TORONTO, Dec. 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Green Shift Commodities Ltd. (TSXV: GCOM), (“Green Shift” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive purchase agreement (the “Agreement”) dated November 30, 2022, with LFP Resources (“LFP”) and the shareholders of LFP pursuant to which GCOM has agreed to acquire (the “LFP Acquisition”) all of the outstanding shares of LFP. LFP is a privately owned Canadian exploration company which has existing rights to acquire (the “Property Acquisitions”) an aggregate of approximately 485,000 hectares of prospective lithium ground in Rio Negro, Chubut, and Neuquén Provinces in Argentina (the “Property”). Completion of the LFP Acquisition is conditional upon, among other things, completion of one of the Property Acquisitions.
Highlights:
- Entry into the lithium sector is a natural extension to the Company’s existing exposure to clean energy and battery commodities which already includes uranium, phosphate, nickel, and vanadium at its Berlin project in Colombia.
- Argentina is one of the top lithium producing countries in the world and is geologically highly prospective; the GCOM team has deep experience operating exploration projects in the country.
- The district-scale land package covers areas of known lithium pegmatite occurrences discovered and sampled in the 1960’s by the Argentinian government, plus an additional tens of kilometres of prospective strike containing areas with similar geological and geophysical signatures.
- La Pintada and Manuel Choique granites (that extend over an area of 12 km x 7 km), which were the focus of the previous work, contain 19 known pegmatite dykes that returned lithium grades up to 4.76% Li2O1 in historic sampling. Recent mapping has identified dozens of additional potential untested pegmatite dykes and has identified the potential for disseminated lithium mineralization in granite in this area.
- The Property is located in an area of good, all-season access and extensive infrastructure.
- Permitting required for systematic exploration of the Property is underway. Planned exploration includes extensive sampling of outcropping pegmatite and geological mapping on closing of the LFP Acquisition.
Trumbull Fisher, CEO and Director of GCOM, commented, “We are very pleased to announce GCOM’s entry into the lithium sector where prices have increased dramatically recently due to rising demand for EV batteries. The district-scale land package we are acquiring offers the potential to explore known areas of lithium while, at the same time, secures an entire belt that has yet to be methodically explored. On a recent visit to the project area, I was very encouraged by the ease of access, the proximity to infrastructure and by the high-grade lithium exposed in the pegmatites exposed at surface. Additionally, through the acquisition, we will add a local technical team with tremendous experience exploring for lithium in Argentina. They are excited, as we are, to get work programs started immediately to test the potential of the incredibly large and prospective Property area. While the Berlin Project, with its uranium, phosphate, nickel, vanadium resources, continues to be of great importance to GCOM, this acquisition demonstrates our team’s plan to continue to expand further into the battery metals space.”
Terms of the LFP Acquisition
Pursuant to the Agreement, GCOM will acquire all of the outstanding shares of LFP for consideration comprised of an up-front payment of USD$75,000 and the issuance of 17,500,000 common shares of GCOM (“Common Shares”) on closing. The price per Common Share will be based on the closing price of the Common Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the “TSXV”) on the day immediately prior to closing of the LFP Acquisition, currently anticipated to take place in January of 2023. The issuance of the Common Shares pursuant to the LFP Acquisition is subject to approval of the TSXV.
Completion of the LFP Acquisition is conditional upon, among other things, GCOM being satisfied, in its sole and absolute discretion, with the terms of the Property Acquisition and its due diligence with respect to the Property Acquisition and the Property, the completion of the Property Acquisition and the satisfaction of certain other closing conditions customary in transactions of this nature. There are no finders’ fees payable in connection with the LFP Acquisition and the sellers are arms-length parties with respect to the Company.
