Leading Edge Materials Reports on Mineral Characterization from Bergby Lithium Project, Sweden
Leading Edge Materials Reports on Mineral
Characterization from Bergby Lithium Project,
Sweden
VANCOUVER
,
Feb. 25, 2020
/CNW/ -
Leading Edge Materials Corp.
("
Leading Edge Materials
"
or the
"Company
") (
TSXV: LEM
) (
OTCQB: LEMIF
) (
Nasdaq First North: LEMSE
) is pleased to
announce completion of a comprehensive mineralogical and mineral liberation study on lithium-
tantalum mineralized drill core from the 100% owned Bergby lithium project in central Sweden. The
work was undertaken by Outotec Oyj at their Pori Research Centre in
Finland
and funded by EIT
Raw Materials under the LiRef project.
Highlights
Representative 180kg bulk sample from Bergby used for mineralogy and liberation test work;
Bulk sample grade of 1.21% Li
2
O, 115 ppm Ta
2
O
5
closely represents drilled grades;
90% of lithium is contained within spodumene or petalite that are used for lithium chemical
production;
Grind size recommended for high lithium recovery is a P80 of 150µm;
Mark Saxon
, Interim President and CEO, stated
"This recent mineralogy and liberation study,
funded by EIT Raw Materials, has highlighted that lithium at Bergby is hosted in lithium minerals
that are currently used for lithium chemical production. This is a promising result for future
processing. Bergby was first discovered by Leading Edge Materials in 2017, and both the project
and the region have high potential for additional lithium discovery.
The EIT Raw Materials funded LiRef project is focused on improving European access to
sustainable and locally sourced lithium for batteries, and we are very pleased to have Bergby
identified as a potential future supplier to the rapidly growing lithium ion battery industry.
We look forward to meeting shareholders and other industry participants at the upcoming PDAC
conference in
Toronto
to discuss all Leading Edge Materials activities in the European critical raw
materials sector
."
Leading Edge Materials management will be attending the Prospectors and Developers ("
PDAC
")
conference in
Toronto
commencing 1
st
March 2020. The Company can be found at Booth 2941 in
the Investors Exchange, or a meeting can be scheduled by email at
.
Mapping and sampling of the Bergby exploration license from 2016 located numerous angular
lithium-mineralized pegmatitic and aplitic boulders. Thirty-three drill holes were subsequently
completed by Leading Edge Materials to a maximum depth of
131.1m
over an approximate
1500m
strike length, with drill intersections including
8.2m
@ 2.06% Li
2
O;
10.45m
@ 1.58% Li
2
O;
8.75m
@ 2.63% Li
2
O;
18.8m
@ 1.14% Li
2
O; and
19.45m
@ 1.12% Li
2
O
(see press release dated
10th Jan 2018
). Pegmatite hosted lithium mineralization drilled to date lies very close to surface,
extends from the outcrop beneath thin glacial soil cover and remains open at depth.
Approximately 180kg of lithium-mineralized pegmatite was collected and composited from Bergby
drill core. The sample was crushed, ground and sieved into various size fractions for chemical and
mineralogical analysis. Chemical analysis indicated the bulk sample represented drilled intervals
adequately and contained:
1.21% Li
2
O, 115 ppm Ta
2
O
5
, 68.4% SiO
2
, 15.2% Al
2
O
3
, 4.0% Na
2
O, 1.75% K
2
O
The composite mineralogy of the pegmatite sample indicated a weight percent mineral distribution
of:
35.2% albite, 26.2% quartz, 10.6% spodumene, 7.2% K-feldspar, 4.9% muscovite, 4.8%
petalite, 2.7% epidote, 2.3% tourmaline, 1.3% amphibole
Spodumene is the principal lithium-bearing mineral within the Bergby composite sample. Using SEM
data and Outotec's HSC Geo module, the spodumene is seen to carry 71.4% of total lithium,
followed by petalite carrying 18.2%, cookeite (4.7%), eucryptite (3.1%) and LiMnFe-phosphates
(2.1%). Having approximately 90% of lithium within spodumene and petalite is a pleasing result, as
both are traditional lithium source minerals with substantial overlap in process pathways.
The degree of liberation degree of spodumene and petalite was studied to determine optimal grind
conditions. Spodumene liberation was good when the particle size is finer than 212µm, while
efficient liberation of petalite requires grinding to below 150µm. The main binary mineral associated
with spodumene and petalite is quartz and recommended grinding size for high lithium recovery is a
P80 of 150µm.
Albite and quartz are both well-liberated even when the sample is only ground to 1.18mm. This is a
promising result and suggests potential for both minerals to be saleable industrial products alongside
lithium and tantalum.
The EIT Raw Materials funded LiRef project project seeks to validate two spodumene conversion
processes with the aim to develop one robust and flexible process transforming spodumene
concentrate into battery grade lithium chemical. It aims to foster the development of a sustainable
European value chain. The partners include four mining companies (Savannah Resources, Leading
Edge, Keliber and European Lithium) as well as Aurora Lithium AB, Outotec, FLSmidth, GTK and
Luleå University of Technology.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Leading Edge Materials Corp.
Mr.
Mark Saxon
, Interim CEO
About Leading Edge Materials
Leading Edge Materials is a Canadian public company focused on production of high value critical
raw materials for the European market. LEM's assets and research focus are towards the raw
materials for Li-ion batteries, high thermal efficiency and materials that improve the efficiency of
energy generation. Investments are linked to the global shift to low-carbon energy generation and
energy storage.
Additional Information
The information was submitted for publication through the agency of the contact person set out
above, at
25th February 2020
at
4:00 AM
Vancouver time.
Leading Edge Materials is listed on the TSXV under the symbol "LEM" and Nasdaq First North
Stockholm under the symbol "LEMSE". Mangold Fondkommission AB is the Company's CA on
Nasdaq First North and may be contacted at +46 (0) 8 5030 1550.
Reader Advisory
This news release may contain
statements which constitute "
forward-looking information
",
including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and
current expectations
of the
Company, its directors, or its officers with respect to the future business activities of the Company.
The words "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate",
"expect" and similar expressions,
as
they relate to the Company, or its management, are intended
to identify such forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking
statements are not
guarantees of future
business activities and
involve risks
and
uncertainties
,
and
that
the Company's future business activities
may
differ
materially from those
in the forward-
looking
statements
as a result of various factors, including,
but not limited to,
fluctuations in market
prices, successes of the operations of the Company, continued availability of capital and financing
and general economic, market or business
conditions
. There can be no assurances that such
information
will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation
of such uncertainties. The Company does not assume
any obligation to update any forward-looking
information except as required
under the applicable securities laws.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in
the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this news release.
SOURCE
Leading Edge Materials
View original content to download multimedia:
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/February2020/25/c4231.html
%SEDAR: 00031410E
For further information:
please contact the Company at: 1.604.685.9316,
[email protected], www.leadingedgematerials.com
CO: Leading Edge Materials
CNW 07:00e 25-FEB-20