VANCOUVER, British Columbia,
Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-- International Lithium Corp. ("ILC" or the "Company") (ILC:
TSX-V) is pleased to announce that, further to its news release on
July 30, 2012, the Company has signed
a formal option agreement (the "Option Agreement") with GFL
International Co. Ltd ("GFL"), an investment company wholly owned
by Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd. ("Ganfeng Lithium"), to earn up
to a 100% interest in ILC's Blackstairs project (the "Blackstairs
Project") in Ireland.
Under the terms of the Option Agreement:
GFL can earn a 51% interest (the "First Option") in the
Blackstairs Project by:
- incurring a minimum of $300,000
in exploration expenditures within 18 months of signing the Option
Agreement (the "Effective Date"); and
- paying ILC an aggregate of $500,000 in cash within one year from the
Effective Date - $25,000 on the
Effective Date and $475,000 on the
first anniversary of the Effective Date.
GFL can earn an additional 24% interest (the "Second Option") in
the Blackstairs Project by incurring up to an additional
$10,000,000 in exploration
expenditures or producing a positive Feasibility Study no later
than 10 years from the Effective Date.
At any time during 6 months from the Effective Date, GFL can
acquire a 100% interest in the Blackstairs Project by:
- paying ILC an aggregate of $2,000,000 in cash - $400,000 within 6 months of the Effective Date
and $1,600,000 on the date ILC's 100%
interest in the Blackstairs Project has been transferred to GFL or
a nominee of GFL; and
- granting ILC a 2% net smelter royalty on the Blackstairs
Project.
"This joint venture with Ganfeng Lithium will help to advance
our highly prospective Blackstairs Lithium project in Ireland. It also allows for ILC to build a
stronger working relationship with Ganfeng Lithium on a more
diverse portfolio of exploration projects. We are confident that
ILC will succeed in providing our strategic partners with a source
for their operations, benefiting both companies' future growth and
value." Kirill Klip, President,
International Lithium Corp.
In addition to the "Option Agreement", GFL has signed a formal
loan agreement (the "Loan Agreement") to lend ILC a total of
$2,000,000 (the "Loan") to advance
the Company's Mariana Lithium-Potassium Brine project in
Argentina and for general
corporate purposes.
Ganfeng Lithium will advance ILC $1,000,000 (the "First Advance") on or before
October 12, 2012 with the second
$1,000,000 to be advanced on or
before October 31, 2012. The First
Advance is convertible into common shares of the Company at a price
of $0.08 per common share, during the
first year of the Loan Agreement, and at a price of $0.10 per common share, during the second year of
the Loan Agreement. ILC will pay interest on the outstanding
amount of the Loan at 10% per annum, payable quarterly.
Both the Option Agreement and the Loan Agreement
are subject to approval by the Chinese Securities Regulatory
and Exchange Commission, the TSX Venture Exchange and may also be
subject to other Canadian regulatory approvals.
"With these agreements in hand, ILC can accelerate its
operations and concentrate on the exploration and development of
its Mariana Brine project in
Argentina. Along with significant
lithium content, this intriguing project contains some of the
highest reported potassium grades from a salar in the country. ILC
will seek to engage a strategic fertilizer producer to partner in
the development of this potential potassium resource. As
demonstrated with the lithium, the Company is dedicated to
advancing its mineral properties with well-seasoned, supportive
strategic partners." states Kirill
Klip, President, International Lithium Corp.
"These transactions are in line with Ganfeng Lithium's
long term goal to secure the raw material supply to meet the
potential future demand on Lithium products" states
Xiaoshen Wang, VP executive of
Ganfeng Lithium.
In other business, due to current market conditions, Metron
Capital Corp. has decided to terminate its option agreement on the
Company's Forgan Lake property.
About Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd.
Ganfeng Lithium based in Xinyu, Jiangxi Province, China, is a professional producer of lithium
products which has developed a comprehensive product chain,
including lithium metal and alloys, inorganic and organic lithium
chemicals, supplies a wide range of lithium products for primary
and secondary lithium battery market, pharmaceutical and new
material industries. Ganfeng Lithium's principal market is in
China with international exports
to Europe, Japan, the USA and India. Ganfeng Lithium was founded in the 2000
and listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in August 2010, notably as the first publicly listed
lithium company in China and has
experienced rapid continuous growth over the last 11 years.
