Resource World Magazine

70 www.resourceworld.com J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 1 7 Epilogue by David Duval L ithium metal was discovered approximately 200 years ago and, for the most part, has led an igno- minious existence ever since. Today, however, consumption patterns for lith- ium reflect strong demand from the high tech industry, most notably from manufac- turers of rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras and elec- tric vehicles. High profile electric car manufactur- ers such as Tesla – along with traditional manufacturers in the US and Asia offering competing products – have also helped focus market attention on lithium which auto manufacturers will need in increasing quantities to meet consumer demand. A number of Canadian explorers, including QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. [QMC-TSXV; QMCQF-OTC], have begun to acquire lithium prospects, some of which have remained dormant for decades but nonetheless have historical resources and/or favourable geology with resource growth potential. Analysts at Morningstar expect lithium demand to rise 16% a year from 175,000 tonnes in 2015 to 775,000 tonnes by 2025, an increase they suggest would be the fast- est of any significant commodity over the past century. They are also projecting a supply shortfall of 100,000 tonnes of lith- ium by 2025. The average price of lithium has tri- pled since 2014 and gained 60% last year according to an index from London- based Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. Not surprisingly, this has boosted the share prices of leading producers such as North Carolina-based Albemarle and smaller groups, such as Galaxy Resources. For some analysts, these gains reflect real demand and a recognition that the age of the pure electric vehicle is rapidly arriving while others suggest the metal is showing signs of a speculative bubble. It would appear the Chinese are in the former camp based on a Financial Times (FT) story in January of this year where it was reported that a small Australian min- ing company sold a lithium prospect in West Africa to a Chinese buyer for $78 mil- lion – more than 2,000 times the amount it paid for the deposit just 11 months earlier. According to the FT, "The deal shows how companies, many of them Chinese, are racing to secure supplies of the silvery white metal, which is used to make the lithium-ion batteries that power billions of smartphones, laptops and, increasingly, electric cars." In early April, QMC completed the first tranche of a $1.1 million non-brokered financing at $0.10 per share which raised $825,000 most of which will be allocated to advancing the company's Cat Lake (also known as Irgon lithium mine) Project in mining-friendly Manitoba. The project was acquired under a well-timed option agreement last October. The Cat Lake property lies within the east-trending Mayville-Cat-Euclid Greenstone Belt which hosts the world- class Tanco rare element-bearing pegmatite dike. The Tanco Mine went into production in 1969 and produced tanta- lum, cesium and lithium concentrate. In fact, it was previously North America's largest and sole producer of spodumene (Li), tantalite (Ta) and pollucite (Cs). Cat Lake hosts several rare-element gra- nitic pegmatite occurrences and includes a historic mineral resource in the former Irgon Mine. The Irgon occurrence and several other known pegmatite dikes are situated on four adjoining mineral claims aggregating 700 hectares which comprise the Cat Lake property. Access to the prop- erty is excellent as Provincial Highway 314 in southeast Manitoba transects the claims, about 150 km northeast of Winnipeg. Between 1953 and 1954 Lithium Corporation of Canada drilled 25 holes into the Irgon Dike and reported a historical resource estimate of 1.2 million tons grad- ing 1.51% Li 2 O over a strike length of 365 metres and to a depth of 213 metres. This is a historic resource that is non- complaint with NI 43-101 standards so a detailed drill program will be required to update this historical resource to cur- rent standards. Historic metallurgical tests reported an 87% recovery from which a concentrate averaging 5.9% Li 2 O was obtained. A complete mining plant was installed on site with a name plate capacity of 500 tons of ore per day and a three-com- partment shaft was sunk to a depth of 74 metres. On the 61-metre level, lateral development was extended off the shaft for a total of 366 metres from which six crosscuts transected the dike. The work was suspended in 1957, awaiting a more favourable market for lithium oxides and at this point the mine buildings were removed. Lithium supply security has become a top priority for technology companies in the US and Asia. Strategic alliances and joint ventures between technology com- panies and exploration companies are helping to ensure a reliable, diversified supply of lithium for battery suppliers and vehicle manufacturers. Canada has always been a reliable sup- plier of industrial commodities to the US market where demand for lithium is expected to grow exponentially following the commissioning by Tesla of a massive lithium-ion battery factory near Reno, Nevada. Companies like QMC have posi- tioned themselves to meet new US demand for lithium which investment bank Goldman Sachs has called "the new oil." n QMC Quantum Minerals to explore former Irgon lithium mine

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