VANCOUVER, CANADA -- (Marketwire) -- 06/22/11 -- Lithium One Inc. (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: LI), is pleased to announce that independent engineering firm ARA Worley Parsons ("ARA") has been retained to complete the NI 43-101 compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment report ("PEA") for the Sal de Vida Lithium-Potash brine project in Argentina. ARA is a leading full-service engineering services firm with offices throughout Latin America. ARA's experience in the sector includes the design and construction of many components of the world's largest and lowest cost lithium-potash brine processing facility in Chile.
The Sal de Vida PEA will model the economics of a conventional evaporation recovery circuit for lithium and potash. Lithium One has already benefitted from the guidance and expertise of leading consulting engineers and scientists, such as:
-- Jerome Lukes - Process Engineer. Helped develop the evaporation recovery
system at SQM's operations at Salar de Atacama
-- ACSI - Mechanical Engineering and Metallurgy backgrounds with major cost
engineering, project management and process development experience on
base metal and lithium projects
-- Raul Diaz - Argentina based mechanical engineer with extensive field
operations experience, including the first development of the Salar de
Rio Grande sodium sulphate project in Argentina
-- Hazen Research - A leading metallurgical and testing laboratory with
experience in solvent extraction with brines at Salar de Atacama
The engineering and process work completed to date has laid a strong foundation for the PEA and the feasibility study. The Company has progressed several aspects of the Sal de Vida project in parallel, including: resource delineation, pilot plant operation and process refinement, environmental and community baseline studies and pumping tests. This multi-pronged approach will facilitate timely delivery of the PEA and related NI 43-101 report, which are both expected to be completed during the third quarter.
Lithium One CEO, Paul Matysek commented, "We are pleased to be nearing the completion of our PEA only two years after acquiring the Sal de Vida Project. Our results to date have been outstanding and we expect a robust economic model will be delivered by ARA. This work will put us in a position to move rapidly through the completion of the feasibility study in the first half of 2012 and we remain on track for our goal of delivering the first lithium and potash products from Sal de Vida in 2015, when strong growth in the lithium market is forecast."
About Lithium One:
Lithium One Inc. is well positioned to be a next-generation low cost producer of lithium and potash. The Company has two major projects funded through feasibility by earn-in partners: the Sal de Vida lithium and potash brine project in Argentina and the James Bay bulk tonnage spodumene project in Quebec. The Sal de Vida project is one of the largest and the highest-grade lithium and potash brine projects in the world, with an NI 43-101 inferred resource(i) of 5.4 M tonnes of Lithium Carbonate equivalent and 21 M tonnes of Potash equivalent (1,470M m(3) at 695 mg/L Li and 7590 mg/L K). KORES, LG International and GS Caltex are earning a maximum 30% project equity in Sal de Vida by funding the feasibility study expected in less than twelve months and providing an off-take agreement for up to 50% of the lithium production. Galaxy Resources is earning a maximum 70% project equity in the James Bay Project through an earn-in agreement that includes delivery of a feasibility study by early 2013. The Company's strategy is to draw upon its quality team and employ best practice to develop its projects into leading suppliers of low-cost, high quality lithium products to the global market.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,
Paul Matysek, Chief Executive Officer
The reader is cautioned that mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document may contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (hereinafter referred to as "forward-looking statements"). All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation statements relating to; the completion of a Scoping Study, Preliminary Economic Assessment or Feasibility Study, securing of debt for future project construction, purchase of future mine production, the timing for completion of an NI 43-101 compliant resource and other matters related to the exploration and development of the Project, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this document and the Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's expectations or beliefs regarding future events. By their very nature forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include unsuccessful exploration results, changes in metals prices, changes in the availability of funding for mineral exploration, unanticipated changes in key management personnel and general economic conditions, title disputes as well as those factors detailed from time to time in the Company's interim and annual financial statements and management's discussion and analysis of those statements, all of which are filed and available for review on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative of these terms or comparable terminology. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward looking statements.
(i) For details please see the NI 43-101 Inferred Resource Estimate report dated April 25, 2011, filed on SEDAR.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Contacts:
Investor Inquiries: Lithium One Inc.
Robert Orr
604-805-2126
ro@lithium1.com
www.lithium1.com
