Argentina tripled lithium carbonate production capacity in last two years
Argentina, the world's No. 4 lithium producer, has four projects in production.
Yamana Gold (TSX: YRI; NYSE: AUY; LSE: AUY) announced the completion of the integration of the Agua Rica project with the Minera Alumbrera plant and infrastructure. Moving forward, the integrated project will be known as the MARA Project.
According to the company, the integration creates significant synergies by combining existing infrastructure which was formerly used to process ore from the Alumbrera mine during its mine life, including processing facilities, a fully permitted tailings storage facility, pipeline, logistical installations, and ancillary buildings, with the future open pit.
Agua Rica is a large-scale copper, gold, silver, and molybdenum deposit located in the province of Catamarca, Argentina, with proven and probable gold mineral reserves of 7.4 million ounces, while proven and probable copper mineral reserves of 11.8 billion pounds.
“The result is a significantly de-risked project with a smaller environmental footprint and improved efficiencies, creating one of the lowest capital intensity projects in the world as measured by pound of copper produced and in-situ copper mineral reserves, with further potential for optimization and upside,” Yamana said in a press release.
“The integration effectively turns what was a greenfield project into a much lower risk brownfield project,” said Peter Marrone, Yamana’s executive chairman.
“Leveraging existing infrastructure enhances project economics, simplifies permitting, and reduces the project’s environmental footprint, thereby significantly enhancing the value of the project.”
