Eye on Lithium: Mexico passes modified lithium law to nationalise reserves

Picture: Marcos Elihu Castillo Ramirez (iStock / Getty Images Plus) via Getty Images.

Mexico’s Senate passes legislation to nationalise lithium reserves
Auroch picks up new lithium project 340km from Tesla’s Gigafactory in Nevada
Lithium Australia completes final 10% acquisition of Envirostream

All your ASX lithium news for Wednesday, April 20.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) introduced fast-track legislation this week aimed nationalising the country’s lithium reserves after his controversial power reforms – which also included a proposal to nationalise lithium – failed to secure the two-thirds majority needed for constitutional changes.

Essentially, the new modified law states that lithium exploration, exploitation and use will be reserved for a new state-owned entity, and halts concessions or permits for lithium projects.

It was passed by the lower house on Monday before being approved by the Senate yesterday – with AMLO stating shortly afterwards that all contracts to mine lithium in the country will need to be reviewed.

Mexico’s association of mining engineers (AIMMGM) says that changing the mining law isn’t the way forward, and that constitutional change is what’s needed – and that the move will scare away investors.

Ley Minera es totalmente innecesaria y genera incertidumbre en los inversionistas: Jaime Gutiérrez.https://t.co/lex67kaIUC

— AIMMGM Nacional (@AIMMGM_Nacional) April 19, 2022

It remains to be seen what this means for Ganfeng’s US$420m Sonora lithium project, which is expected to start production in 2H24.

Here’s how ASX lithium stocks are tracking today:

