REG - Savannah Resources - Project Update

Savannah ResourcesAnnouncement

04/09/2025 07:05

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RNS Number : 0061Y  Savannah Resources PLC  04 September 2025

 

 

04 September
2025

Savannah Resources Plc

(AIM: SAV) ('Savannah', or the 'Company')

 

Project Update

 

Update on recent activities and Project development schedule

 

Savannah Resources plc, the developer of the Barroso Lithium Project (the
'Project') in Portugal, one of the European Commission's 'Strategic Projects'
under the Critical Raw Materials Act and Europe's largest spodumene lithium
deposit provides an update on a number of ongoing Project workstreams and the
Project's development schedule. The Company continues to make progress towards
its goal of developing the Project into a key asset in Europe's lithium
battery value chain.

 

Key Developments during the period (June to date):

·    Resource definition for the Definitive Feasibility Study ('DFS')

o  Resource-related drilling: The resource element of the current drilling
programme was completed in July with a total of 12,463m drilled across 103
holes (including 11 geotechnical holes). In the process, Savannah passed the
milestone of 50,000m of drilling (50,627m to date) on the Project since its
acquisition in 2017. All work under the first temporary land easement has now
been successfully completed (pending only replanting after the dry season),
with good coordination and participation from a variety of local stakeholders.

o  Assay results: Savannah released the last batch of assay results from the
resource-focused drilling on 21 August 2025. Highlights included 67m @1.82%
Li(2)O from 56m and 32m @1.66% Li(2)O from 27m at Pinheiro, 32m @1.49% Li(2)O
from 67m and 25m @1.11% Li(2)O from 75m at Reservatorio and 19m @1.29% Li(2)O
from 92m at Grandão.

o  JORC Resource and Exploration Target updates: Work is well advanced on new
JORC Resource estimates for the Grandão, Pinheiro and Reservatório orebodies
which Savannah expects to publish later in September. As previously reported,
tonnage increases are expected at the Reservatório and Pinheiro orebodies
amongst the wider upgrade of the existing resource. The new resource estimates
will be accompanied by updated Exploration Targets for all the orebodies on
the Project as well as a first Exploration Target for the remainder of the
Project area.

 

·    Project development timetable: As previously noted (see RNS
announcement of 12 June 2025), completion of the geotechnical drilling
required for the Project's DFS depends on securing a second land easement (the
"Easement") to access parts of the C-100 Licence area, which are not yet owned
by Savannah. The Company had anticipated receiving this Easement-requiring
final government approval-over the summer. However, while all technical
requirements have been met, the approval process is still ongoing and is now
expected to conclude during Q4 2025, after the country's municipal elections,
which are scheduled for 12 October. Taking this into account, the DFS is now
expected to be delivered in the first half of 2026 (vs. previous guidance of
by the end of 2025). As a result, the target for first production has also
moved, from the end of 2027 into 2028. A more detailed update on scheduling
will be provided once the Easement has been granted.

 

·    Infrastructure:

o  Bypass road: Savannah and its consultants, in full coordination with
Infraestruturas de Portugal, Instituto da Mobilidade e dos Transportes and the
Municipality of Boticas, have agreed on a set of revisions to certain sections
of the 16km bypass road design which Savannah submitted for Environmental
Impact Assessment ('EIA') in April. APA, the Portuguese Environmental Agency,
requested that these revisions be incorporated to the documents submitted, and
the necessary redesign work will allow for EIA resubmission in October 2025.
Coordination between the various entities was an important and positive
development.

o  Internal haul roads: Preliminary design work on the roads between the
processing plant and mining areas was advanced and is nearing completion.

o  HV Power: Design of the overhead lines/switching station was completed and
submitted to the network operator (E-REDES) for approval.

 

·    Environmental Licencing: During the period, further RECAPE-related
fieldwork was undertaken and work in compiling the RECAPE submission and
accompanying mine plan progressed well with the assistance of Savannah's
consultants.

 

·    Other workstreams: Work on other fronts, including mine scheduling,
metallurgical testwork, surface and ground water modelling, processing plant
equipment engineering and CAPEX estimation, tailings and water storage,
hydrogeology, decarbonisation, by-product strategy and contract pricing for
mining, earthworks and drilling, proceeded as scheduled.

 

·    Dedicated support from Portugal's Trade & Investment agency:
AICEP, Portugal's Trade & Investment Agency, confirmed that following the
classification of the Project as a 'Strategic Project' by the European
Commission earlier in the year, the Project will now be followed by AICEP's
Permanent Committee for Investor Support (the 'CPAI'). The CPAI's mission is
to support high-impact investments that contribute to national development
goals and it can help to streamline administrative processes, anticipate
potential bottlenecks, and accelerate project implementation. Savannah is now
engaging regularly with the CPAI on its previous and upcoming work steps with
the various public administration bodies which are key stakeholders in the
Project's future development.

