Lancaster Resources Could Help The World Meet Its Lithium Supply Needs

Lithium demand is under intense demand. All as the world fights to go green. In fact, demand is still expected to grow seven times over between 2021 and 2030 thanks to electric vehicles, demand for renewable energy, and its continued used in electronics, says iShares.com.

Unfortunately, the world doesn’t have enough supply to meet that demand. And it may not for quite some time, if at all. For one, according to CNBC, “hundreds of lithium projects are currently under exploration, but the complexity in geology and time-consuming permitting process still pose challenges.”

Automakers are so concerned about supply, they’re racing to secure supply. For instance, Albemarle will deliver more than 100,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide over a five-year period to support Ford EVs. General Motors just invested $650 million into Lithium Americas’ Thacker Pass mine, where the miner estimates the lithium extracted and processed from the project can support production of up to 1 million EVs per year.

Also, remember, according to Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, there’s not enough lithium go around for the industry’s plans. “We know that we need lithium. We know that we are not producing as much as we need. We have right now 1.3 billion cars (that are) internal combustion engine powered on the planet. We need to replace that with clean mobility. That will need a lot of lithium. Not only the lithium may not be enough, but the concentration of the mining of lithium may create other geopolitical issues,” he said, as quoted by The Detroit News.

However, those concerns could lead to opportunity with Lancaster Resources Inc. Lancaster Resources Inc. LCR LANRF  – which is exploring energy transition metals to take advantage of the global shift towards decarbonization and electrification. Its Alkali Flat Lithium Project, in Lordsburg, New Mexico, USA, involves the exploration of a below-surface lithium brine target.

Lancaster also just acquired the rights to a 100% interest in the Trans-Taiga Lithium Property located within the James Bay lithium district of Quebec, and lying on the same fault as significant lithium discoveries, including Patriot Metals’ Corvette Property.

Even better, the company just announced results from its Magneto-Telluric (MT) geophysics program.  The MT program targeted highly conductive stratigraphic units (layers) to further delineate drill targets in a highly prospective area on the NE part of the property.

KLM Geoscience successfully completed the detailed MT program including data acquisition and inversions.  The MT survey consisted of three east-west lines with ~500m spacing between receivers and lines. 

The MT results along with Lancaster’s recent exploratory and geochemical results have highlighted multiple high priority drill locations believed to host lithium-rich aquifers.   Results indicate a near surface low resistivity layer ~150m deep along with a deeper low resistivity layer at ~660m sub-surface.  Results also confirm the N-S trending basin continues from Arizona Lithium claims through Lancaster’s.

With the exciting progress made over the last few months, Lancaster is now preparing regulatory and permitting applications for a Phase 1 Drilling program in late 2023.  Lancaster is preparing applications to the BLM and EMNRD (New Mexico) for three wells and a follow up full claim area geophysics program (2024).

"The results are extremely encouraging and we are planning to proceed with further exploration and development work. The successful MT program strengthens our view on the opportunity of Alkali Flats containing a concentrated lithium subsurface aquifer. Submitting our regulatory applications for follow up drilling is our next priority as we continue to develop Alkali Flats to power the energy transition.” remarks Andrew Watson, Vice President of Engineering and Operations at Lancaster.

Read more about Lancaster Resources Inc. LCR LANRF right here.

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