The Property
The Property consists of approximately 485,000 hectares of staked and granted claims stretching through the provinces of Chubut, Rio Negro and Neuquén (Figure 1). The Property covers a large portion of an intrusive belt known to host lithium mineralization. Historic work on granitic stocks in the Manuel Choique (“MC”) area by the Argentine State in the 1960’s identified 19 separate pegmatite bodies where assay results from 60 rock chip samples ranged from 0.6% Li2O to 4.1% Li2O, averaging 2.0% Li2O.
Over 800 structures (possible pegmatite bodies) have been mapped through satellite image interpretation in the MC pegmatite field. This work showed that the identified structures have a total strike length of over 100 km. A recent field visit confirmed the existence of many of the target structures identified on satellite imagery. Many of the trenches sampled by the State in the 1960’s are still open and accessible for resampling in the planned exploration program.
Figure 1: Property Area
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Table 1: La Pintada Granite/Manuel Choique Geochemical Assay Results from Historic Sampling¹
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Qualified Person
The scientific and technical information contained in this news release was reviewed and approved by Peter Mullens (FAusIMM), a consultant to LFP Resources, who is a “Qualified Person” (as defined in NI 43-101).
About Green Shift Commodities Ltd.
Green Shift Commodities Ltd. is focused on the exploration and development of commodities needed to help decarbonize and meet net-zero goals.
The Company is developing the Berlin Deposit in Colombia. Apart from uranium, for clean nuclear energy, the Berlin Deposit contains battery commodities including nickel, phosphate, and vanadium. Phosphate is a key component of lithium-ion ferro-phosphate (“LFP”) batteries that are being used by a growing list of electric vehicle manufacturers. Nickel is a component of various lithium-ion batteries, while vanadium is the element used in vanadium redox flow batteries. Neodymium, one of the rare earth elements contained within the Berlin Deposit, is a key component of powerful magnets that are used to increase the efficiency of electric motors and in generators in wind turbines.
For further information, please contact:
Trumbull Fisher, CEO, Green Shift Commodities Ltd.
E: tfisher@greenshiftcommodities.com
Tel: (416) 917-5847
¹ Source: 1. Sesana, Fernando, 1968. Estudio Sobre La Zora De Granito Y Pegmatita Lithified De Masuri Oroique Rio Negro
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes certain “forward looking statements”. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intensions for the future, and include, but not limited to, statements with respect to: closing of the closing of the LFP Acquisition and the Property Acquisition; the approval of the TSXV; the outcome of permitting activities, the completion of future exploration work and the potential metallurgical recoveries and results of such test work; the future direction of the Company’s strategy; and other activities, events or developments that are expected, anticipated or may occur in the future. These statements are based on assumptions, including that: (i) the ability to achieve positive outcomes from test work; (ii) actual results of our exploration, resource goals, metallurgical testing, economic studies and development activities will continue to be positive and proceed as planned, (iii) requisite regulatory and governmental approvals will be received on a timely basis on terms acceptable to Green Shift (iv) economic, political and industry market conditions will be favourable, and (v) financial markets and the market for uranium, battery commodities and rare earth elements will continue to strengthen. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in such statements, including, but not limited to: (1) changes in general economic and financial market conditions, (2) changes in demand and prices for minerals, (3) the Company’s ability to source commercially viable reactivation transactions and / or establish appropriate joint venture partnerships, (4) litigation, regulatory, and legislative developments, dependence on regulatory approvals, and changes in environmental compliance requirements, community support and the political and economic climate, (5) the inherent uncertainties and speculative nature associated with exploration results, resource estimates, potential resource growth, future metallurgical test results, changes in project parameters as plans evolve, (6) competitive developments, (7) availability of future financing, (8) the effects of COVID-19 on the business of the Company, including, without limitation, effects of COVID-19 on capital markets, commodity prices, labour regulations, supply chain disruptions and domestic and international travel restrictions, (9) exploration risks, and other factors beyond the control of Green Shift including those factors set out in the “Risk Factors” in our Management Discussion and Analysis dated May 2, 2022 for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Green Shift Commodities Ltd. assumes no obligation to update such information, except as may be required by law.
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 press release.
