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Ghana

Ewoyaa Project

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StagePermitting
Commodities
  • Spodumene
  • Lithium
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Ewoyaa Lithium Project comprises the proposed Ewoyaa Lithium Mine and Processing Plant.

On 20 October 2023, the Atlantic Lithium announced that Ghana’s Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources had granted a Mining Lease in respect of the Ewoyaa Lithium Project. Key financial terms, agreed under the grant of the Mining Lease, have been updated from those considered as part of the Definitive Feasibility Study for the Project (29 June 2023).

During the period ended 31 December 2023, Atlantic Lithium Completed of the Flotation Scoping Study. The Company intends to commence construction of the flotation circuit once the main plant consistently delivers its intended nameplate throughput of 2.7Mt per annum.

Ewoyaa is now on track to become a top 10 hard rock spodumene concentrate mine.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Atlantic Lithium Ltd. 100 % Indirect
Whilst the asset is currently wholly owned by Atlantic Lithium Ltd, Piedmont Lithium Inc. can earn up to half of the Company's ownership in the Project through its funding agreement whereby Piedmont will sole fund the first US$70m, and 50% of additional costs thereafter.

The Government of Ghana has the right to a 13% free carry once in production and the Minerals Income Investment Fund has agreed Heads of Terms with the Company, which will see it earn a 6% contributing interest in the Project.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Pegmatite

Summary:

Pegmatite-hosted lithium deposits are the target for exploration. This style of mineralisation typically forms as dykes and sills intruding or in proximity to granite source rocks.

Surface geology within the Project area typically consists of sequences of staurolite and garnet-bearing pelitic schist and granite with lesser pegmatite and mafic intrusives. Outcrops are typically sparse and confined to ridge tops with colluvium and mottled laterite blanketing much of the undulating terrain making geological mapping challenging. The hills are often separated by broad, sandy drainages.

The mineralised pegmatite intrusions generally occur as sub-vertical bodies with two dominant trends as briefly outlined earlier: either striking north-northeast (Ewoyaa Main) and dipping sub-vertically to moderately southeast to east-southeast, or striking west-northwest to east-west (Abonko, Kaampakrom, Anokyi, Okwesi, Grasscutter and Ewoyaa Northeast) dipping sub-vertically to moderately northeast or north. Pegmatite thickness varies across the Project, with thinner mineralised units intersected at Abonko and Kaampakrom between 4m and 12m; and thicker units intersected at Ewoyaa Main between 30m and 60m, and up to 100m at surface.

The mineralisation at Ewoyaa has been confirmed to be associated with spodumene-bearing pegmatite as the main lithium bearing mineral. No petalite or lepidolite have been observed in any of the resource RC and diamond core drill logging. The pegmatites are predominantly quartz-albite-muscovite +/- microcline and spodumene in composition with accessory blue-green apatite, and less common colourless to light blue beryl, barite and secondary Fe-Mn-Li bearing phosphates.

The Project has two clearly defined geometallurgical domains or material types of spodumene bearing lithium mineralisation. Atlantic Lithium has termed these material types as Pegmatite Type (“P1”) and Pegmatite Type (“P2”):
- P1: Coarse grained spodumene material (>20mm), the dominant spodumene-bearing pegmatite encountered to date, exhibiting very coarse to pegmatoidal, euhedral to subhedral spodumene crystals composing 20 to 40% of the rock and
- P2: Medium to fine grained spodumene material (<20mm), where abundant spodumene crystals of a medium crystal size dominates. The spodumene is euhedral to subhedral and can compose up to 50% of the rock. The spodumene can be bimodal with some larger phenocrysts entrained within the medium grained spodumene bearing matrix. There are indications of very minor occurrences of other lithium bearing phases present.

The vast majority of the finer grained spodumene P2 ore is found within the Ewoyaa Main pegmatite bodies and preferentially occurring towards the footwall contact of the Ewoyaa Main pegmatites, but with some exceptions. Any finer grained spodumene P2 pegmatite material occurring in the Abonko trending pegmatite bodies are generally rare and of limited extent.

Dimensions
The Project Mineral Resource area extends over a north-south strike length of 4,390m (from 577,380mN – 581,770mN), and includes the 360m vertical interval from 80mRL to -280mRL.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

Over the life of mine, the Ewoyaa Project is estimated to produce 1,792,222t of 6% (SC6) and 1,792,195t of 5.5% (SC5.5) grade spodumene concentrate. The average Whole Ore Recovery for SC6 is 62.1%, and for SC5.5 is 67.2%.
CommodityProductUnitsAvg. AnnualLOM
Spodumene Concentrate kt 3503,600
Lithium Fines t 4,733,264

Operational metrics

Metrics
Annual processing capacity  ....  Subscribe
Stripping / waste ratio  ....  Subscribe
Waste tonnes, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Total tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Tonnes processed, LOM  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2023 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsAverage
Credits (by-product) Spodumene USD  ....  Subscribe
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Spodumene USD  ....  Subscribe
C1 cash costs Spodumene USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Spodumene USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2023 study / presentation.
** Net of By-Product.

Operating Costs

Currency2023
OP mining costs ($/t mined) USD 3.82 *  
Processing costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
G&A ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2023 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Initial CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Sustaining CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Closure costs $M USD  ......  Subscribe
OP OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Processing OpEx $M USD 212.2
G&A costs $M USD 168.8
Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
EBITDA (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Net Income (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 8% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe

Required Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 2, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 2, 2024
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EmployeesYear
...... Subscription required 2022

Aerial view:

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