Noram Lithium Corp: Zeus PEA shows 31% After-Tax IRR USD$1.299 Billion After-Tax NPV
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Noram Lithium Corp: Zeus PEA shows 31% After-Tax IRR
USD$1.299 Billion After-Tax NPV
Vancouver, British Columbia – December 8, 2021 – Noram Lithium Corp. (“Noram” or the “Company”)
(TSX - Venture: NRM / Frankfurt: N7R / OTCQB: NRVTF) today announced the summary results of a
National Instrument 43 -101 compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") for the high -grade
lithium deposit at its wholly-owned Zeus Lithium Project (“Zeus” or the “Project”) located less than 1 mile
from Albermarle’s Silver Peak Mine, which is currently the only lithium production facility in the United
States. The PEA was prepared by ABH Engineering (“ABH”,) an independent engineering services firm with
extensive experience in mining and mineral processing. All dollar values are in US dollars.
PEA Highlights
• Robust Economics.
o $1.299 Billion Net Present Value (“NPV”). Base case after-tax Net Present Value ("NPV")
of $1.299 billion (8% discount rate).
o 31% Internal Rate of Return (“IRR”). Base case after-tax IRR of 31%.
o Capital Costs (“CAPEX"). Estimated initial CAPEX of $528M with after-tax payback period
of 3.23 years.
o Gross Revenue of $303.4 Million/year
o Low Operating Cost. Operating Cost (“OPEX”) of $3,355.30/tonne Lithium Carbonate
Equivalent (“LCE”) with a break-even price of $4016.6/tonne LCE LOM.
• Long Mine Life (“LOM). The mine production rate during full operation is set at 17,000 tpd. The
production schedule uses ore from the first 11 phases, which results in 40-year mine life (“LOM”).
The mine production schedule results in 245.4 million tonnes averaging 1,093 ppm Li.
• Very Low Strip Ratio. Mining strip ratios are very low, averaging 0.07:1 for LOM. Mining consists
of a truck and shovel method, with blasting being unnecessary due to the ore softness.
• Low Environmental Impact. The leaching and filtration flowsheet includes dry stack tailings,
thus, eliminating the environmental risk and long-term management issues associated with
tailings ponds.
• LCE market Price. Base case market price of $9500/tonne LCE is well below long term forecasted
rate of $14,000/tonne1.
• Price Sensitivity. As noted in the sensitivity chart below, the after-tax NPV reaches $2.665
billion at $14,250/Tonne LCE (8% discount rate).
1 Lithium Carbonate Price (2015-2040) (Lane, T.; Harvey, J. T.; Fayram, T.; Samari, H.; Brown, J. J.;, 2018)
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“We are thrilled with the results of this PEA,” stated Sandy MacDougall, Noram’s Chief Executive Officer
and Director. “This study represents the most significant milestone to date for Noram and establishes us
among limited peers as the newest low cost, high-grade, near-term lithium producer in North America. I
am very pleased with what our team has achieved quickly, on schedule, and at the opportune time
considering current and forecasted demand for Lithium Carbonate. This initial economic assessment is
the most significant step to date towards our goal of lithium production and provides the market with a
benchmark to evaluate our project’s viability and value compared with other lithium developers. We are
excited as we enter 2022 pushing aggressively towards the completion of a Pre-Feasibility Study.”
Net Present Value (“NPV”) US$1.299 Billion
Internal Rate of Return (“IRR”) 31%
Life of Mine (”LOM”) 40 years
Operating Cost (“OPEX”) US$3355.30/tonne
Capital Cost Estimate US$528 Million
Average Annual Production Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (“LCE”) 31,900 tonnes
Average Daily Mine Production Rate LOM 17,000 tpd
LOM Production 245.4 MT @ 1093 ppm Li
LCE Market Price used in PEA Study* US$9500/tonne
Strip Ratio 0.07 : 1.00
Pay Back Period 3.23 years
Gross Revenue per Year US$303.4 Million
PEA Summary
Infrastructure
The project is located next to the Cypress Development’s Clayton Valley Lithium Project and within 1 mile
of Albermarle’s Silver Peak Lithium Mine. The Project is accessible via the Silver Peak Road, a two -lane
road that connects the Silver Peak mine with Highway 95 to the east. General site infrastructure includes
administration, laboratory, warehouse, reagent, comminution plant, and lithium recovery plant. Tailings
are to be conveyed to the tailings storage areas for final spreading and contouring by dozers.
Metallurgical Testing
The objective of the metallurgical test program conducted on the Zeus Lithium deposit was to develop a
viable process flowsheet to produce lithium carbonate. Information generated during the test program
was used to define the process variables. Metallurgical testing began in 2018 at Actlabs Ltd (Actlabs) and
AuTec Innovative Extractive Solutions Ltd (AuTec). This PEA report includes metallurgical test work
conducted by SGS Canada Inc. in collaboration with ABH Engineering.
