REG - Bradda Head Lithium - Executive Chair's Statement

Bradda Head LithiumAnnouncement

22/01/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 1809U  Bradda Head Lithium Ltd  22 January 2025

22 January 2025

 

Bradda Head Lithium Ltd

("Bradda Head", "Bradda" or the "Company")

 

Executive Chair's Statement

 

Bradda Head Lithium Ltd (AIM:BHL), the North America-focused lithium
development group, is pleased to present the following statement from the
Company's Executive Chair, Ian Stalker:

 

Dear Shareholders,

 

There is no need to overstate how challenging the lithium market space has
been for almost all lithium-focused junior explorers and developers in 2024.
As we enter 2025, however, I am delighted to reflect upon the work the team at
Bradda have achieved. I believe that we are well positioned for growth when
the market rebounds - as it will - and our financial stability will allow us
to move forward at a significant pace.

 

Over the last twelve months, the Company has put itself in a position to
hopefully define a maiden NI 43-101 resource at our San Domingo project which
is our future medium-term priority. In parallel, a significant milestone was
achieved on our Basin project where drilling expanded the lithium in clay
resource from roughly 1.0 million tons of Lithium Carbonate Extract ("LCE") to
2.8 million tons, with extensive room to grow. This achievement has
contributed to the Company's sound financial footing.

At our lithium spodumene pegmatite opportunity - our San Domingo Project - the
recent announcement the Company made on the approval of the Notice of Intent
to drill constitutes a significant milestone, as it is an opportunity for us
to define a potentially much bigger resource than the Company originally
envisioned at San Domingo. As always, of course, the truth will be in the
drill bit itself, but importantly Bradda has already identified some promising
new targets, including Ruby Soho and Midnight Owl, where we have, through our
recent work, gained a much clearer and more focused definition of the targets
(see RNS dated 26 November 2024 for detail). The "Dragon" pegmatite target is
another excellent opportunity, outlining the phenomenal geology we are
discovering as our knowledge and understanding of this asset continue to grow.
Our technical team continues to exhaustively explore our license area and has
already identified many other targets for later attention. Simultaneously with
our exploration activities, Bradda has also continued with a staged
metallurgical test-work campaign to identify the simplest and most
environmentally acceptable way to treat our pegmatite material to produce a
sellable Lithium Concentrate Product. This next phase is planned to yield
results in Q1 2025.

What we are doing at San Domingo is building momentum on our pegmatite project
which, subject to several factors, including further funding of limited capex
demand and appropriate permitting, has allowed us to internally target a
potential production scenario by the end of 2026/into early 2027. The team
believes, based on earlier and ongoing test-work, that a marketable
concentrate can be produced and sold from our material.

Our strategy to bring this into production by utilizing contract-led, simple,
cost-effective open-pit mining, and use of contractor-supplied size reduction
and gravity plants, will ensure that the capital cost of developing the
operation as well as the operating costs themselves are relatively low in real
terms. This is particularly advantageous for a junior miner such as Bradda,
and would enable the Company to move this project forward positively and
aggressively into production.

This relatively near-term production scenario effectively means that Bradda
would be well-positioned going forward, certainly by comparison to the
plethora of junior lithium companies in our space, as we are relieved from the
immediate pressures of having to raise money in a market which, currently for
junior exploration companies, is exceptionally difficult. This in turn is
creating potential opportunities for the Company.

 

Also important was the resource expansion drilling that was conducted at Basin
during 2024, and resulted in a near three-fold increase in LCE from 1.0
million to 2.8 million tons with further significant growth potential. The
Company has submitted a revised Exploration Plan of Operations expected to be
approved by the Bureau of Land Management ("BLM ")in H2 of 2025. The Company
is examining commencement of a multi-stage leaching metallurgical study
designed to analyze significant reduction of acid consumption and
neutralization demands to reduce potential capital and operating expenditures
in its lithium in clays resource via a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA")
scenario.

 

Bradda Head, a junior lithium player, is in a sound financial position through
innovative approaches to raising cash, including the recent and final US$ 3
million royalty receipt from Lithium Royalty Corporation. Our conservative
cash management has meant that we have not needed to return to the market for
funding in over two years whilst continuing to make demonstrable progress over
our key Projects. This, in a market experiencing all-time price lows, with
lithium miners taking production offline and juniors ceasing to exist
entirely, is a truly exceptional achievement. It is worth stating that the
interest of all shareholders has always been a concern to our Board, and
Bradda believes it compares favorably with other Juniors in our space where
some of our competitors have been "forced" to raise funds at embarrassingly
low levels resulting in an adverse dilution of shareholders.

 

Against this backdrop, and as the market generally thins out, particularly in
respect to junior mining companies, Bradda shines as one of the only remaining
options for capitalizing on the future supply of US domestic lithium as the
lithium price ticks back up.

