Lithium Americas project in U.S. volcano 'could be biggest deposit ever found'
Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) +9.5% in Monday's trading as research reports suggest its Thacker Pass project in Nevada is located on a lithium deposit that could be among the largest in the world.
Reserves in the McDermitt Caldera, located along the Nevada-Oregon border, could contain 20M-40M metric tons of lithium the metal, according to findings from Lithium Americas (LAC) volcanologists and geologists.
New in situ analysis reveals an unusual claystone, composed of the mineral illite, contains 1.3%-2.4% of lithium in the volcanic crater, nearly double the lithium present in the main lithium-bearing clay mineral, magnesium smectite, which is more common than illite.
The company expects to begin mining at Thacker Pass in 2026, and "if they can extract the lithium in a very low energy intensive way, or in a process that does not consume much acid, then this can be economically very significant," according to one noted geologist. "The U.S. would have its own supply of lithium and industries would be less scared about supply shortages."