Galaxy Resources Limited: The major global supplier of high quality lithium

Galaxy Resources Limited (“Galaxy”) is an international S&P / ASX 200 Index company with lithium production facilities, hard rock mines and brine assets in Australia, Canada and Argentina. It wholly owns and operates the James Bay lithium pegmatite project in Quebec, Canada and the Mt Cattlin mine in Ravensthorpe Western Australia, which is currently producing spodumene and tantalum concentrate. Galaxy is advancing plans to develop the Sal de Vida lithium and potash brine project in Argentina situated in the lithium triangle (where Chile, Argentina and Bolivia meet), which is currently the source of 60% of global lithium production. Sal de Vida has excellent potential as a low-cost brine-based lithium carbonate production facility. 

Lithium compounds are used in the manufacture of ceramics, glass, and consumer electronics and are an essential cathode material for long life lithium-ion batteries used in hybrid and electric vehicles, as well as mass energy storage systems. Galaxy is bullish about the global lithium demand outlook and is aiming to become a major producer of lithium products.

Sal de Vida

The Sal de Vida (Salt of Life) deposit is one of the world’s largest high-quality undeveloped lithium brine deposits with significant expansion potential. In August 2016, Galaxy released an updated Feasibility Study Report (FSR), completed on schedule and within budget, which supports low cost, long life lithium and potash operation. The FSR estimated a post-tax net present value of US$1.043 billion at 10% discount rate. Sal de Vida has the potential to generate total annual revenues in the region of US$354 million and operating cash flow before interest and tax of US$273 million per annum at full production rates.

Galaxy has also considered low cost, scalable development options at Sal de Vida. All development options consider modular designs, providing the flexibility to add units and scale up to the capacity of 25,000 tonnes per year of lithium carbonate and 95,000 tonnes of potassium chloride. The FSR supports the development of Sal de Vida, which when completed, will include evaporation ponds, a battery grade lithium carbonate plant and a potash plant. The Sal de Vida Project is located in north-west Argentina in what is known as the ‘Lithium Triangle’, home to more than 60 percent of the world’s annual production of lithium from brines in the Salar de Atacama and the Salar del Hombre Muerto.  

Mt Cattlin spodumene project

Galaxy Resources wholly owns the Mt Cattlin spodumene project, located two kilometres north of the town of Ravensthorpe in Western Australia. Galaxy is currently mining pegmatite ore at Mt Cattlin and processes on site to produce a spodumene concentrate and a tantalum by-product. At full capacity, ore can be processed at a rate of 1.6 million tonnes per annum (tpa) with lithium oxide concentrate production of 180,000 tpa. Galaxy Resources holds a series of tenements surrounding and including the mining lease M74/244, which contains the majority of the spodumene (LiAlSi2O6) resource identified to date and which hosts the Mt Cattlin mine.

The Mt Cattlin mine operations include open-pit mining of a flat-lying pegmatite ore body. The flat-lying nature of the ore body allows mining to proceed at a constant strip ratio once the ore is uncovered. Mining is carried out using excavator and truck operations, delivering to a conventional crushing and HMS gravity recovery circuit. Contract mining is used for grade control drilling and earthmoving operations (drilling, blasting, load, haul and ancillary work) for the open-cut mining operation. The pit design encompasses existing measured and indicated resources and has been defined as the Dowling pit. The processing plant at Mt Cattlin is located to the west of the Dowling pit. The plant consists of a 3-stage crushing circuit producing a -14mm product from ROM ore, at a treatment rate of 1.6 million tonnes per annum.

James Bay lithium pegmatite project

The James Bay lithium pegmatite Project in Quebec, Canada contains Indicated Resources of 40.3 million tonnes grading at 1.4% Li2O. The James Bay deposit occurs at surface and resource modelling indicates that the resource is amenable to open pit extraction. There is excellent potential to increase the resources through additional delineation of the pegmatite dykes along strike and at depth and potential to increase grade through infill drilling.

The Project is in northwest Quebec, ten kilometres south of the Eastmain River and 100 kilometres east of James Bay. The topography is gently rolling to flat lying with much of it covered by muskeg. Outcrops are common, usually occurring as mounds or ridges above the surrounding plain. The Project is readily accessible by paved road as the James Bay Highway bisects the property 381 kilometres from Mattagami where there is an airport and mining infrastructure. The property can be accessed by aircraft with an airstrip only 15 kilometres away. The Relais Routier gas station and truck stop is located one kilometre from the property with helicopter access, fuel, motel and restaurant services.

The James Bay Project lies in the northeast part of the Superior Province, within the Archean Lower Eastmain greenstone belt composed predominantly of amphibolite grade mafic to felsic metavolcanic and metasedimentary rock and minor gabbro. The deposit area is underlain by the Auclair Formation consisting of mainly paragneiss intruded by spodumene-bearing pegmatite dykes. Volcanic rocks of the Komo Formation occur north of the pegmatite dykes. The greenstone rocks are surrounded by migmatite and gneiss.

Knowing the man behind the success

Anthony Tse, Managing Director

Mr. Tse has 20 years of corporate experience in numerous high-growth industries such as technology, internet/mobile, media & entertainment, and resource & commodities – primarily in senior management, capital markets and M&A roles across Greater China and Asia Pacific in general. His previous management roles include various positions in News Corporation's STAR TV, the Deputy General Manager of TOM Online, Director of Corporate Development at Hutchison Whampoa's TOM Group, President of China Entertainment Television (a joint venture between TOM and Time Warner), and CEO of CSN Corp. He is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors (HKIoD) and a member of the Hong Kong Mining Investment Professionals Association (HKMIPA).