About the Blackstairs Project
The Blackstairs Project, comprised of eight mineral exploration
licences totalling 292 square kilometres, is located 80 kilometres
south of Dublin straddling the
Counties of Carlow and
Wicklow in Leinster, south-east
Ireland. The Blackstairs Project
encompasses an extensive NE-SW oriented 50 kilometre long rare
metals pegmatite belt situated within the East Carlow Deformation
Zone along the eastern side of the Leinster Granite. Approximately
19 significant lithium pegmatite occurrences have been discovered
within the Blackstairs Project to date primarily as boulder trails
with five buried pegmatites known through past trenching and
drilling.
Due to the prevalent overburden cover and scarcity of outcrop,
prospecting for lithium pegmatite boulders was the most successful
exploration method utilised to identify priority target areas. The
Aclare House occurrence, situated in the center of the Blackstairs
Project was initially discovered through this exploration
approach.
A pre-National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for
Minera Projectsl ("NI 43-101") historical resource of 570,000
tonnes grading 1.5% Li2O was reported at Aclare House. (A Qualified
Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical
estimate as current mineral resources, the Company is not treating
the historical estimate as current mineral resources and the
historical estimate should not be relied upon.)
Other drilling highlights include 1.85% Li2O over 5.3 metres at
Stranakelly and 1.66% Li2O over 9.4 metres at Moylisha.
The observed lithium bearing pegmatites and extensive boulder
occurrences within the Blackstairs Project represent a highly
prospective and underexplored region. In addition, the recent
discovery of a high concentration of pegmatite boulders reporting
grades exceeding 4% Li2O at Moylisha only serve to highlight the
exploration potential of the Blackstairs Project.
John Harrop, P.Geo, is the
Company's Qualified Person on the Blackstairs Project as required
under NI 43-101 and has reviewed the technical information
contained in this press release.
About International Lithium Corp.
International Lithium Corp. is an exploration company with a
focused portfolio of projects. A strong management team with
personal ownership in the company compliments robust financial
support from key stakeholders. A leading China based lithium product manufacturer,
Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd., is a strategic partner and
keystone investor in ILC.,. The Company currently has 9 active rare
metals projects, including lithium-potash brines in Argentina and Nevada, and hard-rock pegmatites in
Canada and Ireland.
The Company's primary focus is the Mariana lithium-potash brine
project. Mariana is located in the renowned South American 'Lithium
Belt' centred on the junction of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile that is host to the vast majority of
global lithium resources, reserves and production. Mariana consists
of a salar or 'salt lake' covering 160 square kilometres. The
project strategically encompasses the entire mineral rich basin.
The Mariana lithium-potash brine project ranks as one of the more
prospective salars in the region.
Complementing the Company's lithium brine projects are rare
metals pegmatite properties in Canada and Ireland. Despite the excellent accessibility
of these hard-rock rare metals projects, there is limited past
exploration and geochemical sampling for rare metals. There is a
clear potential for exploration success and added value here as the
Company strives to source rare metals to help meet the increasing
demand through the growth in global technologies that utilize the
rare metals suite of elements.
ILC's mandate is to increase shareholder value through
aggressive advancement of its core projects and to source joint
venture partners to expand the scope and diversify risk of its
exploration effort.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Kirill Klip
President, International Lithium Corp.
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. Statements in this press release other
than purely historical information, historical estimates should not
be relied upon, including statements relating to the Company's
future plans and objectives or expected results, are
forward-looking statements. News release contains certain
"Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of
the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions and
are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties inherent in the
Company's business, including risks inherent in resource
exploration and development. As a result, actual results may vary
materially from those described in the forward-looking
statements.
620 - 650 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6B 4N9, Canada
Voice: (604) 687-7551
Fax: (604) 687-4670
1-800-667-4470
E-mail: info@internationallithium.com
SOURCE International Lithium Corp.
