Australia-based Argosy Minerals has secured official approval for the development of the 10,000tpa lithium carbonate expansion operation at the Rincon Lithium Project in Argentina.
The Government of Salta Province in Argentina and the Secretary of Mining and Energy granted the permit to develop and produce up to 12,000tpa of lithium carbonate from the Rincon project.
It enables the company to expand the Rincon lithium project based on its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) submission.
With the formal approval in place, the company now has all the necessary approvals required to develop the 10,000tpa expansion operation at the Rincon project site.
Argosy managing director Jerko Zuvela said: “We are grateful to the Salta Province regulatory authorities, especially the Secretary of Mining and Energy and her team.
“The company has conducted extensive work on this EIA process to prove the long-term sustainability of our project.
“This is a significant milestone and I thank our team for such an achievement and we look forward to completing our upcoming milestones.”
Argosy is an Australian company that currently owns a 77.5% interest in the Rincon Lithium Project in Argentina and a 100% interest in the Tonopah Lithium Project in Nevada, USA.
The company aims to further focus on advancing its pre-development engineering works currently being conducted for the expansion, in preparation for an FID.
It is also looking for a strategic partner to secure investment linked to long-term off-take arrangements from a tier-1 counterparty in the EV supply chain.
Zuvela added: “The company can confidently advance its strategic partner process, with the EIA approval providing significant de-risking for a potential strategic group to become involved in realising the development of the next 10,000tpa stage of our Rincon Project.
“This significant milestone further confirms Argosy’s ambitions and the near-term growth phase to fully develop the Rincon Lithium Project.”
In 2020, Argosy received approvals from the Government of Salta Province in Argentina along with its regulatory bodies to build a 2,000tpa lithium processing plant, and related works at the Rincon lithium project.
