PepinNini Minerals : December 2021 Quarterly Activiites & App5B Cash Flow Report

ASX Announcement

28 January 2022

Quarterly Activity Report for period ending 31 December 2021

HIGHLIGHTS

Salta Lithium Brine Project, Argentina

• Very high 5.2% lithium delivered from brine blending program at Incahuasi and Rincon

only	salares
Brine blending program continued to deliver high lithium recoveries and low
•

contaminants in concentrated Li brine

• Final results due Q1 CY22 and will form the basis for initial technical and economic

use	project evaluation

Eyre Peninsula Kaolin-Halloysite Project, South Australia

• Plans for first-phase drilling confirmed with drilling to commence on confirmation of

	drill rig availability
personal
•	Up to 130 aircore holes for 7,800m at priority targets on all exploration licences
•	Drilling designed to test depth and strike extent plus mineralogy of known kaolin
	occurrences plus other targets defined by geophysics

Other Projects

• PepinNini and Ganfeng Lithium completed an IP geophysical survey at Santa Ines Cu-Au

Project in Argentina, and plans for maiden drilling program were assessed

• Negotiations progressed with traditional owners of the APY Lands for access and commencement of exploration at Musgrave Ni-Cu-Co Project in South Australia

Board and Management Changes

• Rebecca Holland-Kennedy resigned as managing director and as a director of PNN

• Luis Kennedy also resigned as a non-executive director

• Subsequent to the quarter, Stephen Ross was appointed non-executive chairman

For replacing David Turvey who remains a non-executive director; and

• Mena Habib was appointed executive director with responsibility for management of day-to-day operations

inancial

• Successful $3.7m Placement completed to advance exploration at core projects
• Strong cash position of $5.446m as at 31 December 2021 - the Company is fully funded for next phase of exploration

PepinNini Minerals Ltd	Directors
Level 1	STEPHEN ROSS - Chairman
6/68 North Terrace	MENA HABIB - Executive Director
Kent Town SA 5067	JAMES MOSES - Non-Executive Director
	DAVID TURVEY - Non-Executive Director

www.pepinnini.com.au | ASX: PNN

very high 5.2% lithium concentration achieved from evaporation of blended brine;

very low loss of lithium to sulphate contaminant residue precipitates i.e., high Li recovery; and low contaminants (Ca, Mg, SO4) in concentrated Li brine.

Diversified minerals company PepinNini Minerals Limited (ASX: PNN) (PepinNini or the Company) is pleased to provide the following update on its activities for the period ending 31 December 2021.

onlyPepinNini has a portfolio of strategically located exploration projects in key, demand driven commodities including; the Salta Lithium Brine Project in the lithium triangle in Argentina, the Eyre Peninsula Kaolin- Halloysite Project on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, the Musgrave Nickel-Copper-Cobalt-PGE Project in northern South Australia and the Santa Ines Copper-Gold Project in Argentina.

OPERATIONS

useSalta Lithium Brine Project, Argentina

The Salta Project is located in the Salta province in north-west Argentina and is part of the Lithium Triangle, the world's leading lithium brine region. The Project consists of five salares (salt lakes) that sit within seven mining leases, over a total project area of 147.07km2 (Figure 1).

Brine Blending Program delivers 5.2% Lithium

The Company is conducting a brine blending program designed to blend the different chemical properties personalof the lithium brines from the Incahuasi salar and Rincon salar, within the Salta Project (Figure 1). Its aim is to deliver a higher lithium concentration with minimal deleterious elements and high lithium recoveries in

the concentrated blended brine, compared to the lithium concentrate values of the individual salares.

The program commenced in May 2021 and has progressively assessed the level of lithium concentration from the blended brines as they evaporate over time, delivering highly positive results. Progress results have been detailed in ASX announcements, 22 September 2021, 25 November 2021 and 20 January 2022).

The latest test produced an exceptionally high brine mix concentrate of 5.2% lithium (Li) with low levels of contaminants (Table 1) (ASX announcement, 20 January 2022). This result was highly significant, and compares very favourably with other lithium companies in the region.

