Century Lithium joins US fast track

[Ben Graham]

Century Lithium’s (TSXV: LCE) estimated $3.1 billion Angel Island project in Nevada has been given transparency status by the US Federal Permitting Council on its fast-track approval list.

The feasibility-stage Angel Island, formerly known as Clayton Valley, is among the top tier claystone lithium development projects in the US by reserves and economics. It’s comparable to other claystone lithium projects in Nevada, such as Lithium Americas’ (TSX, NYSE: LAC) Thacker Pass project, about 320 km northwest of Angel Island.

“The addition of Angel Island to the Federal Permitting Dashboard is a meaningful step and we are thankful for the Permitting Council’s selection,” Century Lithium CEO Bill Willoughby said Wednesday. “Projects on the Federal Permitting Dashboard with transparency status receive the visibility that is at the core of FAST-41, delivering an efficient and accountable process through permitting.”

Latest in Nevada

Angel Island is the latest project in Nevada to be given FAST-41 transparency status after American Battery Technology’s (Nasdaq: ABAT) Tonopah Flats lithium project was granted that designation in July. A total of 28 critical mineral projects across the US have since March been added to the FAST-41 framework, aimed at streamlining a project’s permitting process.

The permitting council, established in 2015 by Title 41 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41), oversees federal environmental reviews for critical infrastructure projects. Full FAST-41 covered projects receive coordinated project plans and expert support, while transparency projects only gain public visibility on the dashboard without additional FAST-41 benefits.

Century Lithium shares fell 0.8% to C$0.28 apiece on Wednesday morning in Toronto, for a market capitalization of C$42.6 million.

287Mt reserves

Located near Silver Peak in eastern Nevada, Angel Island hosts 287.65 million tonnes of proven and probable reserves grading 1,149 parts per million lithium for 1.75 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), according to the April 2024 feasibility study.

The project has an after-tax net present value of $3.1 billion, an after-tax internal rate of return of 17.1% and a mine life of 40 years. Its first stage production capacity is pegged at 13,000 tonnes LCE per year, at capital costs of $1.5 billion. Expanding that capacity to 28,000 tonnes per year would cost another $651 million.

The company plans to use a unique chloride leaching process combined with direct lithium extraction to remove lithium from the claystone.