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Code	Company	Price	% Month	% Week	% Today	Market Cap
CRR	Critical Resources	0.1	30%	23%	18%	$126,336,013.74
TSC	Twenty Seven Co. Ltd	0.0045	29%	13%	13%	$10,643,255.62
PGD	Peregrine Gold	0.52	9%	8%	8%	$18,377,601.12
AOU	Auroch Minerals Ltd	0.14	22%	4%	8%	$46,969,233.87
ADV	Ardiden Ltd	0.015	15%	15%	7%	$37,248,992.98
WR1	Winsome Resources	0.535	26%	16%	7%	$67,339,997.00
SHH	Shree Minerals Ltd	0.016	-20%	14%	7%	$18,333,553.38
IPT	Impact Minerals	0.016	33%	23%	7%	$32,856,923.79
GT1	Greentechnology	1.15	49%	24%	6%	$114,480,000.00
MLS	Metals Australia	0.175	136%	17%	6%	$63,274,741.53
TON	Triton Min Ltd	0.035	25%	13%	6%	$41,011,877.84
MMC	Mitremining	0.2	11%	-7%	5%	$5,146,169.00
VMC	Venus Metals Cor Ltd	0.2	14%	3%	5%	$28,704,949.77
DTM	Dart Mining NL	0.082	3%	3%	5%	$9,710,292.54
ENT	Enterprise Metals	0.021	50%	0%	5%	$12,892,937.10
EUR	European Lithium Ltd	0.11	0%	0%	5%	$145,205,931.78
LRV	Larvottoresources	0.36	85%	41%	4%	$14,216,587.50
LRD	Lordresourceslimited	0.2075	0%	6%	4%	$6,156,924.20
SRZ	Stellar Resources	0.029	0%	4%	4%	$23,444,473.53
CZL	Cons Zinc Ltd	0.03	7%	3%	3%	$10,189,376.58
MM1	Midasmineralsltd	0.36	125%	29%	3%	$19,053,343.75
RDT	Red Dirt Metals Ltd	0.59	4%	12%	3%	$172,363,610.58
EMH	European Metals Hldg	1.29	17%	1%	2%	$177,378,975.90
TEM	Tempest Minerals	0.1125	411%	13%	2%	$43,911,909.25
EFE	Eastern Resources	0.05	2%	2%	2%	$48,727,394.92
WML	Woomera Mining Ltd	0.0255	50%	2%	2%	$17,170,826.65
PSC	Prospect Res Ltd	0.92	3%	0%	2%	$390,320,777.69
1MC	Morella Corporation	0.0335	16%	2%	2%	$170,815,061.54
INF	Infinity Lithium	0.1675	8%	12%	2%	$68,446,857.77
QXR	Qx Resources Limited	0.077	45%	7%	1%	$63,145,536.40
LPD	Lepidico Ltd	0.0405	23%	4%	1%	$253,313,997.48
DRE	Dreadnought Resources Ltd	0.0435	9%	-1%	1%	$122,063,392.69
PLL	Piedmont Lithium Inc	0.995	5%	13%	1%	$519,657,238.00
VUL	Vulcan Energy	9.17	-9%	3%	1%	$1,199,286,769.90
IGO	IGO Limited	14.18	18%	5%	1%	$10,677,476,163.30
AML	Aeon Metals Ltd.	0.069	47%	8%	0%	$59,740,813.27
GXY	Galaxy Resources	0	-100%	-100%	0%	$2,715,139,305.12
JRL	Jindalee Resources	4.8	55%	1%	0%	$275,419,036.80
TKL	Traka Resources	0.01	-9%	-9%	0%	$6,887,745.61
BMM	Balkanminingandmin	0.365	33%	0%	0%	$11,953,750.00
AAJ	Aruma Resources Ltd	0.185	118%	32%	0%	$29,037,878.06
FRS	Forrestaniaresources	0.35	13%	0%	0%	$9,834,581.40
IMI	Infinitymining	0.18	3%	-5%	0%	$10,350,000.00
WCN	White Cliff Min Ltd	0.031	15%	3%	0%	$20,261,704.22
KGD	Kula Gold Limited	0.052	21%	4%	0%	$11,189,132.86
MTM	Mtmongerresources	0.195	34%	-5%	0%	$6,758,706.44
AZI	Altamin Limited	0.092	42%	6%	0%	$35,776,219.58
AVW	Avira Resources Ltd	0.006	9%	0%	0%	$12,712,740.00
RMX	Red Mount Min Ltd	0.009	6%	-5%	0%	$14,781,274.72
MRR	Minrex Resources Ltd	0.074	30%	6%	0%	$66,648,173.48
LSR	Lodestar Minerals	0.016	45%	14%	0%	$27,814,997.57
AOA	Ausmon Resorces	0.011	38%	10%	0%	$9,430,182.77
SRI	Sipa Resources Ltd	0.049	-4%	-8%	0%	$10,046,215.35
RAS	Ragusa Minerals Ltd	0.09	27%	-3%	0%	$11,309,204.70
THR	Thor Mining PLC	0.016	14%	0%	0%	$16,222,261.30
M2R	Miramar	0.18	3%	3%	0%	$8,966,703.60
AVZ	AVZ Minerals Ltd	1.19	30%	16%	0%	$4,216,832,048.86
MIN	Mineral Resources.	61.4	33%	4%	0%	$11,666,150,123.22
WMC	Wiluna Mining Corp	0.915	-3%	3%	-1%	$194,409,749.40
LTR	Liontown Resources	1.6725	1%	5%	-1%	$3,704,860,584.62
KZR	Kalamazoo Resources	0.45	50%	22%	-1%	$66,063,440.17
LPI	Lithium Pwr Int Ltd	0.86	25%	10%	-1%	$303,756,017.76
SCN	Scorpion Minerals	0.083	22%	24%	-1%	$22,638,520.13
LEL	Lithenergy	1.015	12%	6%	-1%	$46,350,000.00
G88	Golden Mile Res Ltd	0.063	0%	0%	-2%	$12,846,887.30
KAI	Kairos Minerals Ltd	0.0295	13%	2%	-2%	$58,862,804.73
PAM	Pan Asia Metals	0.58	12%	12%	-2%	$43,458,599.96
AKE	Allkem Limited	13.27	34%	4%	-2%	$8,608,384,161.00
INR	Ioneer Ltd	0.7125	36%	5%	-2%	$1,515,647,589.28
BYH	Bryah Resources Ltd	0.057	14%	6%	-2%	$13,120,016.15
NWM	Norwest Minerals	0.056	-10%	-7%	-2%	$10,294,621.06
CXO	Core Lithium	1.47	31%	21%	-2%	$2,575,172,890.50
PLS	Pilbara Min Ltd	2.845	2%	-2%	-2%	$8,662,587,501.63
RIO	Rio Tinto Limited	118.85	8%	1%	-2%	$45,162,164,595.24
EMS	Eastern Metals	0.195	3%	3%	-3%	$7,120,000.00
EPM	Eclipse Metals	0.037	37%	3%	-3%	$73,002,803.69
GL1	Globallith	2.21	10%	-5%	-3%	$358,244,076.98
WC8	Wildcat Resources	0.035	25%	0%	-3%	$23,229,818.17
RLC	Reedy Lagoon Corp.	0.034	26%	6%	-3%	$19,192,503.05
A8G	Australasian Metals	0.495	2%	2%	-3%	$20,486,951.94
LKE	Lake Resources	2.22	43%	21%	-3%	$2,937,272,812.07
MNS	Magnis Energy Tech	0.475	0%	6%	-3%	$473,234,811.21
ARN	Aldoro Resources	0.3	-12%	11%	-3%	$27,904,212.59
CHR	Charger Metals	0.735	5%	1%	-3%	$24,748,919.68
ZNC	Zenith Minerals Ltd	0.435	32%	6%	-3%	$154,756,869.75
AGY	Argosy Minerals Ltd	0.4925	26%	7%	-3%	$690,549,248.34
ASN	Anson Resources Ltd	0.14	22%	-3%	-3%	$148,110,475.48
GLN	Galan Lithium Ltd	1.96	31%	0%	-3%	$617,906,344.86
NMT	Neometals Ltd	1.8	7%	7%	-3%	$1,022,721,978.54
ESS	Essential Metals Ltd	0.685	57%	40%	-4%	$173,483,785.60
AM7	Arcadia Minerals	0.265	18%	4%	-4%	$9,622,937.50
FFX	Firefinch Ltd	1.1175	35%	6%	-4%	$1,370,242,136.36
RGL	Riversgold	0.077	130%	7%	-4%	$42,120,333.84
MQR	Marquee Resource Ltd	0.125	19%	14%	-4%	$35,482,296.98
BNR	Bulletin Res Ltd	0.235	62%	15%	-4%	$71,071,066.08
PNN	PepinNini Minerals	0.92	111%	33%	-4%	$58,786,861.44
VKA	Viking Mines Ltd	0.0115	15%	5%	-4%	$12,303,101.17
CAI	Calidus Resources	1.03	11%	6%	-4%	$432,469,283.60
LIT	Lithium Australia NL	0.105	0%	0%	-5%	$113,823,734.64
FG1	Flynngold	0.1575	13%	-7%	-5%	$10,570,073.25
RAG	Ragnar Metals Ltd	0.042	35%	-21%	-5%	$16,398,135.12
EVR	Ev Resources Ltd	0.062	22%	0%	-5%	$60,188,964.62
STM	Sunstone Metals Ltd	0.075	-10%	7%	-5%	$176,922,157.34
AZL	Arizona Lithium Ltd	0.185	19%	12%	-5%	$433,266,441.47
QPM	Queensland Pacific	0.18	24%	-3%	-5%	$293,191,494.89
TMB	Tambourahmetals	0.26	18%	4%	-5%	$11,327,964.45
GSM	Golden State Mining	0.08	7%	-12%	-6%	$8,824,245.42
LRS	Latin Resources Ltd	0.1825	220%	-1%	-6%	$328,111,776.14
MMG	Monger Gold Ltd	0.29	32%	5%	-6%	$7,750,000.00
SYA	Sayona Mining Ltd	0.355	115%	16%	-7%	$2,723,854,533.86
XTC	Xantippe Res Ltd	0.014	115%	8%	-7%	$114,903,061.82
NVA	Nova Minerals Ltd	0.775	11%	-7%	-7%	$150,468,907.98
MXR	Maximus Resources	0.077	22%	3%	-7%	$26,386,178.74
AS2	Askarimetalslimited	0.715	63%	2%	-8%	$30,082,619.33
AX8	Accelerate Resources	0.054	6%	-18%	-13%	$15,714,451.74

