Recharge Metals completes acquisition of large-scale Express lithium project
Fin Resources will launch a detailed mapping and geochemical sampling program over the three lithium projects once the acquisition is complete.
Recharge Metals (ASX: REC) has finalised the acquisition of the large-scale Express lithium project in Canada from private vendors DG Resource Management, Ikigai Strategic Investments and Hale Court Holdings.
The transaction was approved by shareholders at a general meeting last week.
The company has paid a consideration of $274,000 to the vendors, plus 22.5 million ordinary Recharge shares and 6.18 million options to acquire new shares at $0.20 each within three years of issue.
Milestone payments will also be made to the vendors in the form of performance rights vesting into Recharge shares on a one-for-one basis.
A total 22.5 million rights will be split into three vestments, with the first 5 million vesting into shares when Recharge announces at least five rock chip samples with grades of at least 1% lithium oxide within the first four years.
Another 7.5 million rights will vest into shares when Recharge achieves a drilled intercept or a surface channel sample of at least 5m at 1% lithium oxide representing lithium mineralisation within the same timeframe.
The final 10 million rights will vest when Recharge announces a mineral resource estimate of 10 million tonnes grading a minimum 1% lithium oxide within four years of acquisition.
Royalty terms have also been agreed between Recharge and the vendors.
DGM will retain exposure to Express via an 18.8% shareholding in Recharge.
Planned exploration
Recharge managing director Felicity Repacholi-Muir said the company would now focus on planned exploration at Express, funded by a $3 million raising through the placement of 30 million new and fully-paid ordinary shares to sophisticated and professional investors.
“Our initial activities will include identifying pegmatites on the ground ahead of a helicopter-assisted field program,” she said.
“We are excited to start exploring the highly-prospective tenements as the first step to creating significant investor value.”
Recharge originally launched a $2.5 million placement but upscaled it on the back of strong demand.
The company received firm commitments from its board for $100,000 in shares under the placement.
Express location
The Express project is located in Québec’s prolific James Bay region and interpreted to sit within a spodumene-bearing pegmatite trend which hosts the high-grade James Bay deposit (owned by Allkem, ASX: AKE) and the Pontax lithium project (Cygnus Metals, ASX: CY5).
James Bay has a resource estimate of 37.2 million tonnes grading 1.3% lithium oxide and is surrounded by several significant lithium discoveries.
Express comprises 139 mineral claims over two contiguous blocks for 73.5 square kilometres with outcropping pegmatites and is close to existing infrastructure, sealed roads and hydro power.
Identifying the project
DG Resource Management identified the Express project following a review of favourable host rocks throughout the region which were identified as having the appropriate indicator-mineralogy for spodumene-bearing pegmatites.
The company previously identified, acquired and vended the Corvette property to Patriot Battery Metals (ASX: PMT) which returned significant drill intercepts this year including 156.9m at 2.12% lithium oxide from the CV5 pegmatite.