Australian company Argosy Minerals Limited (ASX: AGY) has announced the signing of a sales contract with a Korean chemical company for the commercialization of 20 metric tons of lithium carbonate. This battery-quality product has been produced at their 2,000 tons per year (tpa) plant located in Salta, Argentina.
By Panorama Minero
"With this step, we confirm Argosy's ambitions to fully develop the Rincón lithium project," the company stated in a release. This spot sales contract is based on a fixed price referenced from the Fastmarkets lithium carbonate battery quality market index, with payment terms being an irrevocable letter of credit and immediate payment upon receipt of original shipping documents.
The company is managing the export logistics for the product, expecting to commence transportation once the export and freight protocols are completed. Regarding this, Argosy's Managing Director, Jerko Zuvela, stated, "We are pleased to achieve the sale of our battery-quality lithium carbonate product, aiming to realize a premium sales price given the current lithium market conditions."
Previous Work on the Project
In April, Argosy and its partner Puna Mining S.A. received official approval from the government of Salta Province and the Secretary of Mining and Energy to expand production to 12,000 tpa at the Rincón project, as part of its phase 3. This milestone confirms that the company has all necessary approvals to develop the 10,000 tpa expansion operation, in addition to the existing regulatory approval for the 2,000 tpa operation.
The company's dynamic modeling has shown great results for the Rincón Project, indicating that brine can be pumped for up to 42 years to produce 12,000 tpa of lithium carbonate, or for 22 years to produce 24,000 tpa of the same product.
