Construction work has started for a mine in Goulamina, in southern Mali, and this first lithium mine in West Africa will make Mali the world’s third largest lithium producer, the Malian Minister of Mines announced on Friday. of Energy and Water, Lamine Seydou Traoré.
“It is with joy that I proceeded with the DGs (General Managers) of Leo Lithium and Lithium Mali SA to launch the construction works of the Goulamina lithium project, the 1st mine in West Africa exploitable over 20 years that will make Mali the world’s 3rd largest producer of lithium,” tweeted Mr. Traoré.
According to data from the feasibility study updated last December, Goulamina should produce an average of 726,000 tons of spodumene concentrate annually over a period of 21 years, with an expected peak of 880,000 tons per year. This makes this mine one of the largest undeveloped high-grade lithium deposits in the world and will account for 15% of the current global lithium supply.
Leo Lithium, the joint venture formed by Australia’s Firefinch and China’s Ganfeng Lithium to pilot the project, announced last week that it had raised 100 million Australian dollars (about US$72 million) as part of its IPO. on the Australian stock exchange ASX.
This step, according to sources at the Malian Ministry of Mines, is a step forward for the Australian company which aims to separate its gold and lithium assets in Mali where it is also active on the Morila gold project (south) and for which it obtained, in mid-May, a 3-year extension of the mining agreement with the government.
Used to produce rechargeable or high-voltage cells and batteries (65%), lithium is required by the glass and ceramics industry (18%) as well as special lubricants. It is also used in the treatment of air polluted by CO2, metallurgy and the rubber industry as well as thermoplastics, fine chemicals and the production of alloys.