Lithium results places Alix as one of the “probable success stories of today”
When you spend more time reading lithium assays than sleeping, a good result really stands out, especially when the data shows that a lithium-rich clay can be refined with a cost-effective extraction. You see, clay is notoriously difficult to dissolve and filter, normally requiring processes that depend heavily on time and heat; both of which are very costly endeavours. A clay that can provide superb recovery, at room temperature, on massive lithium concentrations is incredibly uncommon, but that’s exactly what Alix Resources Corp. (TSXV: AIX) (“Alix”) have just proven to exist at their Electra project in Mexico.
The recent results are from the target area known as Agua Fria, and aren’t really all that surprising given that the site shares a strike with the nearby La Ventana section of the Sonora deposit, owned by Bacanora Minerals; famous for being the largest lithium clay resource as yet identified, and one of the only lithium projects to have an actual offtake agreement with Tesla Motors already in place.
The layered sedimentary material has been confirmed for 5km along strike, at widths of over 800m, and at depths of up to 30m. Significantly, multiple assays returned lithium values well over 1000ppm, which is an order of magnitude greater than what most people would consider economically viable to extract. Furthermore, an impressive 85% of the precious tech-metal was successfully extracted from a selection of high-grade samples using a simple room-temperature process. With slight adjustments to processing, Alix expects to be able to recover in excess of 90% of the lithium content of their original material at a cost low enough to turn heads.
The Electra project is 51% owned by Alix, with the remainder taken up by renowned Perth-based explorer Lithium Australia; the combined experience of these two companies should provide any long-time readers with the confidence to know that these companies’ projects will advance rapidly. Known to proceed aggressively, Lithium Australia have built up numerous resources globally, and are superbly positioned to benefit from the coming energy storage boom.
Additionally, Lithium Australia are developing the much-discussed Sileach technology that will recover lithium from silicate host rocks such as spodumene and mica significantly more effectively than current processing methods. Alix announced last month that they had wholly acquired a further property in Nevada totalling 500 acres, and although information on the project is so far sparse, it will likely ultimately make good use of the ground-breaking technology being developed by the company’s partners.
The Electra Project consists of two strategically located exploration properties in Sonora, Mexico, contiguous to Bacanora Minerals’ Sonora Lithium Project. The existing infrastructure makes for a significantly easier setup, and historically, the area has considerable credibility. Now that the Agua Fria target has demonstrated similar results to those of the nearby Sonora project located to the north, we should see exploration seriously stepped-up throughout the year, bringing with it large gains to share prices as the company pushes towards production.
The next major milestone for Alix is demonstrating full feasibility of the project, but already the preliminary results are some of the best I’ve seen for quite some time. Knowing what we know about the lithium world, it is obvious that not everyone is going to achieve supplier status, but excellent relationships, market-disrupting technology, and an exceedingly positive outlook for numerous projects puts Alix right up there with the most probable success stories of today.
