- Sayona Mining (SYA) produces its first lithium concentrate at its North American Lithium (NAL) operation in Quebec, Canada
- The company produced 70 tonnes of lithium concentrate and says it expects to produce the first “saleable” concentrate shortly
- With the first shipment of NAL lithium slated for July, SYA expects to produce between 85,000 tonnes and 115,000 tonnes of concentrate during the second half of this year
- SYA and partner Jourdan Resources will also embark on one of the biggest Quebec drilling programs this year, comprising 50,000 metres of drilling across NAL and the adjacent Vallée lithium project
- SYA shares are down 3.06 per cent and trading ad 23.8 cents at 12:30 pm AEDT
Emerging lithium producer Sayona mining (SYA) has produced its first successful spodumene concentrate at its North American Lithium (NAL) operation in Quebec, Canada.
SYA said up to 70 tonnes of lithium concentrate was produced, and the manufacturing process of its first “saleable” concentrate is progressing.
The company expect its first shipment from NAL to occur in July 2023, with four shipments already targeted for the first half of fiscal 2024.
Sayona said it aimed to produce between 85,000 and 115,000 tonnes of lithium over the second half of this year to meet the demand of North America’s fast‐growing electric vehicle and battery industry.
Sayona’s Managing Director, Brett Lynch, congratulated the NAL team on its latest milestone.
“This is another great achievement for the team at NAL. I extend my thanks to everyone concerned for progressing the NAL restart on time and on budget — something few others have achieved in recent times amid escalating cost and supply chain pressures,” Mr Lynch said.
“These are exciting times with the first saleable lithium concentrate to be produced soon, marking the next step in Sayona’s evolution towards becoming a leading hard rock lithium producer.”
Sayona has also partnered with Jourdan Resources to embark on more than 50,000 metres of drilling at NAL and Jourdan’s adjacent Vallée lithium project.
SYA said the program would potentially be one of the biggest in Quebec this year and would provide a better resource base to supply increased lithium tonnages to the NAL concentrator.
Jourdan CEO and President Rene Bharti said it was a historic moment to showcase
the strong partnership between Jourdan, NAL and Sayona.
“With Jourdan having over 13,000 hectares of land surrounding Sayona’s NAL project, the opportunity to partner with NAL and Sayona to accelerate Jourdan towards production is clear,” Mr Bharti said.
“Given that the Sayona NAL concentrator has commenced operations, Jourdan is in a very rare position to benefit from having access to what we expect will become Canada’s leading lithium-producing mine and concentrator.”
More than 24,000 metres of drilling is planned across 1997 hectares at the Vallée project, with drilling due to commence in May 2023.
NAL’s leases cover some 582 hectares, while the Vallée project comprises 48 claims with 20 leases located within a 500-metre mine boundary.
SYA shares were down 3.06 per cent and trading ad 23.8 cents at 12:30 pm AEDT.