The project will be developed in parallel with the Paradox lithium project. Pic: via Getty Images.
Mining
Anson Resources has confirmed the location of its proposed processing plant at the Green River lithium project in Utah, USA.
The company plans to develop the Green River project in parallel with its lead asset, the nearby 1.038Mt LCE Paradox lithium project.
The two assets pose similar geological, metallurgical, and structural characteristics.
At Green River, indications are that brine may flow to the surface naturally. This offers the potential to reduce operating costs as it eliminates the need for mechanical pumping to extract brines from depth.
Green River could also be a potentially large project, with a conceptual exploration target of between 2Bt and 2.6Bt of brines grading 100 parts per million to 150ppm lithium and 2,000ppm to 3,000ppm bromine.
For Anson Resources (ASX:ASN), Green River is set to play a significant role in its development plans for its lithium assets in the Paradox Basin in Utah, with the confirmation of the processing plant site representing a key milestone in its plans to develop the Project into a significant Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) lithium producing operation.
Direct extraction technology is nothing new – it’s been used in water treatment for decades – but its use to extract lithium from brines is just now coming into its own.
DLE tech promises to produce cheaper, higher quality, and more environmentally friendly lithium than incumbent processes and could be used literally anywhere there’s an oil & gas wells – and there’s a lot of those in America.
Notably, the company has also recently ramped up lithium carbonate production from its demonstration plant in Florida to meet demand from potential US offtakers using DLE technology provided by its partner Sunresin to process brines sourced from the Paradox lithium project in Utah.
The confirmation of the site comes after Anson completed a geotechnical engineering study over the area, which was undertaken by independent engineering and geological consultants as part of Anson’s due diligence process for its recently completed acquisition of an industrial-use land package at Green River.
The study consisted of nine core holes and five trenches with geophysical surveys also undertaken to test the dynamic properties of subsurface materials.
Subsurface conditions at the proposed site have now been assessed as suitable for the construction of foundations for the processing plant.
Importantly, no groundwater was encountered and is not anticipated to affect the proposed construction.
In the meantime, Anson plans to test three priority targets with a new drilling program at Green River with the aim of establishing a resource. These are in addition to those planned to be defined from the company’s proposed re-entry drilling program at existing oil and gas wells.
Additionally, completion of the detailed Front-End Engineering & Design study (FEED) for the Paradox project is also expected soon.
As well, Anson is eyeing a potential resource upgrade once the acquisition of the Green Energy ground, which will add 8% to the land area covered by the Paradox project, is completed.
It could potentially increase the exploration target by 14% to between 310Mt and 350Mt of brine grading 108ppm to 200ppm lithium and 2,000ppm to 3,000ppm bromine.
This article was developed in collaboration with Anson Resources, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
Mining
Mining
Mining
Get the latest Stockhead news delivered free to your inbox.
