PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Lithium miner Galaxy Resources is targeting a final investment decision at the Sal de Vida project, in Argentina, by the second or third quarter next year.

The company on Monday told shareholders that a simplified flow sheet has been developed for the Sal de Vida project, resulting in fewer process steps, a reduction in pond sizing and an accelerated initial evaporation period.

Lithium recovery has also improved due to lower pond losses and independent test work has demonstrated that Galaxy’s product purified to battery-grade simply and cost-effectively, the company said.

The revised flow-sheet also decoupled the on-site operation from the purification process, meaning that the purification activities could be undertaken off site and at lower altitude, making operating conditions easier to control.

Furthermore, Galaxy on Monday said that it would also de-risk the development of Sal de Vida by staging the project execution into two or three modules, allowing the staging of capital expenditure, simpler management of construction logistics and a reduction of development risk.

The staged development also meant that Galaxy could fund the first stage from its balance sheet after a partial equity sell down of the project.

An updated feasibility study previously estimated that the project would require a capital investment of $474-million to produce some 25 000 t/y of battery grade lithium carbonate and 95 000 t of potash over a mine life of 40 years.

Meanwhile, Galaxy also told shareholders that it would implement a lower activity mine plan at its Mt Cattlin operation, in Western Australia, during 2020, focusing on reducing volumes and cost to maintain positive cash margins and preserving the resource life.

Production and existing inventory would be sufficient to satisfy contracted commitments and additional product demand in 2020, the miner said, with production to be ramped up once market conditions "materially" improve.

Galaxy previously said that mining rates at Mt Cattlin would be scaled back by around 40% in 2020, as lithium prices tumbled.