Rio Tinto buys Rincon lithium mine Announced today, Rio Tinto buys Rincon lithium mine in Argentina for $825 Mill.
I wondered how E3 value might stack up against that so I poked a bit. The Rincon project was characterized as Brine extraction, but it is in fact Solar powered, meaning the brine is in ponds and … well the end product is a lot costlier than what E3 is doing. Plus, the result is lithium carbonate; E3 is lithium Hydroxide … but I digress.
My numbers are VERY broad brush and can be debated no end, but here goes:
Rincon production (now a pilot plant) is expected to top out at 10,000 tpa
E3 production (from the clearwater project alone!) expected at 20,000 tpa (2X factor)
Rincon project life expected to be 16 yrs.
E3 Clearwater life expected at 20 yrs (1.25 factor)
Rincon value (purchase price) 825 mill
E3 current market cap 100 mill (8x factor)
Todays E3 price is 1.75 / share x8 x2 x1.25 ….. Yields $35 per share
Not too shabby … I can be patient for that. Plus, thats just one of E3’s projects … perhaps some upside from that.