Call it a one-two punch. BlueBird Battery Metals Inc. (TSX: V.BATT, OTCQB: BBBMF, Forum) has put out two significant pieces of news to start the month of April. On April 2, 2019; the Company announced the appointment of George Karageorge as its new President.
In general terms, Karageorge is a mining veteran with decades of experience and a track record of success. In specific terms, Karageorge has especially impressive credentials with respect to lithium exploration and project development in Australia. More on that later.
From the release.
George Karageorge shared these thoughts with respect to his appointment at BlueBird Battery Metals.
“I’m delighted to have joined BlueBird, and I’m looking forward to advancing the Company’s assets. With a superb Western Australian portfolio that includes lithium, vanadium, cobalt, copper and nickel projects, BlueBird aims to conduct a comprehensive, multi-project work program this year, and I’m excited about the opportunities ahead.”
When Canadian mining investors think “lithium”, most will associate this with the Lithium Triangle of South America, or perhaps Clayton Valley in Nevada. What many probably do not know is that the world’s leading jurisdiction for lithium production (by a significant margin) is Australia.
More specifically, Australia’s vast lithium production is concentrated in Western Australia, in the Greenbushes Spodumene district. This leads to the second piece of news for Bluebird Battery Metals. On April 1, 2019 ; BATT announced the acquisition of Southern Lithium Pty Ltd., a private Australian lithium company with its operations based in Western Australia.
This is hard-rock lithium geology, with mineralization hosted in pegmatite formations. The advantage of hard-rock lithium mining (in addition to much higher grades) is generally a much lower level of impurities in the lithium oxide that is produced. The significance here is that the Battery Metals industry requires high-purity lithium as an input for battery metals production, making hard-rock lithium inherently more suitable for this industrial application.
South Lithium holds 12 tenements, comprising a vast land package of 664 square kilometers, located in Yilgarn Lithium Province. This is a region that has already produced a number of notable lithium discoveries.
Western Australia is generally renowned as a major mining destination, with a stable mining-friendly government. It’s also rich in mining infrastructure. BlueBird itself has its operations squarely focused on Australia, not only with respect to lithium exploration, but also nickel, cobalt, vanadium and copper. Nav Dhaliwal, CEO of Bluebird framed this acquisition.
“This strategic acquisition for BlueBird secures a highly-prospective land position within an emerging hard rock lithium district. With its stable pro-mining politics and straightforward permitting environment, Western Australia has emerged as a preferred source of high-quality lithium and tantalum supply. We are excited by the scope of the opportunity before us. The district has been proven to host large-scale lithium mineralization associated with pegmatite structures. Several pegmatite targets have been mapped within the assembled tenements, none of which have been evaluated for lithium.”
For investors, George Karageorge also fits prominently in this picture. With his depth of experience in lithium exploration in Western Australia (through Pilbara Minerals), Karageorge can add invaluable guidance in project development.
Those years of experience also equate to contacts within Australia’s mining industry and particular knowledge of its prospective land packages. Indeed, given the close proximity of the two announcements, investors will likely infer that Karageorge played a prominent role in BlueBird’s newest acquisition.
Lithium demand has already risen dramatically as a result of the lithium-ion batteries that are fueling the Power Revolution of the 21st century. Going forward, this demand is projected to double by 2027 .
With recent prices trending downward for lithium (currently below USD$12,000 per metric tonne) this provides a buying opportunity for investors looking for exposure to this space. With its two, new announcements and its overall positioning in a leading mining jurisdiction, many mining investors will want to take a closer look at BlueBird Battery Metals.
bluebirdbatterymetals.com
FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a paid article of Stockhouse Publishing.