 

The Board believes that Bradda is in a strong position. The decisions the
Company has taken during 2024 have set us in good stead to achieve significant
milestones in 2025. We expect to be embarking on a drilling programme this
year with a slimmed down, but highly experienced and effective team that will
further justify the Board's inherent belief in our portfolio.  The Company
has many exciting opportunities available to it this year, including the
opportunity of building up our San Domingo resource into a significant asset,
as well as our opportunities outside of San Domingo. Our Basin asset continues
to be an area of growth and promise for Bradda Head with anticipated drill
permits and further metallurgical analysis receiving attention plus our
lithium in oil brines are drawing attention as Direct Lithium Extraction
becomes an increasingly hot topic.

 

Whether the lithium price has bottomed out or not remains to be seen, but what
is clear is the need for lithium. The noises currently coming from the US, and
with the new administration in place will not change: the US needs to
transition to a larger percentage usage of EVs which will directly impact the
demand for lithium and, most crucially, a domestic source for it. The question
is the speed at which they choose to achieve this. Other countries, most
notably China, already have a significant proportion of electric vehicles and
it is growing in every visible market. Whilst we may be a relatively small
company, we believe that our focused projects are cost effective and that they
can make a real impact in the market. Bradda remains a US-based company which
will be producing US lithium for the US market and the Board believe that this
puts us in a strategically advantageous position.

 

The year ahead is already shaping up to be an exciting year for Bradda's
development. The market will come round, and when it does, Bradda will be
ready to take advantage of that. Shareholder support continues to be warmly
received and greatly appreciated.

 

Qualified Person (Bradda Head)

Joey Wilkins, B.Sc., P.Geo., is Chief Operating Officer at Bradda Head and
the Qualified Person who reviewed and approved the technical disclosures in
this news release. Mr Wilkins is a graduate of the University of
Arizona with a B.Sc. in Geology with more than 39 years of experience in
mineral exploration and is a qualified person under the AIM Rules and a
Qualified Person as defined under NI-43-101. Mr Wilkins consents to the
inclusion of the technical information in this release and context in which it
appears.

 

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE MARKET
ABUSE REGULATION (EU No. 596/2014) AS IT FORMS PART OF UK DOMESTIC LAW BY
VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018. UPON THE PUBLICATION OF
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT VIA A REGULATORY INFORMATION SERVICE, THIS INSIDE
INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AND SUCH PERSONS
SHALL THEREFORE CEASE TO BE IN POSSESSION OF INSIDE INFORMATION.

 

For further information please visit the Company's
website: www.braddaheadltd.com (http://www.braddaheadltd.com/) .

 

 

ENDS

 

Contact:

 

 Bradda Head Lithium Limited     +44 (0) 1624 639 396
 Ian Stalker, Executive Chair

 Denham Eke, Finance Director

 Beaumont Cornish (Nomad)        +44 20 7628 3396

 James Biddle / Roland Cornish

 Panmure Liberum (Joint Broker)  +44 20 7886 2500
 Kieron Hodgson / Rauf Munir

 Shard Capital (Joint Broker)    +44 207 186 9927
 Damon Heath / Isabella Pierre

 Tavistock (PR)                  + 44 20 7920 3150
 Nick Elwes / Josephine Clerkin  braddahead@tavistock.co.uk

 

 

 

About Bradda Head Lithium Ltd.

Bradda Head Lithium Ltd. is a North America-focused lithium development
group. The Company currently has interests in a variety of projects, the most
advanced of which are in Central and Western Arizona: The Basin
Project (Basin East Project, and the Basin West Project) and the Wikieup
Project.

 

The Basin East Project has a Measured Mineral Resource of 20 Mt at an
average grade of 929 ppm Li for a total of 99 kt LCE and an Indicated
Mineral Resource of 122 Mt at an average grade of 860 ppm Li and an
Inferred Mineral Resource of 499 Mt at an average grade of 810 ppm Li for a
total of 2.81 Mt LCE. The Group intends to continue to develop its three
phase one projects in Arizona, whilst endeavouring to unlock value at its
other prospective pegmatite and brine assets in Arizona, Nevada,
and Pennsylvania. All of Bradda Head's licences are held on a 100% equity
basis and are in close proximity to the required infrastructure. Bradda Head
is quoted on the AIM of the London Stock Exchange with the ticker of BHL.

 

Forward-Looking Statements

Beaumont Cornish Limited ("Beaumont Cornish") is the Company's Nominated
Adviser and is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Beaumont Cornish's
responsibilities as the Company's Nominated Adviser, including a
responsibility to advise and guide the Company on its responsibilities under
the AIM Rules for Companies and AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers, are owed
solely to the London Stock Exchange. Beaumont Cornish is not acting for and
will not be responsible to any other persons for providing protections
afforded to customers of Beaumont Cornish nor for advising them in relation to
the proposed arrangements described in this announcement or any matter
referred to in it.

 

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