Sayona Québec (ASX:SYA; OTCQB:SYAXF) said today that it formally approved the restart of its North American Lithium (NAL) operation.
Budget is about C$98 million.
The Sayona Quebec (SYQ) board has formally authorised the restart of spodumene concentrate production at the NAL operation in Québec, requiring significant plant and infrastructure upgrades, aimed at improving product quality, recovery, and plant availability. SYQ is owned 75% by Sayona Mining and 25% by Piedmont.
The NAL is expected to produce spodumene concentrate production in first quarter 2023. The company said it will be the first North American local supplier of lithium concentrates.
The NAL restart project has been funded through cash contributions by both Sayona and Piedmont, each company having successfully completed significant capital raises in the first half of 2022. Following the restart of NAL operations, the offtake agreement with Piedmont entitles it to purchase the greater of 113,000 metric tons per year of spodumene concentrate, or 50% of production from NAL.
Prior to the NAL restart, the agreement provided for offtake of 60,000 tonnes or 50% of concentrate produced from ore mined at SYQ’s nearby Authier Lithium Project.
This offtake agreement will remain in place until the commencement of operation of a lithium conversion plant in Québec. At this point, spodumene concentrate produced from NAL will be preferentially delivered to that chemical plant upon the start of production. Any remaining concentrate not required by the conversion plant will be delivered to Piedmont.
Sayona said it is evaluating options for downstream processing in Québec.
