PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The share price of ASX-listed junior Liontown Resources ended nearly 63% higher at the end of trade on Tuesday, after the company announced that it had secured a lithium-tantalum exploration project in Tanzania.
Through a combination of tenement acquisitions and an option deal with a local company, Liontown had acquired a contiguous 177 km2 ground package, dubbed the Mohanga project.
Grades of up to 5.2% lithium oxide and 0.11% tantalum pentoxide were returned from recent reconnaissance sampling at the Mohanga project.
Liontown chairperson Tim Goyder said on Tuesday that the acquisition of the Mohanga project provided the company with an outstanding early-stage growth opportunity in a commodity that was experiencing a significant level of global attention and investor interest.
“The lithium sector is currently enjoying a strong growth phase, with major analysis and investment banks highlighting a potential supply shortfall over the next three to five years, as demand for the metal accelerates on the back of rapid forecast growth in the energy storage and lithium ion battery sectors,” Goyder said.
He added that while there was much to do to confirm the early potential at the Mohanga project, the acquisition gave shareholders immediate exposure to one of the most promising growth sectors in the commodities market.
“We are delighted to have the opportunity to explore such a high potential project which bears geological similarities to the region which hosts the world-class Greenbushes lithium deposit, in Western Australia.”
Liontown shares traded at a high of 1.4c each on Tuesday, up from an opening price of 0.9c a share and the previous day's closing price of 0.8c a share.