pre-Feasibility Study completed by Albemarle for the Silver Peak Mine, this zone is a focus for expansion.
The Company will be advancing both its drill holes to 2,000 feet within the coming weeks after which it will complete sampling, including the deeper sand and conglomerate zones where the Company believes the best potential brines may be present. Pending results, the Company would then proceed with either further drilling or completion of its maiden resource estimate, the completion of which would enable it to join the ranks of a select few companies in the United States.
Exploration at the White Willow and Nym Lake Lithium Pegmatite Projects
With the coming snowmelt, the Company intends on aggressively pursuing an exploration program at the White Willow and Nym Lake Lithium Pegmatite Projects with the goal of drilling them in Q3 of 2023.
The exploration work will involve a combination of prospecting, mapping and rock sampling, combined with soil sampling and geophysical surveying. Exploration is slated to begin in the final week of April 2023 and will include:
- Prospecting, mapping, rock sampling
- Geophysical ground surveys (resistivity)
- Soil sampling over target features
- Trenching and,
- Diamond drilling best targets
With almost 200 pegmatites and a confirmed fertile LCT‑system, the focus of the summer program will be the identification of drill targets, particularly in the vicinity of the “Maple Leaf Showing”, an LCT‑pegmatite dike that appears to be at least 50 metres wide and outcrops for approximately 350 metres along strike. Tantalite as high as 14.64% Ta2O5 has been identified here, with the very coarse mineralization observed seen elsewhere only in one other locality within the province: The North Aubrey pegmatite at Green Technology Metals (GT1) Seymour Lake Project where GT1 has identified a 9.9 Mt resource at 1.04% Li2O.
Other related developments from around the markets include:
Livent Corporation reported results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2022. Fourth quarter revenue was $219.4 million, down 5% and up 79% from the third quarter of 2022 and the prior year's quarter, respectively. Reported GAAP net income was $82.7 million, compared to $77.6 million and $7.5 million in the previous quarter and the prior year's quarter, respectively, or 39 cents per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA was $107.6 million, 3% below the previous quarter and nearly four times higher than the prior year's quarter, and adjusted earnings per diluted share were 40 cents. Continued strength in lithium market conditions and customer demand resulted in higher sequential volumes, the impact of which was partially offset by a less favorable customer mix.
Lithium Americas commenced construction at its 100%-owned Thacker Pass lithium project in Humboldt County, Nevada, following the receipt of notice to proceed from the Bureau of Land Management. “Starting construction is a momentous milestone for Thacker Pass and one we have been working towards for over a decade,” said Jonathan Evans, President and CEO. “We are excited about the prospect of generating economic growth in Northern Nevada and playing a major role in the domestic lithium supply chain for electric vehicles.”
Albemarle notes the announcement to the ASX by Liontown Resources on March 28, 2023, and confirms that it submitted a non-binding proposal to acquire all outstanding shares of Liontown by way of scheme of arrangement for A$2.50 or US$1.66 per share in cash, which values Liontown at A$5.2 or US$3.4 billion on an enterprise basis. Albemarle believes the proposal is a compelling opportunity for Liontown shareholders with the per share consideration representing a substantial premium to Liontown shareholders and a material premium over relevant benchmarks: 63% premium to Liontown's closing share price on March 27, 2023; 69% premium to the 30-day VWAP; 184% premium to the 52-week low share price; 41% premium to the median broker price target.
Piedmont Lithium, a leading global developer of lithium resources, announced that the Company’s joint venture partner, Sayona Mining has released a definitive feasibility study for the jointly-owned North American Lithium project, and increased lithium mineral resources at its 60%-owned Moblan Lithium Project, both in the province of Quebec. Piedmont holds a 25% stake in NAL and an equity interest of approximately 14% in Sayona. Sayona completed the technical studies for NAL and Moblan in accordance with both JORC Code and NI 43-101 requirements. The NAL DFS contemplates increased annual spodumene concentrate production averaging 190,000 metric tons per year over a 20-year mine life, with a target of 226,000 tpy in years one through four of steady state operations and approximately 186,000 tpy beginning in year five. The revised production targets, combined with higher spodumene concentrate pricing, resulted in an increase to the net present value for the NAL project compared to the prefeasibility study completed in 2022.
Legal Disclaimer / Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed in this article contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Winning Media is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority and does not provide nor claims to provide investment advice or recommendations to readers of this release. For making specific investment decisions, readers should seek their own advice. Usha Resources Ltd. paid three thousand five hundred dollars for advertising and marketing services to be distributed by Winning Media. Winning Media is only compensated for its services in the form of cash-based compensation. Winning Media owns ZERO shares of Usha Resources Ltd. Please click here for disclaimer.
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