Mercedes, Stellantis in talks to back Serbia’s lithium plans
The carmakers are willing to follow Rio Tinto Group’s investment in the proposed Jadar mine.
Sigma Lithium (NASDAQ: SGML; TSXV: SGML) has hit its planned production targets at its Greentech industrial plant in Brazil, the Vancouver-headquartered miner said in a quarterly update Monday.
The company said it is on track to produce 130,000 tonnes of chemical-grade triple-zero green lithium by December 2023, and expects to consistently reach an annualized production of 270,000 tonnes by the end of the third quarter 2023.
Upcoming shipments include 15,000 tonnes lithium oxide (Li2O) planned for the end of August, 30,000 tonnes of byproducts planned for mid-September, and 18,000 tonnes of Li2O planned for the end of September. In August, Sigma had a record daily production of 846 tonnes of Li2O and reached 95% of its production capacity.
The Greentech plant has also made significant progress towards reaching its designed recovery rates, the company said. In August, the plant hit 65% Li2O recovery rates of lithium from spodumene ore during several consecutive days. Greentech can successfully produce 6.3% Li2O using feedstock from the mine.
In the same update, Sigma announced the start of two social initiatives, including the full renovation of a rural community school and the construction of a new bridge to ensure shorter rural community access to urban centres.
During the latest quarter, the company also achieved 85% local employment and advanced on its Zero Drought, Water for All and Dona de Mim Microcredit programs, supporting subsistence farmers, providing water storage tanks and enrolling women in entrepreneurship training programs.