 

·    Project Finance: Cutfield Freeman & Company Limited ('CF&Co')
were appointed as Project Finance Advisor to assist in structuring and leading
the next phase of the Company's funding strategy. Funding options already
include the offtake heads of terms agreement with AMG Critical Materials N.V.
and the potential for a guarantee from the German Government on a loan up to
USD 270 million (see RNS announcements dated 20 June 2024 and 3 December
2024).

 

·    Stakeholder engagement: The period was marked by regular community
engagement activities, significant progress in land access planning, and the
launch of reinforced frameworks for stakeholder engagement and social
performance. Preparations were also made for expanding operational readiness
for subsequent fieldwork (post second Easement award) and Savannah's regional
presence was strengthened through attending and supporting around 15 local
seasonal events and festivities, including Boticas' main festival of "Nossa
Sra. da Livração".

 

·    Lithium Prices: Sentiment towards the sector improved significantly
during the period due to a sharp increase in lithium prices and reports of
robust ongoing demand. Further supply side curtailments have coincided with
strong global EV and BESS sales growth, particularly in China and Europe,
during the first seven months of the year (10.7m EVs sold, +27% vs. Jan-Jul
2024, source: Rho Motion). Market conditions have tightened noticeably and
some price reporting agencies were quoting spodumene concentrate prices at
around US$1,000/t during August, having increased by over 60% since the end of
May.

 

·    Next Steps: During the remainder of 2025, Savannah will:

o  Publish the updated JORC Resource estimates and Exploration Targets for
the Project in the coming weeks.

o  Maintain its engagement with the national government, secure the approval
for the second land easement and proceed with the associated final
geotechnical DFS fieldwork as quickly as possible.

o  While awaiting the Easement, focus on progressing other DFS-related
workstreams and the RECAPE (Environmental Licence), to compress the Project's
future timetable once the approval is received.

o  Develop its relationship with CPAI and leverage its support wherever
possible to accelerate the Project's development.

o  Continue with its local stakeholder engagement activities and efforts to
secure ownership or access to all Project-related land.

o  Work with CF&Co to engage with third party project finance providers.

 

Savannah's Chief Executive Officer, Emanuel Proença said, "Savannah has
advanced key workstreams over the summer, ensuring continued momentum towards
production. These efforts will deliver a strong flow of updates in the months
ahead, starting with new JORC Resource estimates and Exploration Targets
expected later this month.

 

"While the land easement process has extended our timeline, the reasons are
clear and temporary. Similar delays which were previously experienced with the
first land easement last year were resolved with firm Government support,
improved local value generation and community engagement, and strong
operational results. We remain confident of the same outcome this time.

 

"The Project's fundamentals continue to strengthen, backed by compelling
economics, strong community and developmental benefits, and official support
from Portugal's Trade & Investment Agency in line with Europe's Critical
Raw Materials Act. At the same time, lithium market conditions have improved
significantly, with demand outpacing supply and prices rising.

 

"With drilling activity set to resume soon, alongside progress in financing,
commercial, and stakeholder engagement, Savannah is well positioned to deliver
regular and positive news flow through the remainder of the year."

 

Competent Person and Regulatory Information

The information in this announcement that relates to exploration results is
based upon information compiled by Mr Dale Ferguson, Technical Director of
Savannah Resources Limited. Mr Ferguson is a Member of the Australasian
Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) and has sufficient experience
which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under
consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a
Competent Person as defined in the December 2012 edition of the "Australasian
Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves"
(JORC Code) and a Qualified Person under the AIM Rules for Companies. Mr
Ferguson consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based upon the
information in the form and context in which it appears.

 

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**

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

 

 Savannah Resources PLC                                            Tel: +44 20 7117 2489

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

 David Hignell/ Charlie Bouverat (Corporate Finance)

 Grant Barker/Abigail Wayne (Sales & Broking)

 Canaccord Genuity Limited (Joint Broker)                          Tel: +44 20 7523 8000

 James Asensio / Charlie Hammond (Corporate Broking)

 Ben Knott (Sales)
 Media Relations

 Savannah Resources: Antonio Neves Costa, Communications Manager   Tel: +351 962 678 912

 

About Savannah

Savannah Resources is a mineral resource development company and the sole
owner of the Barroso Lithium Project (the 'Project') in northern Portugal. The
Project is the largest battery grade spodumene lithium resource outlined to
date in Europe and was classified as a 'Strategic Project' by the European
Commission under the Critical Raw Materials Act in March 2025.

 

Through 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 lithium battery value chain. Once in operation the Project will
produce enough lithium (contained in c.190,000tpa of spodumene concentrate)
for approximately half a million vehicle battery packs per year and hence make
a significant contribution towards the European Commission's Critical Raw
Material Act goal of a minimum 10% of European endogenous lithium production
from 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 trades under the ticker "SAV".

 

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