TECHNOLOGY
48 which has seen lithium earn the moniker ‘ white gold ’: “ We ’ ve had a great result at San Jose – a net present value ( NPV ) in excess of US $ 720m and an international rate of return ( IRR ) of 51 %. The production of lithium-hydroxide is a highly specified field . We ’ ve come in with a C1 operating cost of $ 5,343 per tonne which places us at the lowest end of the cost curve and in line with the advantages that hard rock producers have over brines in this space .” Infinity expects the project to generate $ 5.1bn in revenue , and over $ 126m in free cash flow ( pre-tax ) per annum , driving a payback period of circa 28 months . The planned mine at San Jose , located 2.5 hours away from Madrid , will take advantage of one of Europe ’ s largest lithium deposits . A forecast project life of 24 years would see the creation of 200 jobs and 1,000 supporting roles .
To reach that goal Infinity has forged an alliance with technical partner Wave International . The Australian engineering company has a strong pedigree and is currently involved with Albemarle ’ s construction of Western Australia ’ s
FEBRUARY 2019