REG - Savannah Resources - Update on Lawsuit involving APA/Ministry

Savannah ResourcesAnnouncement

09/02/2024 11:15

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RNS Number : 6737C  Savannah Resources PLC  09 February 2024

 

9 February 2024

 

Savannah Resources Plc

(AIM: SAV, FWB: SAV and SWB: SAV) ('Savannah', or the 'Company')

 

Update on Lawsuit involving APA and the Portuguese Ministry of Environment and
Climate

 

Savannah Resources Plc, the developer of the Barroso Lithium Project (the
'Project') in Portugal, Europe's largest spodumene lithium deposit, provides
an update following yesterday's announcement relating to the lawsuit brought
by the Parish of Covas do Barroso against the Portuguese Environmental Agency
('APA') and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Action as defendants (the
"Lawsuit").

 

In response to the Public Ministry's opinion, APA has published a statement on
its website (Declaração de Impacte Ambiental (DIA) da Mina do Barroso -
esclarecimento da APA | Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente (apambiente.pt)
(https://apambiente.pt/index.php/destaque2/declaracao-de-impacte-ambiental-dia-da-mina-do-barroso-esclarecimento-da-apa)
) which confirms the "procedure was carried out in accordance with the legal
terms of the respective legal regime". An English translation of APA's
statement is reproduced in full below.

 

English Translation of the APA Statement

"Considering the content of today's news, which notes the opinion of the
Public Ministry on the Environmental Impact Statement (DIA) issued for the
preliminary study of the Mina do Barroso, and despite the fact that this
Agency is still analyzing it, it is pertinent to point out, from the outset,
that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure was carried out in
accordance with the legal terms of the respective legal regime.

 

In this context, it should be remembered that a multidisciplinary Evaluation
Committee was appointed which, although coordinated by the APA as the
competent EIA authority, included 8 other entities and various specialists
with competence and vast experience in the technical matters now referred to
by the Public Ministry.

 

These entities include public administration bodies such as the Institute for
Nature Conservation and Forests, the Directorate-General for Cultural
Heritage, the Northern Regional Coordination and Development Commission, the
National Energy and Geology Laboratory and the Directorate-General for Energy
and Geology, as well as higher education entities and research centers such as
the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto and the Higher Institute
of Agronomy / Center for Applied Ecology Prof. Baeta Neves.

 

The issues now referred to by the Public Ministry, such as the impacts on
water resources, ecological systems, cultural heritage and the landscape, were
thoroughly analyzed and weighed up by the Evaluation Commission, as is clear
from the opinions it issued and which were the basis for the favorable
conditional EIS issued by this Agency.

 

It should be remembered that both the opinions of the Evaluation Committee and
the EIS are available to read on this Agency's EIA Information System, namely
via the following links:

 

Opinion of the Evaluation Committee - Link
(https://siaia.apambiente.pt/AIADOC/AIA3353/aia3353_parecerca_barroso_modificado_assinado202353111367.pdf)

Opinion of the Evaluation Committee - Link
(https://siaia.apambiente.pt/AIADOC/AIA3353/aia3353_parecerca_barroso2023531113430.pdf)

DIA - Link
(https://siaia.apambiente.pt/AIADOC/AIA3353/aia3353_dia-tua20235317544.pdf)

 

Lastly, it should be noted that the opinion of the Public Ministry is merely
an opinion on the possible merits of the case, i.e. it has no binding effect
on the judge who will pass sentence in the case, and it is understood that the
procedural documents presented, as a whole, make it possible to refute any of
the alleged illegalities invoked and uphold the validity of the contested DIA.

 

Without prejudice, the Agency is currently analyzing this opinion and, in due
course, will decide whether it is justified, in due procedural terms, to
submit a response to it."

 

Savannah will make further announcements regarding the Lawsuit as appropriate.

 

Regulatory Information

This Announcement contains inside information for the purposes of the UK
version of the market abuse regulation (EU No. 596/2014) as it forms part of
United Kingdom domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act
2018 ("UK MAR").

 

Savannah - Enabling Europe's energy transition.

 

**ENDS**

 

Follow @SavannahRes on X

Follow Savannah Resources on LinkedIn

 

For further information please visit www.savannahresources
(http://www.savannahresources) .com or contact:

 

 Savannah Resources PLC                                                 Tel: +44 20 7117 2489

 Emanuel Proença, CEO
 SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated Advisor & Joint Broker)      Tel: +44 20 3470 0470

 David Hignell/ Charlie Bouverat (Corporate Finance)

 Grant Barker/Abigail Wayne (Sales & Broking)

 SCP Resource Finance (Joint Broker)                                    Tel: +44 204 548 1765

 Filipe Martins/Chris Tonkin
 Camarco (Financial PR)                                                 Tel: +44 20 3757 4980

 Gordon Poole/ Emily Hall / Fergus Young
 LPM (Portugal Media Relations)                                         Tel: +351 218 508 110

 Herminio Santos/ Jorge Coelho

 

 

About Savannah

Savannah Resources is a mineral resource development company and the sole
owner of the Barroso Lithium Project in northern Portugal, the largest battery
grade spodumene lithium resource outlined to date in Europe.

 

Through the Barroso Lithium Project (the 'Project'), Savannah will help
Portugal to play an important role in providing a long-term, locally sourced,
lithium raw material supply for Europe's rapidly developing lithium battery
value chain. After the Environmental Licence was granted in May 2023 and the
Scoping Study confirmed the economic potential of the Project in June 2023,
production is now targeted and on track to begin in 2026. At that stage,
Savannah will start producing enough lithium for approximately half a million
vehicle battery packs per year, equal to a significant portion of the European
Commission's Critical Raw Material Act goal of a minimum 10% of European
endogenous lithium production set for 2030. Savannah is focused on the
responsible development and operation of the Barroso Lithium Project so that
its impact on the environment is minimised and the socio-economic benefits
that it can bring to all its stakeholders are maximised.

 

The Company is listed and regulated on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative
Investment Market (AIM) and the Company's ordinary shares are also available
on the Quotation Board of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FWB) under the symbol
FWB: SAV, and the Börse Stuttgart (SWB) under the ticker "SAV".

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