VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – TSX-V-listed explorer Advantage Lithium on Monday reported that it had successfully closed the acquisition of options to acquire a 70% interest in three Nevada lithium projects, a 50% interest in two Nevada lithium projects and a 100% stake in certain water rights in the Clayton Valley from vendor Nevada Sunrise Gold.
At closing, the company paid C$500 000 cash and issued about two-million common shares to Nevada Sunrise. Additional shares and exploration expenditures are required for the company to earn its interests in the properties.
Under the agreement, Advantage gained the option to acquire the Nevada water right Permit 44 411; up to a 70% interest in each of the Jackson Wash, Clayton Northeast and Aquarius projects; and up to a 50% stake in each of the Gemini and Neptune projects.
Regarding the acquisition, the company paid a finder's fee of $45 670 cash and 182 680 common shares to a third party.
In parallel with the closing of the option agreement, directors Marc Cernovitch and Craig Taylor resigned as directors and Cernovitch also resigned as CEO and CFO. Dev Randhawa was appointed as a director and interim CEO while Nick DeMare was appointed as CFO and corporate secretary.
The Clayton Valley basin, which hosts North America’s only lithium brine operation, is "overappropriated", with the Albemarle Silver Peak lithium mine being the largest consumer of water in the area. The Nevada Division of Water Resources will also carefully review any new application for water use in the basin, adding uncertainty abour whether any new applications would be granted.
In a recent interview with Mining Weekly Online, Advantage stated that it was preparing to launch a drilling campaign in three to four weeks on highly prospective targets in Nevada, located a stone's throw away from the Silver Peak mine, North America’s only producing lithium mine.
This, together with an option on the only other available water permit in the area, is expected to give it a first-mover advantage in an area that has seen a recent land rush, as lithium supplies tighten around the world in the wake of unprecedented demand growth.