Significance of results to date include:

•

•

•

ForThe brine blending program is PepinNini's core immediate-term work program at the Salta Project. The final results will help determine potential development pathways and monetisation opportunities for the Project.

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For personal use only

Figure 1: Location Plan - Salta Lithium Brine Project, NW. Argentina (PNN licenses in blue)

	Element &			Symbol			Unit			Blended Brine
	Parameter							17 December 2021
	Lithium		Li	%		5.22
	Sodium		Na	%		0.096
	Potassium		K	%		0.324
	Magnesium		Mg	%		1.52
	Calcium		Ca	%		0.198
	Sulphate		SO4	%		0.023
	Chloride		Cl	%		31.29
	Boron		B	%		0.463
	Density				gram / cc	1.275

Table 1: Laboratory Analysis: Concentrated Blended Brine, 17 December 2021

Background to Brine Blending Program

The brine blending program commenced in May 2021, and has progressively assessed the level of lithium concentration from the blended brines as they evaporate over time. The brines have been blended at a ratio of approximately 3:1 from the Incahuasi salar and Rincon salar respectively.

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Lithium consultants, Ad-InfinitumSpa to complete brine-blendingwork and final report, Q1CY22 Technical-economicanalysis on the cost / benefits of brine-blendingand determine the scope of bulk brine sampling for bench-scaleproduction of lithium carbonate (LIC)

Drilling and sampling to define JORC lithium brine resource at the Incahuasi salar

Preliminary Evaluation Assessment (PEA) or Scoping Study to determine viability of pilot-scaleand full- scale LIC production

Assess M&A and other potential corporate opportunities for the Project.

Blending acts to pre-conditionthe brine in order to quickly reduce contaminants (Ca, S04)

Reduces use of reagents including sodium sulphate (Na2SO4), calcium chloride (CaCl2) and potassium chloride (KCl)

Potential to reduce operating costs and evaporation time.

The Incahuasi salar is located immediately adjacent to Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd.'s project and the Rincon salar is immediately adjacent to Rincon Mining Ltd, which is to be acquired by Rio Tinto Ltd for US$825 million.

The brine-blending evaporation process flowsheet is shown in Figure 2 (below).

only							1	Rincon Well Brine evaporation
KCl
						2	Incahuasi Well Brine evaporation
Water						3	Brine Mix for Ca and SO4 removal
						4	Mixed Brine evaporation
use	Incahuasi Well Brine
Water	600 ppm Li					5	KCl treatment for Mg removal
2						6	Final evaporation
				KCl
Rincon Well Brine				Solution
Water	1000 ppm Li	3	Water	26000 ppm Li	5	Water	51500 ppm Li
							Concetrated Brine
1			4			6
personal								KCl.MgCl2.6H2O
							Ca2SO4.2H2O
							NaCl
							KCl
							KCl.MgCl2.6H2O
							MgCl2.6H2O
							NaCl
							NaCl
Figure 2: Brine-Blending Evaporation Process Flowsheet, December 2021

Significance of brine-blendingprocess:

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•

•

Testing is ongoing to determine the different concentration paths and process reagent inputs for individual ForRincon and Incahuasi lithium brines compared to the 3:1 blended lithium brine, and also to compare

PepinNini's brine-blending results with production processes of industry peer Li chemical companies. Next Steps

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•

•

•

•

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Eyre Peninsula Kaolin-Halloysite Project, South Australia
The Eyre Peninsula Kaolin-Halloysite Project consists of three Exploration Licences (EL6677, EL6681 and
personaluse only
EL6689) covering a total area of 1,413km2. It is strategically located adjacent to Andromeda Metals' (ASX:
ADN) Kaolin-Halloysite project areas on the western side of the Eyre Peninsula (Figure 3).
For	Figure 3: Eyre Peninsula Kaolin-Halloysite Project location map

The Project represents a core exploration asset for PepinNini, and significant progress towards a maiden drilling program was made during the quarter.

All Exploration Licences have been granted (ASX announcements, 5 and 6 October, and 9 November 2021), land access agreements are being progressively sought over the project area and EPEPR (Exploration Program for Environment Protection and Rehabilitation) approval for drilling from the South Australian Department for Energy and Mining has been granted.

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