Lithium Ionic and two of its subsidiaries have entered into a definitive agreement to sell the Salinas group of lithium properties, which includes the Baixa Grande lithium resources in Brazil‘s Lithium Valley, in Minas Gerais.
The acquiring party, PLS Brazil Mineração, a subsidiary of ASX-listed PLS Group, has agreed to a purchase price of $37.5-million in cash.
Lithium Ionic will, however, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Neolit, retain a 2% royalty on future spodumene sales from Baixa Grande.
PLS aims to integrate the Baixa Grande project into its adjacent Colina project in the country.
Lithium Ionic CEO Blake Hylands says Salinas demonstrates the value the Lithium Ionic team has created through disciplined exploration.
“We entered the district in early 2023 and, in under two years, advanced it from first drill holes to a spodumene mineral resource. This transaction crystallizes that value for shareholders without dilution, at a constructive point in the lithium cycle, and the royalty keeps shareholders exposed to Baixa Grande’s potential future development under PLS, one of the largest hard-rock lithium operators in the world.”
Hylands adds that PLS is a natural fit as the acquirer of Baixa Grande given its neighbouring Colina project.
“We are pleased to see it pass to a leading lithium producer rapidly growing its presence in the Lithium Valley, and with a strengthened balance sheet, we are squarely focused on advancing Bandeira toward a construction decision and becoming a near-term, low-cost lithium producer,” he concludes.