The following observations, conclusions and interpretations were obtained from the metallurgical test
program:
• Zeus Lithium deposit ore is soft and disintegrates easily if agitated in water.
• Sulfuric acid solution effectively leaches lithium at high extraction.
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• Test work achieved 90% lithium extraction at 65°C, 30% solids density and 2 hours residence time.
Mine Option Selection
An ultimate pit of processable material will be created, consuming most of the property area. The ultimate
pit has been divided into phases of which the first 11 contain enough resources for 40 years of production
at a 17,000 tpd production rate. Resources contained within the entire ultimate pit limits provide enough
ore for over 190 years of production at 17,000 tpd. All resources rega rdless of the material classification
are treated equally for the purpose of this study.
An optimized cut -off grade of 850 ppm was used to schedule the processed feed, compared to the
economic cut-off grade of 400 ppm. Low-grade ore with grades between the economic cut-off of 400 ppm
and optimized cut-off of 850 ppm are scheduled to be deposited in the low -grade ore stockpile. This is
done to initially increase the average processed ore grade and improve the overall economics of the
project by accelerating higher grade material to earlier years.
Category Units Value
Gross Revenue $M 303.4
Operating Cost $/tonne LCE 3,355.3
Capital Cost $M 528.0
Property tax % of Capex 1.05%
State Tax % Up to 5%
Federal Tax % of net income 21%
Discount Rate % 8%
Pre-Tax NPV (8%) $M 1,675.1
After-Tax NPV (8%) $M 1,299.9
Pre-Tax IRR % 36%
After-Tax IRR % 31%
Payback Period years 3.23
Break-even Price (0% IRR) $/tonne LCE 4,016.6
Economic Analysis for Zeus Lithium Project
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Sensitivity Analysis at 8% NPV with Varying Conditions
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Measured
Li Cutoff
(ppm)
Tonnes x
1,000,000
Li Grade
(ppm)
Contained Li
(tonnes)
LCE
(tonnes)
400 66.74 927 61,863 329,299
600 61.34 964 59,128 314,738
800 46.47 1051 48,840 259,975
1000 27.70 1150 31,854 169,558
Indicated
Li Cutoff
(ppm)
Tonnes x
1,000,000
Li Grade
(ppm)
Contained Li
(tonnes)
LCE
(tonnes)
400 296.42 922 272,297 1,454,762
600 279.66 947 264,837 1,409,728
800 221.64 1007 223,193 1,188,059
1000 103.76 1128 117,044 623,023
Measured + Indicated
Li Cutoff
(ppm)
Tonnes x
1,000,000
Li Grade
(ppm)
Contained Li
(tonnes)
LCE
(tonnes)
400 363.15 923 335,191 1,784,222
600 341.00 950 323,945 1,724,361
800 268.11 1014 271,865 1,447,135
1000 131.46 1133 148,945 792,836
Inferred
Li Cutoff
(ppm)
Tonnes x
1,000,000
Li Grade
(ppm)
Contained Li
(tonnes)
LCE
(tonnes)
400 827.22 884 731,261 3,892,501
600 715.91 942 674,383 3,589,743
800 546.48 1013 553,588 2,946,750
1000 265.47 1134 301,043 1,602,452
Final Tonnages and Grades of the Classes of Mineral Resources
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Qualified Person
The technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Brad Peek.,
M.Sc., CPG, who is a Qualified Person with respect to Nor am’s Clayton Valley Lithium Project as defined
under National Instrument 43-101.
About Noram Lithium Corp.
Noram Lithium Corp (TSX - Venture: NRM / Frankfurt: N7R / OTCQB: NRVTF) is a Canadian based junior
exploration company, with a goal of developing lithium deposits and becoming a low - cost supplier. The
Company’s primary business is the Zeus Lithium Project (“Zeus”) in Clay ton Valley, Nevada. The Zeus
Project has a recently updated resource estimate of 363 million tonnes at 923 ppm lithium measured +
indicated resources, and 827 million tonnes lithium at 884 ppm lithium inferred resources (400 ppm Li
cut-off).
Noram’s long term strategy is to build a multi -national lithium minerals company to produce and sell
lithium into the markets of North America, Europe, and Asia.
Please visit our web site for further information: www.noramlithiumcorp.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Sandy MacDougall
CEO, Director
Investor Relations Contact:
Rich Matthews
Managing Partner
Integrous Communications
+1 604 757 7179
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the
TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may
contain forward-looking information which is not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking information involves
risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities
to differ materially from those expressed o r implied by such forward -looking information. Forward -looking
information in this news release includes statements regarding, among other things, the completion transactions
completed in the Agreement. Factors that could cause actual results to differ mat erially from such forward -looking
information include, but are not limited to, regulatory approval processes. Although Noram believes that the
assumptions used in preparing the forward -looking information in this news release are reasonable, including that
all necessary regulatory approvals will be obtained in a timely manner, undue reliance should not be placed on such
information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events
will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. Noram disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as
required by applicable securities laws.