Australia-based lithium developer Core Lithium has secured mine management plan approval from the Northern Territory Government for its proposed Finniss lithium project in Australia.
Once operational, the plant will be the first lithium mine and production facility in Northern Territory. It is also the first lithium mine to be approved outside of Western Australia.
Located just south of Darwin Port in the Northern Territory, the Finniss lithium project has a mineral resource of 9.63 million tonnes at 1.4% lithium oxide.
With regulatory approvals now in place, the company can now commence construction and operation of the project. The government approval was the final regulatory hurdle required to begin site activities.
Core Lithium managing director Stephen Biggins said: “With this approval and continued NT Government backing, Core’s Finniss Lithium Project opens the door for the Northern Territory to be a high-quality supplier of lithium to the growing global electric vehicle market and play a critical role in supporting the world’s response to reducing emissions and managing climate change risk.”
Biggins added that with project approvals now in place and mine-life likely to double or even triple as they update their Feasibility Study by mid-2020.
The company intends to complete offtake arrangements and plans to have the Finniss project construction-ready in 2020 ahead of sourcing debt and equity to achieve financial close.
Core claims that the project has the best-supporting logistics chain to markets in Asia of any Australian lithium project.It is located within 25km of the port, power station, gas, rail and one hour by sealed road to workforce accommodated in Darwin and importantly to Darwin Port – Australia’s nearest port to Asia.
Finniss lithium project to create 200 jobs for locals
According to Northern Territory Primary Industry and Resources Minister Paul Kirby, nearly 200 jobs are expected to be created for the locals in the first three years of the Finniss lithium project. Additionally, the project is anticipated to inject over half a billion dollars into the NT economy.
Kirby said: “The Territory Labor Government knows that local jobs and economic recovery have never been more important. The resources sector is going to play a huge role in our recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, and the milestone achieved by the Finniss Lithium Project is very good news for Territorians.”
