Given some of the disappointment in Tesla (TSLA)’s battery day, and the lack of mentioning the magic letters of Vale (VALE) or Lithium Americas (LAC), I still think it’s got a lot of promise.
Lithium Americas (LAC)’s bullish overview
In 2023, a record of decision by the environmental authorities must be issued by February 5th, after which Lithium Americas has said they’ll begin a 2 year construction phase, the current exploration plan boundary encompasses approximately 3,550 acres. The project would involve expanding the plan boundary to approximately 18,000 acres, with an ultimate disturbance footprint of approximately 5,700 acres.
The above meets Elon’s comments about having permits to a mining site that is over 10,000 acres. It could also be that the expansion may be a part of an agreement with Tesla that would allow Musk the mining rights to the 10,000+ acres.
According to this article they talk about the environmental statement reaction. The draft environmental impact statement was published July 29th and the public comment period ended on September 11th, 2020.
The article says they spent the last couple of years creating a processing method using sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid has been used for hard rock extraction for decades, but this is a new way for sedimentary clay in a more environmentally friendly way. They said the excess acidity is neutralized to produce Gypsum and Epsom salt as by products.
The project is proposed to be a carbon-neutral mine operation; this seems in line with Tesla’s goals.
The CEO, Alexi Zawadzki, saying “Once the lithium is dissolved, it can be concentrated and purified to produce high-quality lithium compounds for batteries. Any excess acidity is neutralized to produce calcium sulfate (gypsum, also known as the main material in wall-board) and magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt)”
We also know from the article that an open pit is proposed with the remediation objective of back filling the hole; Elon made a big point his presentation that their mine would be putting the soil back into the land to return it to it’s natural state.
Should you invest in Lithium Americas (LAC)?
Shares of Lithium Americas (LAC) appear to be a very good investment option, the Money Midnight Indicator is expecting its price to increase considerably in the next several years. The majority of the metrics point to this investment being highly attractive.