A total of 35 stocks were in the green today, with 23 flatlining and 57 in the red.

Who’s got news out today?

AUROCH MINERALS (ASX:AOU)

Auroch has announced a strategic acquisition of a new lithium project within 340km of Tesla’s Reno Gigafactory.

The company has inked a deal to acquire an 80% interest in the Nevada Lithium project near the historic silver mining town of Tonopah and includes 65km²of ground across the Traction, San Antone, Heller and Lone Mountain prospect areas – which are considered highly prospective for large sedimentary-hosted lithium deposits.

Notably, Nevada hosts some of the world’s largest deposits of sedimentary lithium, including Ioneer’s (ASX:INR)Rhyolite Ridge, American Lithium’s TLC project and global lithium giant Albemarle’s Silver Peak mine 45km to the west, which is the only producing lithium operation in North America.

Auroch says the project has seen shockingly brief lithium exploration despite covering the same lacustrine sedimentary formation that hosts other large lithium deposits in the region like TLC.

“We are very excited by the potential of the NLP to host significant lithium mineralisation in a stable pro-mining jurisdiction in Nevada, USA,” MD Aidan Platel said.

“The project areas cover the same geological formations that host very large lithium deposits in the region, including the TLC Lithium Project nearby.

“The acquisition adds to and supplements the company’s increasing focus on battery metals and represents a tremendous opportunity to enhance value for Auroch shareholders.

“We look forward to completing the acquisition and initiating exploration as soon as possible.”

LITHIUM AUSTRALIA (ASX:LIT)

Lithium Australia has completed its final 10% acquisition of interest in Envirostream and now owns 100% of the asset – which it says is timely since Envirostream’s battery collection rate has risen since the inception of the Battery Stewardship Scheme (BSS) in early 2022.

“As Australia’s only EPA-permitted and licensed recycler of mixed batteries, including lithium-ion batteries, Envirostream is well-placed to keep spent batteries out of landfill while providing as much sustainable feed material as possible for the manufacture of new lithium-ion batteries,” MD Adrian Griffin said.

“This is particularly important in the current climate of supply shortages and surging prices for battery minerals.

“To meet surging demand, Envirostream is also planning to expand its activities into key population centres on Australia’s east coast, as well as offshore.”