Plymouth has been working with consultants IMO Metallurgy Operations Pty Ltd (Australia) to oversee and manage testwork for San Jose as Plymouth advances towards the completion of a Scoping Study to produce lithium carbonate through the treatment of lithium-mica mineralisation using a sulphate roast and water leach process.

Plymouth has engaged Dorfner-Anzaplan (Germany) to verify the sulphate roast, water-leach process flowsheet and produce lithium carbonate. The success in delivering +99.9% lithium carbonate is a significant milestone for the Company and a validation of work conducted to date at San Jose.

It is significant that all impurities are below publicly stated limits for battery consumers. Beneficiation and upgrading of in-situ mineralization is also expected to increase recovery, improve final grade and assist to reduce any remaining impurities.

Managing Director, Adrian Byass noted “This is a significant achievement and a solid building block for the next stage at San Jose. With the recent acquisition of a 50% interest in San Jose and the alliance announced with Chinese lithium producers, Shandong Ruifu, Plymouth is accelerating the San Jose project to the fore in Europe. Plymouth proposes to make San Jose a major lithium carbonate producer and this is confirmation San Jose has the ability to treat lithium mica to make a saleable lithium carbonate product.”

Material selected to be representative of San Jose was sourced from several diamond drillholes completed by Plymouth between January and March 2017. These drillholes (MSJDD03-010) were drilled on separate sections along the strike of San Jose and represent a good representative sample of the geology at San Jose. 212kg of diamond core was cut and sent to AGQ laboratory in Spain for communition then subsets were sent to Dorfner Anzaplan for this test work with the remainder undergoing additional process test work managed by IMO in Perth.

Plymouth announced the confirmation of the sulphate roast water-leach process route in ASX announcement dated 17th August 2017. The sulphate roast, water-leach process has been selected by other European lithium companies and was highlighted as the maximum recovery process route in the historic feasibility study conducted from 1987-1991 at San Jose. 

Plymouth will continue discussions with potential consumers of lithium products proposed to be produced at San Jose.