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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA / July 25, 2018 / MGX Minerals Inc. (“MGX” or the “Company”) (CSE: XMG / FKT: 1MG / OTCQB: MGXMF) is pleased to announce it has entered into an Option Agreement (the “Agreement”) with A.I.S. Resources (TSX.V: AIS) to acquire an 80% interest in the Salinitas lithium brine mining tenements (“Salinitas” or the “Project”) located in the lithium triangle of Argentina, Salar de Salinas Grandes, Province of Salta. The 4,308-hectare contiguous land package resides in the Puna region of northwest Argentina near the border of Chile, an area renowned for its lithium and potassium rich brine resources.
The surface elevation of the Salinas Grandes salar is approximately 3,400 metres above sea level. The salar forms a composite closed basin with internal drainage, where discharge occurs by evaporation. Water inflow into the salar is produced by precipitation, superficial and groundwater incursions. MGX plans to conduct a Transient Electromagnetic Method (TEM) geophysical study along with trenching, which will be followed by a drill program along the edge of the salar, to test for shallow, near surface brines and determine locations with anomalous concentrations of lithium.
Figure 1. General Location Map of Argentina’s Puna
Figure 2. Location Map of Concessions in the Salar De Salinas Grandes
To secure the Option Agreement, MGX has agreed to pay US$250,000 on or before July 31,2018. The Company can acquire an undivided 80% in the Project at any time during the Agreement by making payments totaling US$3.2 million. MGX has also agreed to incur total expenditures of at least US$1.2 million prior to May 31, 2020.
MGX has developed a rapid lithium extraction technology eliminating or greatly reducing the physical footprint and investment in large, multi-phase, lake sized, lined evaporation ponds, as well as enhancing the quality of extraction and recovery across a complex range of brines as compared with traditional solar evaporation. This technology is applicable to petrolithium (oil and gas wastewater), natural brine, and other brine sources such as lithium-rich mine and industrial plant wastewater. The technology was recently chosen as winner of the Base and Specialty Metals Industry Leadership Award at the 2018 S&P Global Platts Global Metals Awards, held in London in May.
