Development Bank of Brazil (BNDES) has sent a letter of intent to the Canadian mining company Sigma lithium SGML to provide additional funding Cyril’s Cavea lithium project in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Sigma plans to invest $100 million (492.4 million reais) in a second processing plant to double production to 510,000 tonnes per year. Work is expected to begin by the end of March, subject to final approval by the BNDES and Sigma’s board of directors.
“We are honored and pleased by the letter of intent received today from BNDES. The Development Bank debt extended by Brazil has the potential to significantly improve our capital structure due to its longer typical tenor, significantly lower interest rates and grace periods,” said the Sigma CEO and co-president Ana Cabral-Gardner.
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Once completed, the Grota do Cirilo lithium project is expected to produce 766,000 tonnes of lithium per year.
Sigma has obtained a full environmental license from the state government, allowing the expansion of processing capacity up to 3.7 million tonnes per year.
The importance of Grota do Cirilo is evident from the mineral resources controlled by Sigma, which recorded a notable increase of 27% to 109 million tonnes. This growth has made Grota do Cirilo the fourth largest prechemical lithium beneficiation and mining industrial complex in the world.
However, Sigma’s expansion targets go well beyond 109 million, with plans to increase the Grota do Cirilo mineral resource to 150 million tonnes.
The lithium market has faced a recent downturn, with prices falling to $13,200 per tonne, the lowest since 2020. However, Sigma Lithium remains optimistic about its strategic position, underlining its focus on producing sustainable materials from the environmental and social view for the battery supply chain.
Despite the “recent deterioration in the near-term lithium demand outlook,” Sigma plans to produce sustainable, low-cost pre-chemical lithium concentrate, Cabral-Gardner said.
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