[SMM News] CleanTech Lithium Validates Laguna Verde Flowsheet, Produces 99.75% Purity Lithium Carbonate in Pilot Trial

Sinomine’s Bikita Minerals in Zimbabwe plans to raise its annual spodumene processing capacity from about 2 million mt to 3 million mt by Q2 2027, a 50% increase. Sinomine has invested over $320 million in spodumene and petalite beneficiation at Bikita, and total investment is expected to reach about $900 million by the end of 2027. A lithium sulphate plant is scheduled for completion in July 2027. It will let Bikita process lithium concentrate into lithium sulphate, an intermediate product used to make battery materials. Bikita’s lithium-bearing mineral resources have grown from about 29 million mt to over 218 million mt since Sinomine’s acquisition, extending projected mine life by more than 15 years.

Savannah Resources is close to signing a second offtake agreement for its output from the Barroso lithium project in northern Portugal. A second offtake is a key step toward project financing, as lenders want 70%-75% of Barroso's future output contracted under long-term supply deals. The first offtake was signed in June 2024 for 45,000 mt/year of spodumene concentrate for five years, about 25% of planned output. Barroso hosts more than 39 million mt of spodumene resources, Europe's largest deposit of minerals. Further exploration could lift resources above 100 million mt and extend mine life beyond 50 years. Construction is on track for 2027 and production for 2028.